The Dutch troops had much better equipment than their Indonesian opponents. Not only were the Dutch infantry better armed but the Dutch forces also had heavier equipment such as tanks, planes, ships and artillery. The Indonesian forces made up for this imbalance by switching to guerrilla warfare. Without clearly defined battlefields, situations frequently developed in which there were civilian casualties, especially when Dutch troops deployed heavy weaponry. This was termed ‘technical’ or ‘mechanical’ violence and often involved shooting at a target from a great distance, with little idea of the effect. Such actions could result in large numbers of civilian casualties. This text mentions five bombs that were dropped on a kampong: “Two didn’t explode, one came down nicely on the pasar [market].” This soldier has drawn a little map showing the “pasar”, “factory”, “pelop” (short for pelopor, or pelopper) and “bomb”.
Transcription
“After eating in the kampong, went and had a look with [C.V.] and a KNIL chap to search for kris knives. We were in the middle of a conversation when we were disturbed by a carbine shot nearby. [...] The shooting from the peloppers increased and now they were shooting at the camp from three sides. [...] At that point, the only thing I could think of was to keep on walking as fast as I could. A native just stood and laughed at us but we ignored them. Luckily we got back to the camp unharmed. [...] Sat down first on a chair to get some rest, then went outside with the bombs. Launched five bombs at the kampong. Two didn’t explode, one landed nicely on the pasar [market].”
Diary of the conscript C. Kommer. One item. West Java, 22 December 1949. Or. 27.014-3.