WesWorld

A short article, but longer than it could be thanks to inspiration from the Dutch news.

12 October 1930

The annual SATSUMA exercises are well underway. Admiral Kashiram Paswan told reporters that the games were proceeding fairly well but would not discuss specific aspects of the exercise, “lest I provide my counterpart on Red Force with important information.”

3 November 1930

Two weeks after the intense SATSUMA exercises concluded, Indian forces are deploying east to assist in suppressing an apparent outbreak of piracy in the South China Sea. The seaplane carrier Palk Bay, tender Midshipman Neha Parashar, four anti-submarine launches and four motor-torpedo-boats departed Sittwe today, bound for the Philippines. They will be joined southeast of the Andamans by the torpedo-boat T-19, making a rare operational deployment.

“Our detachment, under Commander Parkash Chatterjee, will be seconded to Filipino command and deployed in a manner suitable for coastal patrol and aerial recce missions”, noted Admiral Kashiram Paswan. “We will work with our allies to ensure that the pirate threat is located and eradicated.”

25 December 1930

“Good afternoon, Your Highness”, said Somnath Karat, head of India’s intelligence service. “Thank you for agreeing to see me.”

“You’re welcome”, replied Shrinivas. “Although it would seem unwise not to agree with my intelligence head’s request for an urgent meeting.”

Karat laughed politely. “Quite, Your Highness. Thankfully, my concern today is not so much a national security matter at this point as it is a bureaucratic matter. I speak, of course, about the coming budget for nineteen thirty-one.”

“Of course”, Shrinivas echoed. “What of it?”

“Well”, Karat began, sounding somewhat bewildered, “It seems that a line-item from my agency’s budget was omitted from the budget, and the Ministry of Finance is insisting - erroneously, I must assume - that this is not a mistake.”

“What item would that be?”, Shrinivas inquired.

“It’s this one here, Your Highness”, Karat replied, handing him a sheet of paper with an earlier draft of the budget. “Item Seventeen, Rural Development Activities, Indonesia. A very critical program, very important, yet suddenly unfunded.”

Shrinivas smiled innocently. “Forgive me, Mr. Karat, I’m still learning about the vast range of programs this government runs - remind me what this entailed, precisely?”

“Certainly, Your Highness. It’s funding to select pro-independence freedom fighters in Indonesia”, Karat replied. “Borneo Liberation Movement, Scarlet Hand, the April Tenth Battalion - and several others of course, as we do want to minimize risk by maximizing our influence.”

“Yes...I remember it now”, Shrinivas said slowly. “We were funding terrorist organizations attacking the Dutch regime in Indonesia. Mostly Marxist groups, as I recall.”

“That’s correct, Your Highness”, Karat said. “Not all Marxist, of course, but they’re the most organized groups out there. It’s sensible to employ them in meeting our end-goal of expelling the Dutch from the archipelago.”

“I’d agree with you, Mr. Karat”, Shrinivas said, and the intelligence head began to look puzzled. “However, that’s not our end goal. Our end goal is to empower the Indonesians and help them build a strong, self-governing region.”

“With respect, Your Highness, that’s precisely what we’re doing”, Karat noted.

“It is not”, Shrinivas replied firmly. “For all its faults, Dutch rule still embraces tenets important to India: reward for one’s personal enterprise, personal security, and the importance of religion in one’s life. Marxism - a European creation, you’ll note - reduces humanity to its lowest common denominator, removes economic incentive to strive for success, and grinds its foot on the face of religion. Why ever would I want to see a large and important neighbour enslaved by a group of people that would make the Dutch look angelic in comparison?”

Taken aback, Karat was unable to answer.

“Besides which”, Shrinivas added, “Marxists clearly believe it’s their duty to spread their revolution, and if you think I want people like that trying to get a toehold here in this nation, you are gravely mistaken. Does this answer your question, Mr. Karat?”

“It does”, Karat said unhappily.

Nice short piece. Too bad that Admiral Kashiram Paswan didn't want to reveal more details. Guess we'll have to wait for your final exercise report... in about two sim years.
:-)

Good article.
Its nice to see that for once a goverment is not funding terrorict with poliecies the sayed goverment dose not aprove.

I'd assume that this "news" isn't released to the public domain?

That's correct, India will not be publicizing its involvement with marxist terrorist organizations in Indonesia. Suffice to say India will carefully cover its tracks and perhaps remove a few intermediaries who know too much. After that, it's up to Kirk to determine how the groups react.

I know, the exercise report is way overdue...Paswan can't reveal details because I don't know what they'd be.

It's a nice Christmas present

Though the Dutch will still blame the Indians, somewhat regardless of evidence.

The Shrinivas's take on things fits well.
The timeline is about a decade off of historical, but from the little reading I've done so far, the communist (OTL backed by the Soviets) insurgencies that happened caught the fancy of some educated middle class types but fizzled as broadbased movements without stirring the peasantry or upper classes

The nationalistic/independence movements had some overlap with the communists, but the ones which eventually caught the imagination of the populace both came a bit later and were separate from the communist groups.

The events in NW Sulawesi, being 'past history' are intended to be minor and a nod to future difficulties, while explaining why the Dutch were preoccupied and quite while the Philippine events were occurring.

Will we be hearing about the actual fleet exercise at some point. I'm curious what our respective ships did or did not accomplish.

Also there was a rumor about a report on piracy in the 1930s?

I know another exercise report which is over due - but I´m working on it, slowly....

Nice piece, Doc.

Nothing about a the new base securing sealanes between our countries?

Diego Garcia?

Possibly one of the places least suited to building a port in the Indian Ocean. You don't build a port on a coral reef. You don't take ships near to a reef or shoals. It would be difficult to build. Maybe if you only build "floating" drydocks then there is a chance, along with razing a channel through the reef.

Both the piracy conference and the exercise report will come, but whereas I can have a brainwave and punch out a little news report in fifteen minutes, these other documents require a fair bit of research. I'm having difficulty getting the time necessary to complete them.

I'll get to Diego Garcia in Q1/31, which may also in part address Gavin's issues.