The Rawagede massacre was committed by Dutch armed forces on 9 December 1947 in the village of Rawagede (now Balongsari in West Java), during Operatie Product. Dutch forces were deployed in the East Indies to try and retain them as a Dutch colony. They were fighting Indonesian Republicans seeking independence for Indonesia. Almost all males from the village, amounting to 431 men according to most estimates, were killed by the Dutch military, since the people of the village would not tell where the Indonesian independence fighter Lukas Kustario was hiding. Later research has shown that the people of the village indeed did not know where he was hiding.
Although Dutch army general Spoor recommended that the responsible officer, Major Alphons Wijnen, be prosecuted, no criminal investigation was started. A report from the United Nations published on 12 January 1948 called the killings "deliberate and merciless".[1]
On 8 September 2008, 10 survivors of the massacre officially held the Netherlands responsible for the massacre. The state lawyer replied in a letter published on 24 November 2008, that the Netherlands "deeply regrets" the massacre, but that it believes the term for prosecution had expired. This has drawn some criticism among MPs, as well as among leading Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad, who argued in an editorial that there is no such thing as a statute of limitations on war crimes.[2]
In December 2009, the 10 survivors decided to sue the Dutch state in court.[1] The court decided on 14 September 2011 that the crime due to its extraordinary nature is not subject to a statute of limitations, and thus held the Dutch state fully accountable for the damages caused.[3]
On December 9, 2011, the Dutch ambassador for Indonesia stated: "We remember the members of your families and those of your fellow villagers who died 64 years ago through the actions of the Dutch military." "On behalf of the Dutch government, I apologize for the tragedy that took place." Only 9 relatives are still alive and will receive Euro 20,000 ($27,000) compensation each, but there is no schedule for these payments.[4]