ABSTRACT
The expenditures for general welfare formed about 17 per cent of the general Netherlands Indies budget in recent years, but this figure alone is meaningless because a considerable amount for these purposes is collected and spent by local authorities. The long association has created many spiritual ties; besides, it was generally admitted, there are material advantages for the Indies in a political link with the Netherlands. The intermediary commercial function of the Netherlands is diminishing, as more and more trade is transacted between the Indies and foreign countries. The actual autonomy which the Indies possessed after the invasion of the Netherlands increased the self-confidence of all population groups. A number of Indonesian nationalists considered complete autonomy for the Indies a primary condition for a super-parliament. The government appointed ten each of the Indonesian and Dutch members and two of the representatives of the foreign groups.
