When they heard what the Dutch had done, theIndonesians rushed to the hotel, and hand to hand fighting began with theDutch, who were determined to defend their flag. Oranje Hotel, Surabaya, 19 September, 1945 While this was takingplace, young Indonesians were busily replacing Japanese flags in all theoffices with Indonesian ones. The future President Sukarno declared independence on 17 August 1945, andon 19 September, Dutch internees, with Japanese support, occupied theOranje Hotel in Surabaya, and hoisted the Dutch flag.
The area around theeast Javanese town of Surabaya became the scene of some of the heaviestfighting, and the Battle of Surabaya, which cost the lives of manythousands of Indonesians, became a symbol of resistance to there-imposition of Dutch colonial rule. Few realised that it would be another five years of fightingbefore the country became a fully independent republic.
At the end of World War II many Indonesians believed that independence wasimminent.
