[4] From 16 to 25 July 1946, the Dutch organized a conference in the town of Malino on Celebes (Sulawesi) as part of their attempt to arrange a federal solution for Indonesia.

However many in East Indonesia, with its non-Javanese population and sizable number of Christians, opposed moves toward a unitary state.

On 16 March 1950, two days after its formation without any unitarist representation, the new cabinet bowed to pressure and lifted the ban on demonstrations.

As a result, restrictions were reimposed, and Justice Minister Soumokil ordered the arrest of non-parliamentary unitarist supporters.

Soekawati and Soumokil, along with former cabinet minister Dolf Metekohy, began to draw up plans to separate the NIT from the USI.

On the evening of the next day, Soumokil appointed former KNIL lieutenant Andi Aziz to lead any action against the landings.

[15] On 5 April, the day the troops were due to land, in response, Andi Aziz took control of the city, deployed artillery and successfully turned the troopships away.

On 13 April, Soekawati, Prime Minister Jan Engelbert Tatengkeng, Parliament Speaker Hoesain Poeang Limboro, federalist legislators and Azis held a meeting at the presidential palace and discussed breaking away from the RUSI in order to save the NIT.

[24] The Provisional Representative Body for the State of East Indonesia (Dewan Perwakilan Sementara Negara Indonesia Timoer), initially consisting of the 70 participants of the Denpasar Conference, opened its first session on 22 April 1947 in the presence of Lieutenant Governor General of the Dutch East Indies Hubertus van Mook.

[25] On 20 February 1950 the Provisional Representative Body of East Indonesia was disbanded after the general election, which had taken place between September and December 1949.

The position of these autonomous governmental heads was regulated by what were called korte verklaring (short-term declarations) and lange kontrakten (long-term contracts); these were actually intended as a recognition by the Dutch Indies Government of the special position of the rajas, whose power to govern the autonomous regions was handed down from one generation to the next.

[32] The Autonomous Region Regulation of 1938 gave the swaprajas wide de jure autonomy but most of the rajas were puppets of Dutch administrators.

[33] The remaining area of the state not part of the swaprajas comprised directly governed regions (rechtstreeks bestuurd gebied).

Directly governed areas included Minahasa, the South Moluccas, Gorontalo, the districts of Macassar and Bonthain, and Lombok.