In the Dutch East Indies, the authorities want peace and prosperity, but in the 1930s things were brewing in the colony. There is an economic crisis, workers are being laid off en masse. National Socialism is rising, but also nationalism among Indonesians. A young engineer, Sukarno, openly denounces the colonial government. His political supporters are punished with exile to a remote and disease-ridden camp. But there are also threats from outside. Hans Goedkoop's grandfather is stationed as an officer in a strategic location, Balikpapan, where a Japanese attack threatens. What awaits a soldier in the colony?