the kingdom's 1954 administrative reform was sparked by the 1931 statute of westminster and the 1941 atlantic charter (stating ″the right of all peoples to choose the form of government under which they will live, and the desire for a permanent system of general security″), which was signed by the netherlands on 1 january 1942. changes were proposed in the 7 december 1942 radio speech by queen wilhelmina. in this speech, the queen, on behalf of the dutch government in exile in london, expressed a desire to review the relations between the netherlands and its colonies after the end of the war. after liberation, the government would call a conference to agree on a settlement in which the overseas territories could participate in the administration of the kingdom on the basis of equality. initially, this speech had propaganda purposes; the dutch government had the dutch east indies (now indonesia) in mind, and hoped to appease public opinion in the united states, which had become skeptical towards colonialism.