Dutch Deputy PM heading to Suriname to discuss slavery apologies; Court case today

Deputy Prime Minister Sigrid Kaag will travel to Suriname on Thursday to discuss the Netherlands’ apology for its history of slavery. A day later (Dutch time), she will meet with President Chan Santokhi, parliamentarians, and representatives of social organizations. Today, the court in The Hague will handle summary proceedings filed by Surinamese organizations to prevent the Netherlands from apologizing for slavery on 19 December. They want it to happen on 1 July 2023.

According to insiders, the Cabinet is still planning to apologize for the slavery past on 19 December. Prime Minister Mark Rutte will give a speech at the National Archives. According to critics, the run-up to this apology did not go well. Critics called the apology rushed, said the Netherlands did not listen to people from the former Dutch colonies and other involved parties enough and raised concerns about whether the apologies would be accepted.

In recent weeks, there were multiple consultations in the Netherlands and abroad about the Cabinet’s plans to prevent the apologies from going wrong. The government decided last minute to send Kaag to Suriname in her role as deputy Prime Minister to explain the Cabinet’s plans in person.

The Cabinet will likely make a final decision on the details for the 19th on Friday during the Council of Ministers. That weekly Cabinet meeting usually starts in the morning, so the final decisions may already be made when Kaag meets with the Surinamese politicians. The Deputy Prime Minister will probably consult with Minister Franc Weerwind (Legal Protection) in Suriname, who will speak on behalf of the Dutch government in Paramaribo on Monday.

Cabinet members will also go to the Caribbean Netherlands - Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba, and the independent countries within the Kingdom - Aruba, Curacao, and Sint Maarten - to represent the Cabinet during the apologies.

Lawsuit

The Surinamese foundations appearing in court today want the Cabinet to apologize on 1 July next year, the 160th anniversary of the formal abolition of slavery. That date holds great symbolic importance to many, 19 December does not, they argue.

“Apologies must take place on 1 July so that we can work towards it. It is not clear at the moment that we know exactly what the apologies are for,” said lawyer Joancy Breeveld, involved in the summary proceedings, after meeting with the Cabinet. “We feel called to stand up for our descendants.”

The claimants in the case are the foundation Wi Kon Na Wan, Mart Radio, Eer en Herstel, Afro-Caribbean Philosophy of Life and Spirituality, and the Keti Koti Foundation.

Cabinet's plans

If the apologies do happen on Monday, the “meaningful moment” will occur at the National Archives in The Hauge that afternoon. Prime Minister Mark Rutte will give a speech in the presence of several senior Cabinet members and other guests. Afterward, Cabinet members in the Netherlands, Suriname, and the Caribbean parts of the country will enter into discussions with the invited guests.

Deputy Prime Ministers Wopke Hoekstra, Sigrid Kaag, and Carola Schouten will attend the apologies in The Hague. As will Ministers Hanke Bruins Slot (Home Affairs) and Robbert Dijkgraaf (Education, Culture, and Science). Seven Cabinet members will go to Suriname and the six islands that form part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. There, they’ll watch Rutte’s speech and speak with the other guests.

Minister Franc Weerwind (Legal Protection) will go to Suriname. That decision faced some criticism as he himself is a descendant of enslaved people. Surinamese organizations found that inappropriate. Johan Roozer of the Surinamese National Committee of Slavery Commemoration, for example, said that he would only accept the apologies if they came from a “white person.”

State Secretary Eric van der Burg (Asylum) will go to Aruba, State Secretary Alexandra van Huffelen (Kingdom Relations) will go to Curacao, and Minister Ernst Kuipers (Public Health) will go to Sint Maarten. Minister Karien van Gennip (Social Affairs) will represent the Cabinet in Bonaire, State Secretary Marnix van Rij (Fiscal Affairs) in Sint Eustatius, where he was once a government commissioner, and Maarten van Ooijen (Public Health) will go to Saba.

King Willem-Alexander will have no part in Monday’s apologies. According to the Cabinet, there will be no role for the King on Monday.