The Netherlands commemorates and celebrates the abolition of slavery

This year marks the 151st anniversary of the definitive end of slavery under Dutch rule. Therefore, the abolition of slavery will be remembered and celebrated throughout the country on Sunday and Monday. In addition to the national commemoration in Amsterdam, activities will take place in all provinces, including commemorations with wreath-laying ceremonies and celebrations with theater, dance and music. In addition, Keti Koti (broken chains) will be commemorated with communal meals at various locations.

Wreaths will be laid during the commemoration in Zwolle, Rotterdam, The Hague, Almere, and Tilburg. In Zaandam, this will take place at the Anton de Kom Bridge, after which an alderman will unveil the Freedom Monument in commemoration of the slavery past. In Zwolle, a city walk will be organized to take visitors to places in the city that are reminiscent of the colonial and slavery past. In Alkmaar and Hoorn, there will be various speakers and music.

On Dam Square in Amsterdam, all the flags of the former Dutch kingdom will be flown at half-mast on Sunday. These are the flags of the Netherlands, Suriname, Curaçao, Aruba, Bonaire, St. Martin, Saba and St. Eustatius. They will be hoisted again after the national commemoration.

The end of slavery will be celebrated on Monday in many places in the Netherlands. Keti Koti festivals will be held in Almere, Utrecht, Amsterdam, Apeldoorn, and Eindhoven, where artists will perform and lectures and workshops will be offered.

Keti Koti, the day of remembrance and celebration of the abolition of slavery, was officially added to the inventory of intangible cultural heritage in the Netherlands last year. This was done on the recommendation of NiNsee, the National Institute for the History and Heritage of Slavery in the Netherlands. Since 2020, Keti Koti has been included in the Canon of the Netherlands, which represents the 50 most important historical events for the Netherlands.

Suriname expects compliance with agreements on slavery past

The Surinamese government expects the Schoof Cabinet to comply with the agreements made after the apologies for the slavery past after July 1. This is according to Silvano Tjong-Ahin, coordinator of the Platform Slavery Past Suriname in formation.

"A lot of questions are being asked now because exponents of the new government have made some bold statements about possibly withdrawing the apology and the arrangement," he says. "We cannot assume that there will be a change in policy with the changing of the guard. We want to assume that there will be continuity of policy."

A total of 66 million euros is available for Suriname, half for easily accessible social initiatives and the other half for policy. Tjong-Ahin regularly consults with Frederique de Man, the special envoy on the history of slavery in the Netherlands. On July 1, The Hague will present a new framework for implementing the plans.

There will be an international tender for an implementation agency in Suriname. A questionable matter, the coordinator thinks. He predicts that a large international company will win the tender. "Such a company knows absolutely nothing about Suriname. What will happen in practice is that it will engage two small Surinamese organizations to do the work. We do have some difficulty with that."

It is important that Surinamese people record the history of slavery, Tjong-Ahin believes. In addition, the Surinamese people must reconcile among themselves and with the Dutch. "Not just symbolically, but also tangibly. That reconciliation must lead to us doing something with the cooperation between two countries that are inextricably linked anyway, also because of slavery."

The close ties are not yet visible in the Dutch visa policy: residents of eight of the fifteen countries of the Caricom, the Caribbean community, are welcome without a visa. Tjong-Ahin: "Surinamese are not. It is ridiculous. While the entire Caricom area sees us as Dutch Guyana, we cannot travel freely to the Netherlands."