ANPDmissionary State Secretary Van Huffelen at the ceremony for Tula
NOS News•today, 00:12•Changed today, 02:07
In Willemstad on Curaçao, the ceremony for the rehabilitation of the Curaçao slave leader and hero Tula was held with a day’s delay. In 1795 he started a revolt of enslaved people against Dutch colonial rule.
Outgoing State Secretary for Kingdom Relations Van Huffelen, among others, spoke during the ceremony. She apologized on behalf of the Netherlands and asked forgiveness for the fact that the rehabilitation took so long. She praised Tula as a man who had the courage to stand up for his freedom “and that of many others here on Curaçao”. Tula is a hero, she emphasized, “a historical hero,” whose struggle was “just.”
Van Huffelen told those present that the Netherlands “has deliberately and efficiently tried to erase the history of your ancestors. I say that with shame and regret.” She added that she had come to Curaçao to “face history” on behalf of the Dutch government.
In her speech, the State Secretary also mentioned the gruesome way in which Tula was tortured. “All the bones in his body were broken with an iron bar. His face was burned and finally he was beheaded.” That torture and execution was “a cruel crime committed by representatives of the Dutch state”.
The ceremony was actually supposed to take place a day earlier, exactly 228 years after Tula’s death, but due to bad weather it could not take place.
A great man who refused to bow down and remain silent.
King Willem-Alexander in his letter about Tula
King Willem-Alexander wrote a letter to the people of Curaçao, which was read by Governor Lucille George-Wout during the ceremony. “In the history of your country and our Kingdom, the figure of Tula stands proud. He arouses admiration and respect. Because of his courage and his leadership, because of his resistance to degrading exploitation. And because of the ideals with which he was ahead of his time.” , she quoted the king.
In his letter, Willem-Alexander mentions a visit he made this year with Queen Máxima and Princess Amalia to the former plantation where the slave revolt began. There he became “impressed again” by Tula’s personality. About his rehabilitation, the king writes that this represents reparation “of a great man who refused to bow down and remain silent. His voice resonates and reminds us that freedom ultimately has the last word.”
Rebellion against colonial rule
At the end of the 18th century, Tula worked as a slave on the Kenepa plantation, in the west of Curaçao. Discontent among the enslaved grew: they received little to eat and worked long hours in the heat. Inspired by the French Revolution, Tula and fifty fellow sufferers revolted for their right to freedom on August 17, 1795.
They moved to Willemstad and along the way more and more enslaved people joined them. The colonial government tried to suppress the uprising, but this failed. An army attacked the rebels, after which a bloody battle began that lasted almost a month. Ultimately, the rebels lost that battle and Tula was convicted, tortured and gruesomely executed.
Tula was long depicted as a criminal by Dutch authorities. It was only in the 1980s that more and more people in Curaçao began to advocate for Tula to be recognized as a freedom fighter and hero. In 2010, the then island government also officially recognized Tula as such.
Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas of Curaçao said in response to Van Huffelen’s speech that rehabilitation is a “condition for the healing process and the material and immaterial repair that must take place”. Because Tula has been portrayed as a villain for centuries, he believes the population has never had the opportunity to properly reflect on the struggle Tula fought for freedom and equality.
This video explains how the Dutch slavery past still has an impact:
How the Dutch slavery past still has an impact
2023-10-04 22:12:05
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