RTV NoordLucas Bernard and Boy Hattu at the memorial statue in Nuis
In association with
RTV North
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 22:30
The graves of Moluccan soldiers of the Royal Dutch East Indies Army (KNIL) in the Groningen villages of Nuis and Marum will be given a special status. This means that surviving relatives no longer have to pay burial fees and that the graves will not be cleared.
The municipality of Westerkwartier, which includes both villages, is the last in the province of Groningen with a Moluccan community that gives military graves a special status. “We want to give something back to our Moluccan community,” says councilor Harry Stamphorst statement from the municipality. “We show our respect for the first generation of Moluccan people.”
By granting the special status, the municipality recognizes the efforts of the KNIL soldiers during the struggle for independence in Indonesia. “And the suffering of these soldiers and their families after arrival in the Netherlands,” said the councilor.
The battle
After Indonesia’s independence in 1945, Moluccan soldiers from the KNIL remained loyal to the Netherlands. After the war of independence in Indonesia, they were seen as collaborators. That is why more than 3,500 Moluccans were brought to the Netherlands in 1951. In the Netherlands, the veterans and their families were placed in camps. Some of these were used as concentration camps during the Second World War.
The Moluccans lived there in harsh conditions, says survivor Lucas Bernard, whose parents also came to the Netherlands in 1951. “There was little privacy, everything was shared. They were fired, had no fixed income, and were not allowed to work. That makes it difficult to support your family,” he says. There was no question of integration.
Initially, the Moluccan veterans and their families would be temporarily in the Netherlands. But the expectation that they could return did not materialize. The Dutch government then decided to build Moluccan neighborhoods and house the people there. The Moluccans felt abandoned by the Dutch government.
‘Never too late to show respect’
Several municipalities in the Netherlands have already given the graves of the first generation of Moluccans a special status. This is appreciated by relatives. This also applies to Bernard, a member of the Moluccan community in Marum. His parents are buried in Nuis. “This means a lot to me. It’s never too late to show respect,” he says RTV North.
“The Moluccan neighborhood in Marum is celebrating its sixtieth anniversary this year,” he continues. “We have been part of the municipality of Westerkwartier for a long time. It is nice to receive recognition now, especially for the first generation of us.”
2024-03-13 21:30:00
#Graves #Moluccan #KNIL #soldiers #Groningen #villages #special #status
