Dutch government to issue a formal apology for role in colonial-era slavery

In an effort to reconcile with its colonial history, the Dutch government has chosen to issue an apology for its involvement in 250 years of slavery. This formal apology is scheduled to be issued on December 19, and the government hopes that it will make amends for how the Netherlands exploited over 600,000 individuals who toiled as slaves in its former colonies.

In an interview with the media last week in The Hague, Prime Minister Mark Rutte stated that an “important moment” on this matter will occur on December 19, this year.

Timing of the decision of the Dutch government

This decision, as well as the timing of the Dutch government’s upcoming announcement, has come under scrutiny, with groups from former Dutch colonies like as Suriname in South America criticizing it as whimsical and claiming that they were not informed about the date. They also believe that the choice was made haphazardly and hastily. Instead, they believe the apology should have been delivered on July 1, 2023, which marks the 150th anniversary of the Netherlands ending slavery in its former colonies.

According to Johan Roozer, chairman of the Surinamese National Commemoration of Slavery Remembrance Committee, Prime Minister Rutte most likely wanted to issue the apology on December 19 due to the “changing political situation” in the Netherlands, with far-right Dutch political parties opposing the apology.

According to local media, the government also intends to spend 200 million euros on a fund to raise awareness of the colonial power’s role in slavery, as well as 27 million euros to open a slavery museum. Franc Weerwind, Minister for Legal Protection, acknowledged a report by RTL that the government planned to issue a formal apology in December.

The decision follows an advisory panel’s suggestion last year

The decision follows an advisory panel’s suggestion last year that the government acknowledges that the slave trade constituted crimes against humanity, which might be remedied by a formal apology. According to Weerwind, the apology will “open the book to a shared future.”

Going back in time, the Dutch have a lengthy history of slavery, which began in the 17th century, when other former European colonial powers such as Spain and Portugal were already active in the transatlantic slave trade. The Dutch Empire began colonizing enormous areas of land in South America and the Caribbean through the Dutch West India Company (WIC), and acquired slaves from Africa to labor on the sugar, cotton, and coffee plantations of these territories.

According to a Leiden University study, the time span is “between 1612 and 1872, the Dutch operated from some 10 fortresses along the Gold Coast (now Ghana), from which slaves were shipped across the Atlantic”.

It also describes how the Dutch role in the transatlantic slave trade included the exploitation of around 550,000-600,000 Africans. Suriname and Guyana also became important marketplaces for Dutch slave purchases.

Slavery was abolished in the Netherlands in 1863

Slavery was abolished in the Netherlands in 1863, making it one of the last countries to do so. According to Leiden University, Dutch slavery ended only in Suriname in 1873 because the law required a 10-year transition period.

According to Dutch-Moroccan lawmaker Salima Belhaj of the Democrats 66 (D66) political party in the Netherlands, thoughts on making an apology for Dutch slavery gathered traction after the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement in the United States.