Commemoration & History

  • Dialogue and processing

    Commemoration is more than looking back at history; it also means engaging in conversation in the here and now. Dialogue is therefore a powerful tool for the Commemoration Committee to acknowledge the history of slavery, to make its impact discussable, and to contribute to healing. 

  • Dialogue is the bridge where past and future reach out in trust.

    We believe that social processing begins with listening. Listening to the stories of descendants and to differences in experience and perspective. We consciously engage in these conversations: between regions, between communities, between generations throughout the Kingdom. 

  • When voices meet, silence can transform into healing and connection.

    Through educational programs, discussion meetings, and commemorative rituals, we encourage a culture in which discomfort is not shunned, but in which there is room for healing, awareness, and justice. Processing is not an end point, but a collective process in which everyone has a voice. 

The history of slavery:
a brief overview


The Dutch history of slavery began in the early 17th century, when trading companies such as the West India Company (WIC) and the Dutch East India Company (VOC) enslaved people and used them in a global economy of exploitation.

  • Remembering together, moving forward together

    In the name of trade and wealth, hundreds of thousands of people from West Africa and Asia were kidnapped, traded, and turned into property. They were transported against their will to colonies, including Suriname, Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, Saba, Sint Maarten, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and South Africa.

    On plantations, in households, ports, and mines, they were forced to work under harsh conditions and often violent circumstances. The Dutch state legitimized this system legally and economically and profited from it on a large scale. Slavery was not an exception but a foundation of the colonial system. Indigenous peoples, for example on the South American mainland and in the Caribbean, were also robbed of their land, oppressed, and sometimes enslaved. Their history and struggle are an essential but often forgotten part of this past.

  • At the same time, there was constant resistance. Enslaved people rebelled, fled, or founded free communities, such as the Maroons in Suriname. On Curaçao, Tula led a large-scale rebellion against the slavery system in 1795.

    Resistance was also mounted on other islands by powerful figures such as One Tété Lohkay on Sint Maarten, who continued to flee despite serious physical injuries and encouraged others to resist, and Sablika on Sint Eustatius, who, according to tradition, preferred to give her life rather than her freedom. In various parts of the Kingdom, Indigenous and enslaved people kept their language, rituals, and cultural traditions alive. As an act of strength, survival, and self-preservation.

    On July 1, 1863, the Netherlands formally abolished slavery. But it was not until 1873, after ten years of compulsory state supervision, that forced labor came to an end for many in Suriname. Moreover, a new phase of exploitation began there with the arrival of contract workers from India and Java. These contract workers labored under conditions of dependency and control similar to those during the period of slavery.

  • On Curaçao, too, people were forced to work for a pittance on the land of former plantation owners under the so-called paga-terra system. It was a form of ongoing colonial inequality that offered no real freedom.
     
    The consequences of this past are still felt in Dutch society today. Racist ideas and power structures from the colonial era often live on unnoticed in contemporary institutions and relationships. Inequality persists in education, where students of color receive structurally lower recommendations, in the housing and labor markets, in cultural representation, in heritage institutions, and in language use. 

    But the past does not only live on in pain and trauma. This history also carries stories of pride, struggle, and resilience. The strength of our ancestors, who survived, resisted, and formed communities, continues to inspire us to this day. Resistance heroes such as Anton de Kom, who continued to denounce colonialism and racism in Suriname and the Netherlands in the twentieth century, show that this struggle transcends generations. The Slavery History Remembrance Committee works to ensure lasting recognition of this past. We create space for education, remembrance, healing, and awareness in every region of the Kingdom. 

  • A past that speaks,
    a future that listens

    But the past does not only live on in pain and trauma. This history also carries stories of pride, struggle, and resilience. The strength of our ancestors, who survived, resisted, and formed communities, continues to inspire us to this day. Resistance heroes such as Anton de Kom, who continued to denounce colonialism and racism in Suriname and the Netherlands in the twentieth century, show that this struggle transcends generations.
     
    The Slavery History Remembrance Committee works to ensure lasting recognition of this past. We create space for education, remembrance, healing, and awareness in every region of the Kingdom.

Important years & moments

Africa Before the Slave Trade

Before Europeans arrived, West African kingdoms like Songhai, Mali, Benin, and Kongo had rich cultures, monarchs, and complex systems. Art, science, and technology thrived, including medicine, math, and astronomy. They made luxury goods from bronze, ivory, gold, and terracotta. Trade with Europeans began in the 15th century with the Portuguese, exchanging gold, ivory, and spices, but also buying and kidnapping Africans. By the 17th century, slavery became central due to sugar demand.

The Transatlantic Slave Trade

Between 1525 and 1867, Europeans transported millions of Africans in the transatlantic slave trade. The Dutch, via the West India Company, transported over 600,000 Africans. Curaçao and Sint Eustatius were transit points and plantation sites. The crossing was deadly, with one in seven enslaved people dying. In Suriname, many worked on sugar plantations; some escaped to form Marron communities that resisted slavery. The Indigenous population suffered greatly, but their cultures survived through creolization, blending African, European, Asian, and Indigenous influences still seen today.

Thico on Aruba

In 1795, Thico, an enslaved man owned by the state, openly resisted slavery on Aruba. He refused to serve any longer and demanded his freedom. Thico was arrested and sent to Curaçao. Because he continued to resist, he was forced to work in Fort Amsterdam. His brave protest, just before Tula’s uprising on Curaçao, makes him one of Aruba’s earliest freedom fighters.

Martis di Katalina Janga on Bonaire

In 1834, Martis di Katalina Janga led an uprising on Bonaire against brutal working conditions in the salt pans. Enslaved people had to walk for hours daily in extreme heat under violent overseers. Under Martis’ leadership, they demanded equal treatment. The uprising lasted about a week and marked a key moment of resistance in Bonaire’s history. His actions are still remembered as a symbol of the fight against injustice.

Tula on Curaçao

On August 17, 1795, Tula led the largest slave uprising on Curaçao. He worked on the Kenepa plantation and, together with dozens of others, demanded freedom from their owner. The rebellion grew to about two thousand people. Tula was captured and brutally executed. In 2010, he was recognized as a national hero and officially rehabilitated in 2023. His struggle is commemorated every year on August 17 during Dia di lucha pa libertat – the Day of the Freedom Struggle.

Boni, Baron and Joli Coeur in Suriname

Boni, born among the Marrons in Suriname, became the leader of a guerrilla group that attacked plantations and freed enslaved people from Fort Boekoe. In 1772, he freed seventy people from the Poelwijk plantation. Alongside fellow fighters Baron and Joli-Coeur, he resisted colonial power for years. Their actions made them legendary freedom fighters in Suriname’s history.

One Tété Lohkay on Sint Maarten

One-Tété Lohkay was an enslaved woman on Sint Martin who attempted to escape multiple times. As punishment, one of her breasts was cut off, earning her the nickname “One-Tété.” Despite this horrific punishment, she continued to resist and became a symbol of freedom. Her courage and determination are honored on Emancipation Day on Sint Martin, where she is celebrated as a heroine of the resistance against slavery.

Enslaved people escape from Saba

In 1654, fourteen enslaved people on Saba seized a ship and fled to Puerto Rico, hoping for freedom. Unfortunately, they ended up enslaved again. Centuries later, around 1860, slave owners on Saba sold many of their enslaved people to American plantations. Dozens fled to avoid this fate. These stories show the persistent resistance to slavery, even on small islands like Saba.

Slave Uprising on Sint Eustatius

On June 12, 1848, enslaved people on Sint Eustatius demanded freedom, better food rations, and rest periods. When the local governor refused, the protest escalated. The militia opened fire; some rebels were killed or wounded. Six leaders, including Thomas Dupersoy, were exiled. After the uprising, plantation owners began offering wages to avoid further unrest. It was a powerful act of resistance against colonial oppression on the small island.

Emancipation

In 1863, slavery was abolished in Suriname and the Dutch Caribbean, starting emancipation. In 1954, the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles, and Suriname signed the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, establishing their relationships. Efraïn Jonckheer signed the Charter, and Suriname became a constituent country. Suriname gained independence in 1975, Aruba obtained separate status in 1986, and in 2010, the Netherlands Antilles was dissolved: Curaçao and Sint Maarten became autonomous countries, while Bonaire, Saba, and Sint Eustatius became special municipalities of the Netherlands.

Apologies from the Netherlands

On December 19, 2022, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte officially apologized for the Dutch state’s role in slavery. Dutch officials were also present in all six Caribbean islands, Suriname, and Indonesia to deliver apologies. He said slavery is a crime against humanity that caused immense suffering and still affects lives today. For centuries, the Dutch state enabled, maintained, and profited from slavery. People were treated as commodities and abused under Dutch authority. Successive governments after 1863 failed to fully acknowledge the lasting impact of this history.