Dutch Government Reportedly to Apologize Officially Regarding Colonial-era Slavery

The National▁peringatanting Monument in Oosterpark in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. (Wikimedia Commons/Arthena)

JAKARTA - The Dutch government is ready to issue a formal apology for colonial-era slavery, according to media reports in the Netherlands.

The apology is planned for December 19 and will be issued by several ministers in various locations, in countries that were former colonies of the Netherlands, reported Euronews on December 9.

However, this information has not been confirmed by the Dutch government.

It is known, the Kingdom of the Netherlands began in the 16th century and partially remained until the decolonization period after the Second World War. It traded an estimated 550,000 - 600,000 people from Africa as slaves, according to Leiden University.

Organizations from former Dutch colonies, such as South America's Suriname and Caribbean countries, criticized December 19 as "arbitrary" and complained that they had not been consulted.

They want a formal apology issued by July 1, 2023, the 150th anniversary of the end of slavery in the former Dutch colony.

Earlier, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Thursday after meeting representatives of several organizations, there would be an "important moment" on this issue on 19 December.

However, PM Rutte did not specify whether there would be a formal apology regarding slavery.

Separately, Johan Roozer, chairman of the Surinamese National Memorial Committee, told reporters PM Rutte had chosen the date because of the "political situation" in the Netherlands, citing pressure from the far right who opposed the apology.

PM Rutte said his government wanted the event scheduled for that date to ensure it was a "success", reported the Dutch news agency ANP, with the Dutch prime minister calling the leak to the media "deeply regrettable".

In recent years, the Netherlands has begun to confront the legacies of its colonial past and its role in slavery.

Amsterdam officially apologized for its role in the slave trade last year.

Slavery helped fund the Dutch "Golden Age", a period of maritime prosperity and trade in the 16th and 17th centuries.