I am proud to be Dutch, but terribly ashamed of some big stuff. What we did in Indonesia is utterly inexcusable. We cannot apologize enough.
Iemand is bezig met een bayonetten collectie
Fun fact: this picture is taken a little more than a year after our own country was liberated from an occupation by a military force. Quite a cognitive dissonance. I read a theory in the resistance museum in Zeeland that many of these young men missed out on feeling like a hero during WWII – going to Indonesia was an opportunity to also have the experience to fight against the “evil” militants (that ironically wanted liberation too).
They look like action figures
I just think it’s so deplorable, that after being brutally occupied for 5 years, we end up doing literally the same as the Nazis did just a year after liberation. And you could even argue that it was way worse than the nazi occupation of the Netherlands
u/PanEuropeanism, where is the Indonesian ‘militant’? I only see 4 Dutch ‘militants’.
Letterlijk een jaar nadat de bezetting beëindigd was. Wat een volk.
Me as an “indo” has conflicted feelings with this. On one hand the Indonesian people deserved their freedom.
But I do understand the militant actions to stop the Bersiap in which Indo European people and others were mass raped slaughtered and tortured.
It’s weird having family on both sides of the conflict, I’m glad Indonesia has its independence though ! 💪🏾💪🏾💪🏾
Militant for the Dutch army, revolutionary for the Indonesians.
[removed]
My grandfather was sent there as a conscript. He had a ton of stories, mostly good ones or the funny-in-hindsight kind really, and honestly didn’t really experience the bad shit that happened there, sitting on a rear-area airfield likely helped with that.
One of the few good things that came of WW2 was the death of colonialism.
You know as a dutchman I find all the stuff to do with our colonies quite a shameful page in our history. On the other hand my best friend that I know from childhood is from Indonesian descent. Their family moved here after WWII. So because of the horrible things the NL did in Indonesia I got to know my best friend for life in a weird sort of way. I also love that there are still remnants of indonesian culture still being celebrated in NL and always love going to those events. NL and Indonesia share a strained history, but I do feel a love for Indonesia because we are linked in some way.
they gave Opa a medal. He sent it back.
Freedom fighter, not militant.
Ik vind het overigens zo bijzonder hoeveel mensen dit een zwarte bladzijde uit de Nederlandse geschiedenis vinden, maar tegelijkertijd zie ik zo vaak van die VOC/specerijen/gekoloniseerd memes. Dus mensen vinden het slecht maar maken er toch graag grappen over?
Ah de ‘politionele acties’ onze versie van de ‘speciale militaire operatie’
One of my country’s darkest pages in history.
Actually it’s more a book full of dark pages on our handling of Indonesia. It took the Indonesian people about 400 years to get their independence.
War sucks, always!
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Have tons of black white pictures of my grandpa fighting in Semarang in 1946.
My great-uncle (95rn) was conscripted after ww2 as a medic. He never told anything about his time in Indonesia. The only thing we know it that he drove over a landmine in a jeep. He had only minor injurys, but another soldier was heavely wounded and 2 others where dead. When he came back he joined a monastery as a monk or ‘broeder’ because god saved him in his eyes. He also saw some terrifiying stuff as a medic. We still have his diary and maps.
De Nederlandse bevolking kreeg alleen leuke polygoon journaal beelden over “Sinterklaas vieren in Indonesië”. Echt de hele media was een slaaf van de overheid- behalve de communisten.
Ik heb mij enigszins verdiept in de koloniale tijd en allejezus het was apartheid en (seks) slavernij. Iedere KNIL kazerne had tiener meisjes.
Both my grandfathers served in Indonesia around 1946. Both ended up with war traumas. One of my grandfathers suffered from PTSD until the day he died: nightmares, sweats and even hallucinations when he had the flu. He, unknowingly transferred this trauma to my mother and then she transferred it to me: it’s called generational trauma.
This war was completely useless: so many lives were lost and young lives were ruined, on both sides.
I’ve visited my the part of the family that didn’t leave Indonesia. Its so weird to see what you life could’ve be.
24 comments
I am proud to be Dutch, but terribly ashamed of some big stuff. What we did in Indonesia is utterly inexcusable. We cannot apologize enough.
Iemand is bezig met een bayonetten collectie
Fun fact: this picture is taken a little more than a year after our own country was liberated from an occupation by a military force. Quite a cognitive dissonance. I read a theory in the resistance museum in Zeeland that many of these young men missed out on feeling like a hero during WWII – going to Indonesia was an opportunity to also have the experience to fight against the “evil” militants (that ironically wanted liberation too).
They look like action figures
I just think it’s so deplorable, that after being brutally occupied for 5 years, we end up doing literally the same as the Nazis did just a year after liberation. And you could even argue that it was way worse than the nazi occupation of the Netherlands
u/PanEuropeanism, where is the Indonesian ‘militant’? I only see 4 Dutch ‘militants’.
Letterlijk een jaar nadat de bezetting beëindigd was. Wat een volk.
Me as an “indo” has conflicted feelings with this. On one hand the Indonesian people deserved their freedom.
But I do understand the militant actions to stop the Bersiap in which Indo European people and others were mass raped slaughtered and tortured.
It’s weird having family on both sides of the conflict, I’m glad Indonesia has its independence though ! 💪🏾💪🏾💪🏾
Militant for the Dutch army, revolutionary for the Indonesians.
[removed]
My grandfather was sent there as a conscript. He had a ton of stories, mostly good ones or the funny-in-hindsight kind really, and honestly didn’t really experience the bad shit that happened there, sitting on a rear-area airfield likely helped with that.
One of the few good things that came of WW2 was the death of colonialism.
You know as a dutchman I find all the stuff to do with our colonies quite a shameful page in our history. On the other hand my best friend that I know from childhood is from Indonesian descent. Their family moved here after WWII. So because of the horrible things the NL did in Indonesia I got to know my best friend for life in a weird sort of way. I also love that there are still remnants of indonesian culture still being celebrated in NL and always love going to those events. NL and Indonesia share a strained history, but I do feel a love for Indonesia because we are linked in some way.
they gave Opa a medal. He sent it back.
Freedom fighter, not militant.
Ik vind het overigens zo bijzonder hoeveel mensen dit een zwarte bladzijde uit de Nederlandse geschiedenis vinden, maar tegelijkertijd zie ik zo vaak van die VOC/specerijen/gekoloniseerd memes. Dus mensen vinden het slecht maar maken er toch graag grappen over?
Ah de ‘politionele acties’ onze versie van de ‘speciale militaire operatie’
One of my country’s darkest pages in history.
Actually it’s more a book full of dark pages on our handling of Indonesia. It took the Indonesian people about 400 years to get their independence.
War sucks, always!
[removed]
Have tons of black white pictures of my grandpa fighting in Semarang in 1946.
My great-uncle (95rn) was conscripted after ww2 as a medic. He never told anything about his time in Indonesia. The only thing we know it that he drove over a landmine in a jeep. He had only minor injurys, but another soldier was heavely wounded and 2 others where dead. When he came back he joined a monastery as a monk or ‘broeder’ because god saved him in his eyes. He also saw some terrifiying stuff as a medic. We still have his diary and maps.
De Nederlandse bevolking kreeg alleen leuke polygoon journaal beelden over “Sinterklaas vieren in Indonesië”. Echt de hele media was een slaaf van de overheid- behalve de communisten.
Ik heb mij enigszins verdiept in de koloniale tijd en allejezus het was apartheid en (seks) slavernij. Iedere KNIL kazerne had tiener meisjes.
Both my grandfathers served in Indonesia around 1946. Both ended up with war traumas. One of my grandfathers suffered from PTSD until the day he died: nightmares, sweats and even hallucinations when he had the flu. He, unknowingly transferred this trauma to my mother and then she transferred it to me: it’s called generational trauma.
This war was completely useless: so many lives were lost and young lives were ruined, on both sides.
I’ve visited my the part of the family that didn’t leave Indonesia. Its so weird to see what you life could’ve be.
A life without frikandellen