Dutch PM Apologizes for Mistreatment of Moluccan Soldiers

Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten has issued a formal apology for the "heartless" mistreatment of thousands of Moluccan soldiers who served the Dutch colonial army during Indonesia's struggle for independence. In 1951, approximately 12,500 men from the Moluccan Islands, along with their families, relocated to the Netherlands. They believed their stay would be temporary following Indonesia's independence, but instead faced involuntary discharge, employment bans, and were housed in inadequate conditions, including a former Nazi transit camp.

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For their heartless and dishonourable discharge as soldiers, for their inadequate reception and housing, for being unseen and abandoned, for the unfulfilled longing for home, for the grief and pain in so many Moluccan families. For this, I offer apologies today on behalf of the Dutch government.

The apology was delivered at the unveiling ceremony of a crowdfunded national monument in Rotterdam, the arrival point for their last boat. Jetten stated, “For their heartless and dishonourable discharge as soldiers, for their inadequate reception and housing, for being unseen and abandoned, for the unfulfilled longing for home, for the grief and pain in so many Moluccan families. For this, I offer apologies today on behalf of the Dutch government.” He emphasized the apology's necessity for moving forward.

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It is not only high time, but it is also necessary if we want to move forward.

Descendants of these Moluccan families engaged in activism throughout the 1970s, which included high-profile incidents like a school hostage-taking and a train hijacking, met with forceful responses from Dutch special forces. While a 1986 agreement provided some cultural funding and job schemes, pressure for formal recognition of the injustices persisted. Jetten highlighted the importance of an upcoming parliamentary investigation involving the community, which now numbers 70,000 descendants.

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They were treated with coldness, their loyalty had a high price and it was often a silent sorrow. It is important that there is recognition of the injustice that was done to you.

Rotterdam Mayor Carola Schouten expressed hope that the monument would serve as a space for open storytelling, acknowledging the "coldness" and "silent sorrow" experienced by the Moluccans. The monument, designed by artists Jaïr Pattipeilohy and Maurice den Boer, represents the prow of a traditional ship and was the culmination of a 10-year effort by the monument foundation. Jordi Tahamata, chair of the foundation, spoke of the right to tell their history. Some criticism emerged that the government's apology came too late for many and that the opening of a community monument was "gatecrashed" by the official apology.

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I stand here as the grandson of my grandfathers … part of a generation that came to the Netherlands under military orders and built a life in a strange land, unsure about a future none of them had predicted. This is about the right to tell our history and to give it on to new generations.