News item | 04-07-2023 | 5:00 PM
In the coming years, the government will implement the recommendations from the report ‘Share and Connect’, in order to increase knowledge about the history of the Dutch East Indies/Indonesia among as many people as possible. This is stated in the government’s response to the report of the Committee on Strengthening Knowledge of the History of the Former Dutch East Indies, which was sent to the House of Representatives today.
State Secretary Van Ooijen (VWS): “The history of the Dutch East Indies/Indonesia is our own history. This has left deep scars in countless families and therefore also in our entire society. The committee’s advice rightly states that it is important that we increase knowledge about this in our society. Because increasing knowledge ultimately leads to more insight and understanding.”
More attention in education
Apart from the task that the government had imposed on itself when presenting the collective recognition in 2021, the government is now, on the advice of the committee, paying extra attention to knowledge transfer in education and in the heritage and culture sector. For example, shortly after the summer, we will start adjusting the curriculum for social studies. In this, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science explicitly requested attention for a firm anchoring of the fight against racism, discrimination and anti-Semitism, and attention for the colonial past and migration history in the core objectives of relevant learning areas. In addition, the Indisch Erfgoed Digitaal project will be further expanded in the coming years into a dynamic digital platform for the education and heritage sector. At the same time, the publicity of the guest lectures on the Dutch East Indies is being increased in order to have them take place at more schools.
Knowledge of history
In addition to the attention within education, additional initiatives will also be taken outside to strengthen knowledge about the Dutch East Indies/Indonesia. For example, we look at how the dialogue between communities can best be stimulated. Next year there will also be a temporary co-curator ‘Strengthening Knowledge History of the Dutch East Indies/Indonesia’. This co-curator will work with the National Museum of World Cultures (NMVW) and Museum Sophiahof for 3 years to build a network between museums and heritage institutions to make the history of the Dutch East Indies/Indonesia accessible to a wider audience. Furthermore, in 2023 an exploration will be carried out into the existing heritage in the public space that has a relationship with the Dutch East Indies/Indonesia.
Collective recognition
The committee ‘Strengthening knowledge of the history of the former Dutch East Indies’, led by former minister Jet Bussemaker, started at the end of 2021 as part of the plans to give an extra boost to the collective recognition of the Indisch and Moluccan community. The task of this committee is to see how knowledge about the history of the Dutch East Indies can be increased. This has led to useful advice for education and the culture and heritage sector.