Tears of joy after apologies king at Keti Koti Alkmaar

A woman in a white dress with gold embroidery and a headscarf in the colors of the Surinamese flag walks past the audience, singing. She carries a wooden container with water and sprinkles it on the ground. Another woman in a red and green takes over.

“I call on our ancestors to join us in this gathering. It is our shared history and we must do this together. Let’s leave here in love afterwards and make sure better times come.’

The libation is an ancestor ritual and the kick-off of the first official Keti Koti (pronunciation: Kitti Kotti) celebration in Alkmaar. Despite the bad weather, a large crowd turned out. The grandstand is full and people are watching behind the tent where the ritual takes place.

Caimans and whiplashes

Stories of descendants follow. Memories from Suriname, of caimans, monkeys and water creeks, but also about the suffering of the enslaved on plantation Alkmaar. “At the time of abolition, 445 slaves worked there,” says one of the speakers. “They were whipped, raped and mutilated. They were also not allowed to go to church. Because imagine if they learned there that every person is equal.”

Then the historic moment follows from Amsterdam through the speakers: King Willem-Alexander asks for forgiveness during his speech. ‘Slavery was a crime against humanity against which the House of Orange-Nassau did nothing. You can’t hide behind laws when people are reduced to beasts. Chaining, branding and killing people with impunity. It inspires awe that many found the strength to fight against this.’

Goosebumps

There is clapping, cheering and some blinking away a tear. Henk Heilbron of the Keti Koti Alkmaar working group was also touched by the words. “Very impressive. The apologies were already a bit in the pipeline, but I still got goosebumps.”

There were no apologies from the municipality today. He first wants to await the investigation into the role of Alkmaar city councilors in the slavery past. There is still too little knowledge, says mayor Anja Schouten. “Why is there not enough knowledge now, one of the plantations was called Alkmaar, by the way”, several in the audience respond.

Apologies with value

“A sincere apology is only of value if you know what you are apologizing for”, explains Schouten. “We want to be able to say exactly what role the city council has played.”

After the speech, the appetite hits and there are thick queues at the food stalls. There are Surinamese sandwiches, nasi and bami, shaved ice in all colors and all kinds of cake. The Brass Band starts to play and is carefully danced to. Henk looks over the site with emotion. “I’m so glad we managed this. Many more people turned up than we dared to hope. Today I am a very proud Alkmaarder.”