Van Rossem tells about the arrival of Moluccans to Woerden: ‘We lived with a family of 10 in one large room’

Van Rossem tells about the arrival of Moluccans to Woerden

What about that again with the Dutch East Indies, the Moluccans and Indonesia?

Until 1949, the Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony, where the Royal Dutch East Indies Army (KNIL) maintained the colonial order. In that army, many Moluccan soldiers who were often loyal to the Netherlands served.

After the Japanese occupation, Indonesia proclaimed independence in 1945, which led to a bloody war of independence. When the Netherlands recognized Indonesian sovereignty in 1949, the Moluccans wanted their own republic (Republic of Maluku Selatan) founding, but that failed. Moluccan KNIL soldiers and their families, who were seen by Indonesia as collaborators, were evacuated to the Netherlands.

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