By Jan Krancher, California, USA Overview of the Japanese Imprisonment Experience The Japanese High Command on Java attempted to coerce the Indo-European members of the former Royal Netherlands-Indies Army, Navy and Air Force to enlist in the Japanese army. A goodly number of Indos who refused were summarily executed and many ended up in camps. …
By Dr Kathryn Pentecost, edited by Sierra Jacobs The series is based on PhD thesis (2013) entitled: Selamat Jalan, sampai jumpa lagi (Farewell, until we meet again): Transcultural family stories from colonial and postcolonial Indonesia Click here to read Part 1 Section Two: INTRODUCTION Our metis (mixed) family composition – including people from various religious…
By Bianca Dias-Halpert USS Wichita (CA-45) Ship’s Chief Petty Officers listen to the radio broadcast of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s address to the Congress requesting a declaration of War against the Axis powers, circa 8 December 1941. Note photograph of President Roosevelt on the bulkhead. The Good and the Bad They’re in the same…
By Maartien Van Genderen, Washington, USA Winds of change were unmistakably headed for my homeland, the island nation of the former Dutch East Indies. They came foreshadowed by foreboding events. The Netherlands, our fatherland, fell victim to the unbridled war of the expansion of Hitler’s Third Reich in May 1940. Japan’s sneak attack on Pearl…
[Featured photo: Source: Wikepedia A6M2 Zero fighter] By Frans Krajenbrink, California, USA On May 10, 1940 Germany without warning invaded Holland The Dutch Army was no match for the German Army – the war lasted five days. Queen Wilhelmina and the Royal family escaped to Great Britain. On the morning of December 7, 1941, Japan…
By Bianca Dias-Halpert, Washington, USA In 2004 my quest for English language literature about the Dutch East Indies came to a screeching halt when I discovered this wonderful book. Disguised A teenage girl’s surival in World War II Japanese prison camps, by Rita la Fontaine de Clercq Zubi published in 2001 is a treasure to…
Where Appearance Meets Identity by Willem-Jan Brederode Is it possible to have flaming red hair, freckles, fair skin but also an Indo-Dutch identity? Of course it is, you will think! Well, that is, if you fully understand both the genetics behind redheadedness and the genealogy of being Indo-Dutch. In 2020 Armando Ello and I interviewed…