The Javanese are the largest ethnic group in Indonesia. Many Indonesian government figures are Javanese. The existence of the Javanese is not only in Indonesia. In the Netherlands and Latin America, especially in the country of Suriname, there are also Javanese tribes. Did you know that August 9 is a historic date for the Javanese in the Netherlands and in Suriname? What makes this date historic?
The first batch of sending workers departed from Batavia (Jakarta) on 21 May 1890 by ship SS Koningin Emma. After stopping in Holland, the ship finally arrived in Suriname on August 9, 1890. Some Indonesians, both those who currently live in Suriname and those who live in the Netherlands, always remember and commemorate 9 August as a very historic date.
The first batch of workers were 94 people, consisting of 61 men, 31 women and 2 children and were placed in sugar cane plantations and sugar factories in Marienburg. The second batch of workers, 582 people, arrived in Suriname on 16 June 1894 by ship SS Voorwaarts. Because the second ship’s payload was over capacity, the ship did not qualify as a personnel carrier.
As a result, 64 passengers on the ship died and 85 people had to be hospitalized, after the ship arrived at the port of Paramaribo, Suriname. This sad incident did not get a response from the Dutch Government, it was even forgotten. Maybe the Dutch Royal Government thought that those who died were only poor workers, so there was no need for any action. Nonetheless, these labor dispatches continued throughout the year until the final shipment of 990 arrived in Suriname on 13 December 1939.
From 1890 to 1914 the shipping route to Suriname always stopped in Holland, the rest did not. The sending of the workers using 77 ships was carried out by the private shipping company, De Nederlandsche Handel Maatschappij. However, since 1897 the delivery of labor was carried out by the Dutch East Indies Government. Get interesting information and articles from Indonesiar.com.
Source : wikipedia
