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Netherlands slavery: Saying sorry leaves Dutch divided
The Netherlands is expected to apologise for slavery, with a speech on Monday by the prime minister and ministerial visits to the Caribbean and Suriname.
But the date chosen and the way the announcement has been organised has prompted criticism, so what Mark Rutte is planning to say is not yet clear.
Critics complain of insufficient consultation and claim the way it has been pushed through by the Dutch cabinet has a "colonial feel".
Six Suriname foundations sought a court injunction to push the apology back to 1 July 2023, which would mark the 160th anniversary of the Emancipation Act, although it took another decade before slavery was actually phased out in the Dutch colonies. "If there's an apology, it should be on the first of July, when they removed our shackles," says DJ Etienne Wix," says DJ Etienne Wix, whose community radio station mArt was among the groups seeking a different date.
Along with a formal apology, the Dutch government is expected to allocate €200m (£175m) to awareness projects and pledge to spend €27m on a slavery museum.
More than 600,000 people from Africa and Asia were trafficked by Dutch merchants between the 17th and 19th Centuries.
During the 17th Century, the Netherlands was one of the most prosperous trading nations in the world, in a period known as the "Golden Age" that saw huge advancements in science and culture.
Huge wealth was generated through state-mandated enslavement and exploitation.
Enslaved men, women and children were forced to work on sugar, coffee and tobacco plantations, in mines and as household slaves in the "New World", colonised land in the Americas and Caribbean. They were subjected to extreme physical, mental and sexual violence.
In the western province of Holland alone, a Dutch Research Council study found 40% of economic growth between 1738 and 1780 could be attributed to slavery.
In his speech, at the National Archives in The Hague, Mr Rutte will respond to a government-commissioned 2021 report, Shackles of the Past.
It recommended the Netherlands recognise the legacy of slavery as a crime against humanity, promote a more critical, nuanced view of the Golden Age, and take steps to deal with the institutional racism and ideas which arose in this context of colonialism.
The prime minister has pushed ahead with what he described as a "meaningful moment", indicating the need to capitalise on current political support for an apology, and to allow 2023 to be a commemorative year with funds allocated to special initiatives. "The Netherlands is one of the European societies with the most direct and extensive links to slavery," says Pepijn Brandon, professor of Global Economic and Social History at the Free University of Amsterdam who published the research.
Vaughan shooting: Five killed by gunman in Canada apartment block
Police officers found a horrendous scene when they arrived
Five people have died after a gunman opened fire at a block of flats in Toronto, Canada.
Police responded to reports of the shooting at the building in Vaughan, about 30km (19 miles) north of Toronto, at 19:20 (12:20 GMT) on Sunday, shooting the suspect dead there.
Another injured person has been taken to hospital in a serious condition.
Authorities are investigating the motive, including a possible connection between the gunman and the victims.
York police chief Jim MacSween said attending officers were met with a “horrendous scene”, with numerous deceased victims found in different flats of the building.
Mr MacSween said there was no ongoing threat to the public, and York police said those evacuated could return to their homes.
While it has fewer mass shootings than neighbour the US, Canada has recently seen an increase in gun violence prompting recent legislation to ban handguns.
Canada bans handguns following deadly shootings
In May 2020 Canada banned 1,500 types of military-grade or assault-style firearms after a gunman disguised as a policeman killed 22 people in Nova Scotia.
Ukraine war: Overnight strikes hit Kyiv as Putin visits Belarus
Ukraine’s capital Kyiv was rocked by explosions as Russia launched a rare overnight attack on the city.
No-one was killed and most of the missiles were shot down, Kyiv officials said, but some did hit “critical infrastructure”, causing a blackout across the region.
Pictures online show firefighters at a large blaze at a power plant.
It comes as Russia’s President Vladimir Putin prepares to visit Belarus to meet his counterpart Alexander Lukashenko.
This latest barrage of missile attacks from Russia is the third in five days - however night time raids on Kyiv are unusual.
Twenty-three Iranian missiles were launched, of which 18 were shot down, the head of Kyiv’s military administration, Serhiy Popko said.
Only two people were injured, authorities reported - a very low number considering many people would have been asleep at the time of the strikes on civilian areas.
Kyiv’s Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko wrote on Telegram that “critical infrastructure facilities were damaged” and that engineers were working to restore power.
It is currently winter in Ukraine, and temperatures in Kyiv regularly drop below freezing.
Last Friday, Russia launched a barrage of missiles in one of the largest air strikes on the capital since the start of the war, and Kyiv has accused Moscow of using winter as a weapon, by attacking civilian infrastructure like its energy grids.
At the weekend, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Russia could be planning another major ground offensive early next year, using Belarus as a launching pad for the attack.
However, several experts have said they have seen no evidence so far of preparations for a new push, and question whether Moscow would be able to do it over the winter.
Belarus shares a border with both Russia and Ukraine, and Alexander Lukashenko is a close ally of President Putin’s.
While Belarus has not become involved in the war directly, it did allow Russian troops to use its territory to launch the invasion in February. Minsk is coming under increasing pressure from Moscow to step up its support in the so-called “special military occupation”.
As the two leaders prepare to meet in Minsk, Russia’s defence ministry has announced that its troops stationed in Belarus will conduct joint military exercises - which will further fuel Kyiv’s concerns of a fresh incursion.
In his nightly address on Sunday, President Zelensky said that protecting Ukraine’s borders is a constant priority, and he was preparing defences for all scenarios.
