KITA Discourse Series 5/2024: The Nutmeg’s Curse: Remembering the Bandanese Genocide 1621

THE NUTMEG’S CURSE: REMEMBERING THE BANDANESE GENOCIDE 1621

By:

MARJOLEIN VAN PAGEE
(Independent Researcher and the Founder of ‘Histori Bersama’ Netherlands)
19 March 2024 (Tuesday)
10.30 a.m. – 12.00 p.m.
Platform: Hybrid

In 2021 it was exactly 400 years ago that Dutch VOC-leader Jan Pieterszoon Coen went to the Banda islands with the aim to kill all the inhabitants and to establish a plantation colony. Banda is a small archipelago in East-Indonesia, in the 16th century it was known as an international trading hub and the only place where nutmeg grew. 400 years after the genocide was committed, the Netherlands commemorated this historical fact through exhibitions, talks, meetings and articles. However, all of them ignoring the fact that Coen’s genocidal attempt actually failed. The truth is that before his arrival a large part of the Bandanese already left the islands, under the leadership of a ‘raja’, a king, to ensure the continuity of Islam, their family tree and their culture and history. They ended up at the Kei islands, an archipelago more east of Indonesia, where their descendants still live until today. They can still speak the original language and maintain rituals that also commemorate the loss of their homeland. They identify as ‘Wandan’, which is the original name of Banda. According to their account they were not running away but they performed the ‘hijrah’, an Islamic term for migration. In short, the talk discusses how the genocide of the Bandanese, and their subsequent erasure from the history books, relates to the VOC as an occupying force that used any means necessary to obtain a monopoly. As a result, the genocide has impacted Dutch national history and brought to the emergence of the Netherlands as a nation state.

Presenter’s Profile

Marjolein van Pagee is an independent researcher from the Netherlands and the founder of ‘Histori Bersama’, a multilingual website that publishes translation of articles on colonial history in English, Dutch and Indonesian. She occasionally writes opinion articles for The Jakarta Post. She has now written two books which are “Banda: De genocide van Jan Pieterszoon Coen” (2021) and “Bung Tomo. De revolutie van 1945” (2023). Her book on Banda is translated into Indonesian as “Genosida Banda: Kejahatan Kemanusiaan Jan Pieterszoon Coen.” In addition, she received education in Colonial and Global History at Leiden University and Photography at AKV St. Joost Breda.

PROGRAMME:

Date: 19 March 2024 (Tuesday)
Time: 10.30 a.m. – 12.00 p.m.
Venue: KITA Meeting Room, 4th Floor, Kolej Keris Mas Administration Building, UKM Bangi Campus
Live Streaming: Webex & KITA Facebook page

10.30 a.m.: Introduction by Moderator & welcoming remarks

10.40 a.m.: The Nutmeg’s Curse: Remembering the Bandanese Genocide 1621 – Marjolein van Pagee

11.40 a.m.: Q & A Session

12.00 p.m.: Closing

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Disclaimer: The views expressed in the presentation(s) are those of the presenter(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of KITA.

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