I received an email from the
organization Oorlogsliefdekind. I’m interested to help this project, to unite former
Dutch military personnel and their offspring. I have sent information about
this matter in Indonesian language to many mailing lists and to Indonesian press.
Batara R. Hutagalung
Chairman of The Committee of
Dutch Honorary Debts
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WARLOVECHILD unites military
personnel and their offspring
Dutch servicemen and their
secret children born in wartime Indonesia -
Warlovechild.org breaks the
silence about a blind spot in Dutch-Indonesian history with a successful
crossmedia project which deals with the secret children fathered by Dutch
servicemen and Indonesian women during the decolonization-war between the
Netherlands and Indonesia (1945-1949). The family finding website contains a
wide variety of personal testimonials and family-snapshots gathered through
extensive oral history research. All information is now accessible to an
international audience with an online English version at www.warlovechild.org.
The saying ‘all is fair in
love and war’ refers to matters of the heart and soul which are difficult to
control and contain. No wonder that a lot of commotion was caused among
veterans in the Netherlands, their relatives and people of mixed Indonesian-European
descent when the website warlovechild.org and the historical documentary Sir
Daddy (Tuan Papa) was released. The unreserved testimonials about love and
sexuality in wartime made painfully clear that the most intensive Dutch war
effort ever had the birth of thousands of mixed-blooded children as an
unforeseen consequence. Warlovechild.org breaks the taboo about this subject by
creating a safe and neutral digital environment where stories of both children
and fathers are shared and commented on. Many of the 'warlovechildren' never
met their fathers but kept on looking for them all their lives. Fathers also
decide, sometimes after sixty years, to search for their secret children born
from an Indonesian war romance. Often the reactions show that children of Dutch
marriages who have found out about daddy’s secret want to meet their unknown
Indonesian half-siblings.
The family finding tool on
the website functions as an effective way to start quests for long lost
relatives or newly discovered families. The Warlovechild project collected a
wide variety of testimonials of children, fathers, their Dutch offspring and
even mothers, both in the Netherlands and Indonesia. Veterans tell about their
wartime affairs and sexuality, their children describe the harassment they
faced as an occupier's child and the mothers recall romantic and sad moments
from their memories. A huge amount of original historical documents such as
birth certificates, family-snapshots and military reports have been brought
together for the first time to give a unique insight into the secret life of
love in wartime. The Warlovechild.org serves as a portal for a growing
community of people with similar roots. At the same time it is a source for new
historical research.
It is remarkable that we
know of young Dutch girls who gave birth to children of German military during
the Nazi-occupation or of the allied military after the liberation of the
Netherlands in 1944/1945. But no historian nor journalist has ever tackled the
role of Dutch military as absent fathers of Dutch-Indonesian children after the
colonial war of 1945-1949.
Due to post-colonial
migration of Dutch-Indonesian veterans as well as their family, kin and
halfcast offspring, many can be found in the USA, Canada, Australia and New
Zealand. To reach this internationally dispersed target group, the website
www.warlovechild.org is now accessible in English as well as in Dutch. The
financing of an Indonesian version is currently being investigated. The 80
minutes documentary Sir Daddy with unique archival footage and personal
interviews is available in English, Dutch and Indonesian. An impression of the
making of Sir Daddy can also be watched on the website as well as a blog by the
makers.
Keywords: love in wartime,
family finder, oral history, colonial past, Netherlands, Indonesia, secret
children, crossmedia, website, television, documentary, Indo-European
More information (not for
publication): Promoters mrs. Stef Scagliola (historian), mrs. Annegriet Wietsma
(interviewer/director) and mr. Jean Hellwig (producer/director) can be reached
for further information at: info@oorlogsliefdekind.nl / +31-6-2127 1555 /
+31-20-462 0018
Warlovechild is produced by
Hellwig Productions Audiovisuals
with the support of:
Heritage of War programme, NTR, VPRO, Dutch Cultural Media Fund, V-fonds, Bank
Giro Loterij, Data Archiving and Networked Services
This message is sent to you
because we think you may be interested in its contents. We apologize for
cross-sending.
Warlovechild
Zeeburgerpad 53
1019 AB Amsterdam
the Netherlands
phone +31 20 462 0018
