The Banishment of Brandsteder from the Dutch East Indies

On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, which will be commemorated on May 3, 2004, the IISH wishes to call attention to Jacob Andries Brandsteder's (1887-1986) forced departure from the Dutch East Indies in 1919. He had to leave the archipelago because of his provocative writings in the Soldaten- en Matrozenkrant [Soldiers and Sailors' Paper].

This site contains background information on the press in the Dutch East Indies and on Brandsteder and the political situation in the Indies. His article 'Menschenvernietiging in vredestijd' [Destruction of people in peacetime] in Het Vrije Woord [Free Speech] and the brochure Indië een hel [The Indies, a hell], in which Brandsteder strongly protests his banishment, are digitized. There is also a list of literature and sources.

May 3 was declared World Press Freedom Day by the UN General Assembly in 1993, and was intended to commemorate the need for a free, pluralistic, and independent press as an essential component for any democratic society. The idea stemmed from the UNESCO General Conference in 1991.

In Amsterdam on May 3, 2004 a conference will be organised by NVJ, NPD and the Press Museum called 'Persvrijheid bestaat (niet)' [Press freedom does (not) exist].
Press Freedom Links

On May 3, 2003 the IISH called attention to the violent death of journalist Koos Koster in El Salvador.