The Netherlands’ King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima and Princess Catharina-Amalia are in the middle of a two-week tour of the Dutch Caribbean islands. Some of our photo agencies have been getting access to the photos and the optics are okay – the Dutch royals have mostly taken pains to avoid the racist and colonialist imagery of the Windsors’ Caribbean tours last year, which saw Prince William and Kate staggering from one tone-deaf photo-op to the next, unable to improvise or update.
Now, has everything been perfect with the Dutch royals? From the looks of it, Catharina-Amalia (now 19 years old) is not really enjoying her first royal tour with her parents. She’s got that glazed look of a teenager on vacation with her two annoying, dorky parents who keep making dumb jokes. Amalia needs a stiff drink and some alone time in her hotel room. I also have to admit, Maxima’s costume changes have veered into some colonialist cosplay at times. It’s not as excessive as Kate’s Gone With the Wind style, but Maxima could do better. I thought the Dutch royals were mostly avoiding all of the typical royal pitfalls, and then this happened: a protest at one of their events.
King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima and Princess Catharina-Amalia’s tour of the Caribbean was interrupted by a protestor. The Dutch royals are currently in the Caribbean on a two-week tour, a first for 19-year-old Catharina-Amalia, who is heir to the throne. Willem-Alexander, 55, Máxima, 51, and their eldest daughter arrived in Bonaire on Friday and were met with a demonstration while attending a lecture at the University of Aruba on Tuesday.
While sitting in on a discussion of Caribbean law, a woman stood up with her arm held high, and sang the gospel song “Oh, Freedom.” As seen in video footage that hit Twitter, her demonstration caught the attention of the three royals, who all turned to look. The woman continued to sing as she was escorted out of the building, and the lecture continued.
Aruba was colonized by the Dutch in the 17th century and seceded from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986, the BBC reported. Today, the island remains linked to the Dutch as a Kingdom of the Netherlands, like Curaçao and St. Maarten, which the Dutch royals are also visiting during their Caribbean tour.
In December, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte apologized for the Netherlands’ history of slavery. Rutte said that the Dutch State “facilitated, stimulated, preserved and profited from slavery” for centuries, adding that “human beings were made into commodities, exploited and abused.” Rutte previously said that the matter was too controversial for King Willem-Alexander to address but said that the Dutch monarch will take part in a commemoration on July 1 marking the 150th anniversary of the complete abolition of slavery everywhere in the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
“Too controversial for King Willem-Alexander to address”…? Granted, the Dutch royals have been doing more to apologize and acknowledge the Netherlands’ history of slavery and colonialism, but jeez, why can’t the king address the subject?
Here’s the video of the protest – I winced when the white woman put her hands on the protester. I double-winced when the security dudes started grabbing at the protester as she tried to pick up her bags. Like… yes, it was a “disruptive” protest, but she wasn’t being violent, she was screaming obscenities, she wasn’t insulting anyone – there was absolutely no reason for these white people to start putting their hands on her.
Studente protesteert tijdens koninklijk bezoek aan universiteit pic.twitter.com/UUd9ZqUtjL
— Rick Evers (@RickEversRoyal) January 31, 2023
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
-
- Oranjestad, CURACAO – Dutch Royals visit the Dutch Caribbean Islands of Curacao. Pictured: King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, Princess Amalia, Princess of Orange BACKGRID USA 1 FEBRUARY 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- Willemstad, CURACAO – King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands with Princess Amalia, Princess of Orange during a visit to Brion Square where King’s Games are opened, a walk over the Pontjesbrug, through Otrabanda, lunch at Government Palace, a visit to Punda and Scharloo neighborhood and a dinner at Van Doornen Cathedral on Curacao, on day 6 of their visit to the Dutch Caribbean Islands. Pictured: King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, Princess Amalia BACKGRID USA 2 FEBRUARY 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- Willemstad, CURACAO – King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands with Princess Amalia, Princess of Orange during a visit to Brion Square where King’s Games are opened, a walk over the Pontjesbrug, through Otrabanda, lunch at Government Palace, a visit to Punda and Scharloo neighborhood and a dinner at Van Doornen Cathedral on Curacao, on day 6 of their visit to the Dutch Caribbean Islands. Pictured: King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, Princess Amalia BACKGRID USA 2 FEBRUARY 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- Willemstad, CURACAO – King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands with Princess Amalia, Princess of Orange during a visit to Brion Square where King’s Games are opened, a walk over the Pontjesbrug, through Otrabanda, lunch at Government Palace, a visit to Punda and Scharloo neighborhood and a dinner at Van Doornen Cathedral on Curacao, on day 6 of their visit to the Dutch Caribbean Islands. Pictured: King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, Princess Amalia BACKGRID USA 2 FEBRUARY 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
It’s time for them to move on and stop with these trips because all I see is colonizers going on holiday to their colonies no matter how much they apologize
Yep, I agree. It’s gross when white “royalty” from any country deign to visit the colonies. It’s gross regardless of it being the Brits, Dutch, Spanish, whatever.
I’ve never been to Aruba, is it no predominantly Black? Who are all these white people?
I believe it is mostly mestizo (mixed race of European and Latin American).
You’re not erasing Africans from Aruba, are you? Sure, there are Latin American immigrants to Aruba, but the majority of people are not Latin American. They are majority a people of Indigenous Caquetio, African, and Dutch heritage.
Reborn Rich, I am not erasing anything. First off, I said that I believed this was the correct information. I did not create that information, I found it on Wikipedia. Also from Wikipedia is the meaning of the word Mestizo.
You could have approached this less as a confrontation assuming I was doing something wrong on purpose.
@Reborn Rich, why the aggressive ass tone?
@Reborn Rich, Frippery is right. Those territories received a lot of european inmigration aka colonisers, and african inmigrants aka slaves. They all mixed with the indigineous people. The result? People of mixed ethnicities which come in different colours, shades, etc. No one is erasing africans!
I don’t understand why some people insist with placing their ethnocentric belifs on latin america. We come from all places, from different periods of time, and we don’t all look the same.
Hi! I’m half Aruban. Been there many times.
No, it’s actually not predominantly black. Frippery is right: it’s majority mestizo (European, Latino, and indigenous). There is a reasonable sized minority of black and mixed-race Arubans.
Aruba is very dry compared to the rest of the Caribbean. It’s hard to grow crops there, so colonizers (the Dutch and Spanish) brought in fewer numbers of slaves, which is why the island now has fewer black folks than the rest of the Caribbean.
Yeah no. Who thought this was good idea. The optics are absolutely terrible Unless you are actively engaging with your legacy and history while there and talking about how to move forward, these trips are just a fail and reek of “colonial tourism”
But can they really discuss moving forward with these nations when many of them don’t want to be under the royal flags at all? It’s like, you know how we can all take one giant step forward?
Usually this trips are more than just royals visiting though that is all we see. In a lot of cases a team of delegates follows them to negotiate on something or the other.
Colonialism is fundamentally exploitation. Whatever the *former* colonizers give is less than they’ve taken.
Why can’t the King address it? Is this some rule, or are they pulling a BRF/Vatican (they’re afraid that if they apologise they’ll be targets for lawsuits)? I don’t see this as the place of the PM, but at least Rutte apologised. Maybe someone can explain Dutch politics on this issue…
None of these European nations want to admit the level of theft–of people primarily but also resources. The debt is great and they simply have no intention of paying for what they have stolen from the world.
Yes, of course. I was asking specifically about the quote from the Dutch PM that the subject is “too controversial for King Willem-Alexander to address”. Why? And why would the PM say that publicly? I’m curious about the Dutch politics on this issue…
People expect Willem-Alexander will address it on this year’s 1st of July, to make it more meaningful.
As for Dutch politics: it can’t really be compared to the USA or the UK.
There is no voting by district for national elections, so every vote gets counted equally and doesn’t get lost if you are in a province where most people vote for another party or votes for yours.
There are 150 seats in parliament. Whoever gets 76 of the seats can form a cabinet: prime minister, other ministers etc.
In practice, no party gets 76 seats by themselves, so they have to form a coalition of multiple parties. In this way, there is less of a pendulum effect of swinging from left to right, but more centre-left to centre-right.
Even small parties of 2 or 3 seats can be invited to get to the majority. They will then likely have only 1 or 2 ministers. They won’t have the biggest say, but can get a few things done that they want.
People in parliament can propose laws and if enough peoole agree, it gets done, even if they are in the opposition. This means there are way more parties than just 2 or 3 with some influence.
Finally, we’d probably consider Biden centre, not left. Abortion and Gay marriage are not major issues, as few parties are against.
Wilhelm needs sunblock, stat. I love Amalia’s outfit in the first pic
Amalia knows how to put together an outfit, although I think both she & her mother are overdressed for the location in that first photo.
I have been watching this tour progress.
Amalia is miserable, she is not enjoying herself at all. She looks nervous, uneasy and extremely hot most of the time. Yesterday was her parent’s anniversary and people were making a fuss of her parents and at one point Amalia stormed away from them for all to see!
Maxima clothing selection seems subdued not her usual. I have to admit I love her styling normally, even when it is flashy
I agree with Kaiser, these tours must end!
Hopefully, the younger generation coming up in all these royal families will look at what Harry did and follow his lead. The whole monarchy bs is dehumanizing, not just for “spares”. Amalia is the heir and is visibly chafing already. Imagine having your whole life mapped out for you by others by the time you are 19!
A lot happened with Amalia this year.
She wanted to study and live in Amsterdam at a left leaning university instead of the more traditional for royals: Leiden University.
She was threatened by the maffia and things got scary. This is a different story from Harry.
Not that different. She can’t do what she wants and is pursued by criminals. She has the mob; he has the paps. How is that so different from Harry?
Don’t think she is alleging that her own relatives are in cahoots with the mob.
Also the mob and the press are quite different things.
Harry believes the paps are partly responsible for his mother’s death, and the British media in general often behave like criminals, chasing and hounding their prey. The media nearly drove his wife to suicide. Is this exactly the same as what you describe Amalia experiencing? No, but it’s not totally dissimilar. My point is that monarchy is a dehumanizing institution which deprives all members of the family of agency and free will. And it often endangers them. I’m glad if Amalia was protected. But remember, H&M had their security pulled when they were in Canada being stalked and the threat level was extremely high. There is no question they were in danger and frightened without any protection. Not an exact parallel but close enough, imo.
Let us not forget the men in jail for making actual threats to Harry and Meghan’s lives. Or the snippers they were required to have at their wedding due to credible threats to their lives. Or the white powder and racist threat sent to Meghan prior to their wedding. Or the online trolls who had threatened to stab Meghan in her pregnant belly. Or the Taliban who have made threats against Harry’s life.
Paid holiday for one of the richest families of the Netherlands. The majority of the dutch don’t have trust in the king. Republic now.
@Inge, I don’t know much about the politics regarding the King. Is he distrusted because of his position, or has he done shady things?
One thing people did not like was that he went on a holiday to Greece during Covid just after stricter meassures had been announced again.
They came back very quickly after that, not completing or even really starting the holiday.
With holiday, I think they probably planned to stay in a bubble there (no crazy parties or anything), but it was still annoying.
That said, I don’t think he has done super shady things. He’s often considered a bit of an intellectual lightweight, but not one with bad intentions or a nasty personality.
When I look at Dutch people being pro monarchy, they seem to be somewhere between 50-60%. I am not crazy pro monarchy, but I prefer it above other systems. If we had the British RF and that style, I would be against.
I feel like a broken record here in Celebitchy….but not only should these tours end, monarchies should end.
It’s all so vile. Part of my family are from small, very poor Caribbean nations. My last name is English. I hate THAT we were owned and stripped of our religion and names, yet this name is also now the name of my ancestors who survived the Middle Passage & held on to as much of our dignity and African heritage as they could.
@reborn rich I am one generation removed from genocide. We have more dignity, heart and genetic memory of resilience and perseverance in our fingertips than these colonizing human trafficking scum could ever hope to attain in infinite lifetimes. We are brave and a testament to our ancestors legacy. One day we or our future generations will wring the accountability out of their pocketbooks and teach them how to human better leaving everyones loves, lives and dignity intact for a better society for all.
@ Slush, I agree! All of the Monarch’s should be abolished and the counties should be compensated for the horrific crimes and damage that have been done and are continuing to happen to the people.
The level of refusing to address it is preposterous simply due to not wanting to take responsibility for it.
Call me ignorant but I didn’t know Netherland still had a monarchy.
I am really not seeing their benefit. They are overpaid ambassadors.
The Dutch Royals are not going to get many protests because the Dutch Caribbean with exception of Aruba is basically part of the Netherlands. Plus, the Dutch Royals and the Government are doing more to acknowledge the past. As for Amalia, she’s dressing too old. Maxima should have allowed her to dress more casually.
We should also start discussing Queen Maxima’s link to the dictatorship in Argentina: Her father was the Secretary of Agriculture for Videla’s government (Where 30000 people “disappeared”, meaning the government kidnapped, tortured, murdered them, and then made them disappear). He always declared he “didn’t know anything about it” but nobody in Argentina believes that since they have always been a powerful family
How is that on her though?
Start discussing?
This was a huge issue since before they got married more than 20 years ago.
Like MARYCONTRARY said, most people concluded that was not on her. He was not at the wedding for this reason.
I’ve done research on Queen Maxima and I’ve read that it was brought up years ago, but she had nothing to do with that.
I live in Bonaire, one of the Dutch Caribbean countries visited by the Orange Family.
As a royal watcher who cringed throughout the UK royals visit to Jamaica (context – I am British and my partner is from Jamaica) the 3 days spent here were without a hitch. The family were graceful and so accessible, they visited public places (no barriers were placed anywhere to separate residents from the royal family), danced in the town square to traditional music amongst islanders from all backgrounds, and seemed really happy to be here.
Well the Dutch crown is trying to acknowledge the Netherlands’ role in the slave. Amalia needs to get better at this now. As Princess of Orange, she’s the heiress to the throne and dealing with matters like this will very part of her job one day.
A lot happened to Amalia last year.
She got threatened by the maffia as she just started studying in Amsterdam.
She chose for Amsterdam instead of the more posh option that the Royal Family usually goes for. That also made her more vulnerable and exposed, probably.
Considering how scary things got and how much it affected her studies, I understand she is a bit subdued.
I just read about this. A kidnapping threat and not being able to go to school like normal. That sounds like a lot.
These royals need to stay home and stop coming to these countries where they have violent histories and expecting a universally warm welcome. It’s giving colonizer. “Yes we murdered, maimed, and enslaved your your people but…we showed up in pretty dresses. Be nice to us!” It’s 2023. If you can’t acknowledge the past and apologize with your whole chest – STAY HOME. As a matter of fact – apologize and STILL stay home.
As someone who’s half Aruban and whose family still lives there: I’m super happy that someone stood up and protested about this. The Dutch crown has mostly been well-liked there in the past, but it seems like people are starting to realize how much has the royals have stolen from them. Good! Abolish all monarchies!
I was planning a vacation in Curacao – just randomly picked it bc good airfare and seemed less well -known/touristy, interesting architecture. Digging into reviews of places to go/hotels/etc. however… Damn, common theme of how you are treated differently if you are a non-white visitor emerged.
I thought it was a mostly black/brown island with a colonial past, like Jamaica, with ties to colonizing country being nominal. Turns out Curacao has loads of Dutch/white holding onto power/ownership and absolutely shitty to everyone else. Like, basically, a casual vacation wouldn’t be fun bc you’d run into issues/disrespect.
Cancelled the trip.
I get a natural cringe reaction when I hear the words ‘Royal Tour”. So passé.
1. Rutte is legally responsible for what the king does. Sounds silly, doesn’t it? However, legally, this is true.
2. The government is very, very scared of having to pay reparations. They refrained from apologizing for a long time, because of this.