After this week the government of Mike Eman officially announced the start of the restoration of Fort Zoutman and the Willem III Tower as part of the revitalization of downtown Oranjestad, MEP parliamentarian Xiomara Maduro came forward to put, according to them, ‘the facts in the correct context.’ A POLITICAL PROJECT? In an official reaction, Maduro expressed that the restoration of Fort Zoutman was not born as a political campaign project or as an original initiative of the AVP-FUTURO cabinet. According to the parliamentarian, the project has a much deeper and historical origin, connected directly to the official apology of De Nederlandsche Bank for its role in the history of slavery. PUBLIC APOLOGY REGARDING SLAVERY: MEP recalled that in 2022, the president of DNB, Klaas Knot, offered a public apology for the bank’s participation in the slave trade, and as part of that, DNB made €570,000 available for the Aruban Museums Foundation to restore the tower of Fort Zoutman and develop educational material for schools, including the history of slavery and historical figures such as Virginia. PLACE OF MEMORY: According to Xiomara Maduro, Fort Zoutman is not simply an architectural monument, but a ‘place of memory’ connected to the history of slavery in the Caribbean region. ‘Our history is not a political campaign instrument. It is a legacy that we have the responsibility to respect, understand, and pass on to the next generation with integrity, truth, and dignity,’ the parliamentarian expressed. GOVERNMENT ON THE RESTORATION: The government, meanwhile, presented the restoration as an important step to preserve historical heritage and revitalize downtown Oranjestad. During the announcement, Mike Eman emphasized that Fort Zoutman and the Willem III Tower are fundamental symbols of Aruba’s history and that the restoration will be carried out with total respect for the historical authenticity of the complex. According to the government, the project will be executed in different phases, starting with complete maintenance of the tower, followed by restoration of the walls and structures around the site. The government also underlined that the work will be done using original materials, authentic colors, and technical guidance from Monumentenbureau Aruba. MEP INSISTS: Meanwhile, MEP insists that, although urban development and heritage preservation are important, it should not be lost sight of that the origin of the project lies in historical recognition, education, and reflection on the past of slavery within the Dutch Kingdom.
