ORANJESTAD (AAN) – Prime Minister Mike Eman attended the official opening of the exhibition “Letters and Conscience: The Human Value of a People” at the National Library in San Nicolas, encouraging the community to reflect on Aruba’s history of slavery and the importance of protecting human dignity.
The exhibition was organized ahead of the National Day of Remembrance for the Abolition of Slavery and features historical documents highlighting Aruba’s past and the fight for equality.
During his address, Eman emphasized that acknowledging history is essential to ensuring that the darkest chapters of humanity are never repeated. He said every generation has a responsibility to uphold the values of respect, equality and human dignity.
The Prime Minister also shared a personal family story discovered through archival research, illustrating how many Aruban families are connected to the island’s shared history.
One of the exhibition’s featured documents is the Capriles Letter, written in 1857 to report the mistreatment of enslaved people before emancipation. The document is part of a collection added to UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register in 2025.
Eman thanked the National Archives, the National Library, UNESCO and all researchers involved in preserving Aruba’s historical records, saying knowledge of history is vital to building a more just future.
