It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Dr Jonathan (Jack) Ford on 29 June 2025, at his home in Brisbane. Jack had recently returned from hospital following heart treatment and, when we last spoke two days before his untimely death, he told me that the new Read more
In the immediate aftermath of World War II, the Netherlands faced a monumental challenge. While its homeland lay in ruins after years of occupation, it also had to grapple with re-establishing authority and humanitarian order in its colony, the Netherlands East Indies (NEI), which had been under brutal Japanese occupation Read more
During World War II, the SS Tasman, a Dutch steamship operated by the Koninklijke Paketvaart Maatschappij (KPM), became part of an extraordinary Dutch Australian connection. From wartime evacuations and military support to post-war links between the Netherlands East Indies (NEI) and Australia, the Tasman offers a glimpse into a lesser Read more
In reviewing the article Ripples of Decolonisation in the Asia-Pacific by Charles Hawksley and Rowena Ward (2019), I was struck by how closely its themes intersect with lesser-known Dutch–Australian wartime and postwar connections. While the article does not focus on Dutch-Australian relations per se, it provides valuable context for understanding Read more
A new, high-quality heritage display has been installed at the entrance to Pooh Corner Bushland Reserve, part of the former Camp Columbia site, in the south-west Brisbane suburb of Wacol. This location marks one of the last visible remnants of Camp Columbia. The new cabinet has been mounted on the Read more
Introduction: Identity, Visibility, and Community Wim Willems’ chapter explores the neglected story of Dutch Eurasians—people of mixed Dutch and Indonesian descent—who migrated to Australia from the former Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) after World War II. The narrative begins with the landmark 1996 De Andere Nederlanders exhibition at the Dutch Consulate-General Read more
Selected individuals linked to the Netherlands East Indies (NEI) during World War II for which the Archives holds interviews. Click here for the interviews. The Archive is an Australian Government initiative, commissioned through the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. It is a unique, historical collection, a resource for everyone interested in Read more
De Andere Nederlanders – The Other Dutch is a compelling bilingual exhibition and publication that tells the often-overlooked story of the Indo-European (Indische) community: the descendants of Dutch colonisers and local Indonesians in the former Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia. These “Other Dutch” developed a unique hybrid identity, blending European Read more
The following information is sourced from Monument Australia. The National Australia Remembers Freedom Wall commemorates the “sacrifice of a generation” that have resulted in 50 years of peace in the Pacific since World War Two, and honours the servicemen and servicewomen who died in service or were killed in action, and Read more
Robert de Jong was born in the Netherlands and spent most of his life in South Africa before emigrating to Townsville, Queensland, in 2011 to be with family. In 2016, he was appointed Managing Curator of the Maritime Museum of Townsville, a position through which he has highlighted the city’s Read more