From the 1900s, the Dutch state wanted to expand its territories to the Outer Islands. This expansion drift was mainly commercially driven but came together with a new policy, focused on civilizing...Show moreFrom the 1900s, the Dutch state wanted to expand its territories to the Outer Islands. This expansion drift was mainly commercially driven but came together with a new policy, focused on civilizing the indigenous people, which was called the ethical policy. To civilize the local people, education and healthcare in the Dutch East Indies had to be developed and improved. Next to education and healthcare, also developing infrastructure projects with new roads, ports and railway connections were part of the policy. For the execution of schooling and healthcare a suitable party had to be found. It seemed that the Church and its missionaries were a perfect fit. The Church wanted to spread Christianity in all places possible, even in the more remote places in the world, which fitted the expansion plans of the Dutch towards the Outer Islands. Both parties had their own objectives but in reality, they needed each other. The government wanted to expand its business and enforce the ethical policy, the missionaries could use government funding to spread the word of God. The main research question of this thesis is: To what extent did the mission in Dutch Borneo met the objectives of both Dutch government and Catholic church?Show less
The lingering dispute between Cambodia and Thailand over the ancient Temple of Preah Vihear has still not been resolved. This may seem strange from the point of view of international law. In 1962,...Show moreThe lingering dispute between Cambodia and Thailand over the ancient Temple of Preah Vihear has still not been resolved. This may seem strange from the point of view of international law. In 1962, the International Court of Justice made a ruling on this issue, which should have resolved the dispute between the two countries. The ongoing dispute is, in fact, an indicator of the more comprehensive problem of demarcation of the past. The origins of the Preah Vihear Temple border conflict date back to colonial times and the subsequent decolonization period. During those times, both Cambodia and Thailand made efforts to augment their territorial sovereignty and to promote nationalism. The conflict thus created unfortunately continues to this day. The temple dispute has always been ready to erupt under the right circumstances if it suited Thai and Cambodian politicians. Moreover, the negative images and memories between Thailand and Cambodia have never ceased to exist, but are instead carefully maintained for political purposes. Such perspectives make it highly unlikely that the Preah Vihear issue will be resolved any time soon. Thai and Cambodian leaders have become stuck in a cycle of distrust about border issues that has been going on for many decades. The Preah Vihear dispute shows just how fragile Thai-Cambodian relations really are. The painful historical background, along with nationalist sentiments in the unfinished development of nation-building in both countries, is thwarting the formation of good relations. Preah Vihear, the temple on the border, has remained at the center of bilateral anxiety. This place of consecration has thus become a bone of contention.Show less
History education has often been a topic of discussion and debate in the Netherlands. Many have argued that the dark pages of Dutch history are not sufficiently brought to attention in history...Show moreHistory education has often been a topic of discussion and debate in the Netherlands. Many have argued that the dark pages of Dutch history are not sufficiently brought to attention in history education and learning materials. This thesis aims to find out how Dutch colonial history is represented in Dutch secondary education learning materials. Through an analysis of several high school history textbooks, it became clear that there are quite a few issues when it comes to the representations of Dutch colonial history. In short, the books pay too little attention to the topic, contain Eurocentric and one-sided narratives, biased language use and they rarely engage in current public debates around colonial history. A questionnaire was also conducted among high school students to discover how extensive their knowledge on Dutch colonialism is, and to get an insight on their opinions and perspectives regarding that history. The questionairre revealed that there are significant gaps in the students’ knowledge about Dutch colonialism. While the newer editions of the textbooks showed some improvements, the learning materials still have a long way to go.Show less
