Skip to main content

Surinamese author, anti-colonial activist, TU leader, World War II resistance fighter

By Harsh Thakor 

Anton de Kom (Cornelis Gerhard Anton de Kom) was a Surinamese author, anti-colonial activist, trade unionist, and World War II resistance fighter. On June 19, it was announced that the Dutch government is awarding honorary rehabilitation to Anton de Kom. The recognition of Anton de Kom was a manifestation of the anti-imperialist and anti-racist movement. This year we commemorated his 125th birth anniversary in February. He carved a permanent niche amongst anti-colonial fighters in history.
De Kom was born in Paramaribo, Suriname, a colony of the Netherlands, on February 22, 1898 to a former slave and farmer Adolf de Kom and a free woman Judith Jacoba Dulder. He earned a secondary school diploma in accounting.
In 1916, de Kom got an office job at Balata Compagnieën Suriname en Guyana (Balata Companies Suriname and Guyana), a Company that exported latex for consumer products. He was aghast by the condition of the company’s new and unskilled workers, the formerly enslaved people.. His support for workers’ rights earned him the nickname “Papa de Kom” before he left the company.
In 1920, de Kom moved to Haiti and worked at the Societé Commerciale Hollandaise Transatlantique (Dutch Transatlantic Trading Company). Several months later, he sailed to the Netherlands where he volunteered for a year in the Dutch military. He subsequently worked for businesses as a consultant and salesman in the Hague, a city in the Netherlands.
Outside the arena his work, De Kom became an active participant in leftist politics and activities, often affiliating with groups that opposed European imperialism and fascism. He then began to campaign for the independence of Suriname. In 1926, he married a Dutchwoman, Petronella Borsboom, and returned with her to Suriname in 1933 to reportedly visit his ailing mother. By then, the Dutch government had placed him under surveillance, marking him as a possible threat to their colonial control of Suriname.

.Protesting Slavery and Racism

De Kom soon confronted the colonial administration in it’s very den by making workers conscious of their rights and organizing them to protest colonial rule. On February 1, 1933, he organised a contingent of followers toward the governor’s office. Colonial authorities arrested De Kom and charged him with attempting sedition. He was immediately imprisoned for three months in Fort Zeeland. Hundreds of people stormed to the jail igniting an uprising. Sighting further labour disturbances, the government deported de Kom back to the Netherlands where he was welcomed back as a hero by Dutch communists and other leftist supporters.
The legacy of slavery and racial discrimination was challenged to the last tooth by de Kom who wished to extinguish the bearings of Dutch colonial rule in his homeland.
In 1926, he expressed his thoughts into writing at the Koninklijke Bibliotheek (Royal Library). His book Wij Slaven van Suriname (We Slaves of Suriname), published in 1934, was classic masterpiece being the first history of black people in the colony and has been compared to W.E.B. DuBois’s classic The Souls of Black Folk. De Kom was hailed as the “W. E. DuBois of Suriname.”
Quoting Kuntsmusem Den Hag “A man with an undeterring expression, his eyes turned away from the camera. For many of us, it is this image that springs to mind when we think of the Surinamese anti-colonial writer and resistance fighter, Anton de Kom. The photographic portrait was made by the typographer and photographer, Piet Zwart, for the cover of De Kom’s book We Slaves of Suriname. Since the book’s publication in 1934, the portrait has become a symbol for the anti-colonial struggle against injustice and the fight for equality and freedom.”
In terms of it’s attack on slavery and capitalism, the book was similar to the work of CLR James or Eric Williams, but it is less theoretical and intellectual and more poetic and heart evoking.

Arrest and Death

De Kom’s relentless activism made him continually unemployed. Despite his grave economic circumstances, during the period of Nazi occupation in the 1940s, he supported the resistance with death defying courage, writing articles in the outlawed magazine De Vonk (The Spark) until he was betrayed, imprisoned by the Nazis in 1944, and sent to a concentration camp.
On April 29, 1945, de Kom perished from tuberculosis in the Sandbostel concentration camp in Germany. Today, his stupendous role in the creation of an independent Republic of Suriname in 1954 is commemorated throughout the country with a premier university, Anton De Kom University, and street in Paramaribo is named in his honour. His image is engraved on Suriname’s currency and, in the Netherlands; a statue was erected in his honor.
Still, however, it must be mentioned that high level of hypocrisy is masked behind the curtains of rehabilitation by the government .The government’s approval of Anton de Kom as a hero is an achievement of the anti-imperialist and anti-racist movement, which is waging a fierce battle against the oppression experienced by the black population and population of colour of the Netherlands by yoke of capitalist exploitation, and arousing hatred towards the criminal colonial past of the Dutch capitalist class. The NCPN and CJB annually organize the Anton de Kom commemoration, narrating his communist perspective and his scientific analyses of colonialism, imperialism and other issues.
It is hypocritical that the chair is being established to allegedly contribute to “giving Anton de Kom and his thought a rightful place in history education and academia,” while communist thought is vulgarised in every possible way. The very basis of Anton de Kom’s analyses, based on dialectical and historical materialism, on the Marxist method, is suppressed in the way the history of slavery and colonialism are distorted by the state.
---
Harsh Thakor is freelance journalist who has studied history of liberation Thanks information from’ In Defence of Communism’ and ‘Blackpast’

Comments

TRENDING

Still not dead and buried: A rural Punjab move to keep alive the spirit of Naxalbari

By Harsh Thakor  There was a well attended and most lively meeting in memory of Thana Singh of around 2000 persons in Thana Singh’s village of Bhallai Ana in community hall in Muktsar on September 17th, with most encouraging participation of youth. It was a testimony that the spirit of Naxalbari is still not dead and buried with the audience literally reverberating the message of Naxalbari. In spite of every effort of the state to crush the naxalbari movement, it is not dead and buried, as we witnessed here. I was privileged to participate in the event.

Dev Anand ably acted as westernised, urban educated, modern hero, as also anti-hero

By Harsh Thakor  On September 26th we celebrated the birth centenary of legendary actor Dev Anand. Dev Saab carved out a new epoch or made a path breaking contribution in portraying romanticism and action in Bollywood cinema, giving his style or mannerisms a new colour. Arguably no Bollywood star manifested glamour in such a dignified or serene manner or struck the core of an audience’s soul in romantic melodies. Possibly we missed this evergreen star being cast in a Hollywood film. Dev Anand is like an inextinguishable soul of Bollywood. Although not as artistic or intense as Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor or Ashok Kumar ,Dev Anand surpassed them all for liveliness or flamboyance, with his performances radiating g energy on the screen, in realms rarely transcended. In his own right, Dev Saab, was a craftsman, like his classical contemporaries, with a characteristic composure. Perhaps never was a Bollywood star so suave, bubbling or charming as Dev Anand, who often looked like an Indian versi

Ludicrous how Gandhi is ritually remembered by our leaders with broom in their hands

By Firoz Bakht Ahmed  On every Gandhi Jayanti day, ludicrous scenes of multi-hued political parties’ leaders with brooms in their hands are seen doing rounds on television commemorating Mahatma Gandhi regarding “swachhta” (cleanliness). This won’t do unless there’s cleansing of heart followed by the cleanliness of the poor voters’ stinking areas. Tragedy with Mahatma Gandhi is that he is just ritually remembered by us on the occasion of his anniversaries but he is worth remembering each day owing to his sagacious words that contain wisdom for all ages and in all times.

Abrogation of Art 370: Increasing alienation, relentless repression, simmering conflict

One year after the abrogation by the Central Government of Art. 370 in Kashmir, what is the situation in the Valley. Have the promises of peace, normalcy and development been realised? What is the current status in the Valley? Here is a detailed note by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties , “Jammu & Kashmir: One Year after Abrogation of Art. 370: Increasing Alienation, Relentless Repression, Simmering Conflict”:

Why Govt of India, Sangh Parivar want to stop the use of ‘India’? What's in a name?

By Ram Puniyani  Coincidentally after the opposition parties came together to form INDIA (Indian National Democratic Inclusive Alliance), the ruling BJP is desisting from the use of word India in official communiqués and its parent organizations RSS has issued a fatwa that only word Bharat should be used for our country. While inviting the representative’s participants of G 20, the President issued the invitation in the name of ‘Rashtrapati of Bharat’. Since then BJP is on the track of avoiding the use of the word India in all its pronouncements, saying this word smacks of colonial legacy since this word was given to the country by British colonial rulers. Mr. Hemant Biswa Sarma of BJP said that word India is part of the colonial legacy and should be removed. RSS chief and other functionaries have intensified this message. Speaking at a function at Guwahati Mr. Bhagwat, stated “We must stop using the word India and start using Bharat. At times we use India to make those who speak Eng

Pot calling the kettle black: EAM Jaishankar accusing Global North of double standards

By Chandra Vikash*  While addressing a Ministerial Session on Saturday 23 September 2023 in New York on the sidelines of the ongoing UN General Assembly session titled ‘South Rising: Partnerships, Institutions and Ideas’, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that economically dominant countries are leveraging production capabilities and those who have institutional influence have weaponized these capabilities. He also cited an example of Covid-19 and stressed that it is still a world of double standards."

Why originality of Gandhi's thoughts, example of his life still inspire people world over

By Moin Qazi*  Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary reopens a familiar debate around his legacy every year. How could a frail man use his moral strength to galvanize 400 million Indians in their struggle for independence from the mighty British Empire? How did Gandhi inspire ordinary people to turn fear into fearlessness and anger into love? What were his tools for fighting colonialism? How could he inspire the world to embrace his philosophy of nonviolence? What can we learn from him today? And is he still relevant?

In today’s India aggressive violence has become weapon of choice for buying peace

By Harasankar Adhikari  Mahatma (the great soul) Gandhi's vision stands for "ahimsa" (non-violence) and ‘Satyagraha’ (holding of the truth). It is absolutely the beacon of his spirituality. His searches for peace and bliss are within the realm of ahimsa and satyagraha. Although his works are confined to the political movement for India's freedom as the political leader, his lifelong practise is enshrined as the political saint of India( according to Swami Yogananda Paramhans). His devotion and self-sacrifice for the universe are the revelation of his sainthood. 

How the slogan Jai Bhim gained momentum as movement of popularity and revolution

By Dr Kapilendra Das*  India is an incomprehensible plural country loaded with diversities of religions, castes, cultures, languages, dialects, tribes, societies, costumes, etc. The Indians have good manners/etiquette (decent social conduct, gesture, courtesy, politeness) that build healthy relationships and take them ahead to life. In many parts of India, in many situations, and on formal occasions, it is common for people of India to express and exchange respect, greetings, and salutation for which we people usually use words and phrases like- Namaskar, Namaste, Pranam, Ram Ram, Jai Ram ji, Jai Sriram, Good morning, shubha sakal, Radhe Radhe, Jai Bajarangabali, Jai Gopal, Jai Jai, Supravat, Good night, Shuvaratri, Jai Bhole, Salaam walekam, Walekam salaam, Radhaswami, Namo Buddhaya, Jai Bhim, Hello, and so on.

Regretful: Kapil Dev retired not leaving Indian cricket with integrity he upheld

By Harsh Thakor  Kapil Dev scaled heights as an entertainer and a player upholding the spirit of the game almost unparalleled in his era. In his time he was cricket’s ultimate mascot of sportsmanship On his day Kapil could dazzle in all departments to turn the tempo of game in the manner of a Tsunami breaking in. He radiated r energy, at a level rarely scaled in his era on a cricket field. Few ever blended aggression with artistry so comprehenisively. Although fast medium, he could be as daunting with the ball as the very best, with his crafty outswinger, offcutter, slower ball and ball that kicked from a good length. Inspite of bowling on docile tracks on the subcontinent, Kapil had 434 scalps, with virtually no assistance. I can never forget how he obtained pace and movement on flat pancakes, trapping the great Vivian Richards in Front or getting Geoff Boycott or Zaheer Abbas caught behind. No paceman carried the workload of his team’s bowling attack on his shoulders in his eras muc