Amsterdam celebrates 150th anniversary of abolishment slavery

Tomorrow is the official celebration of the 150th anniversary of the abolishment of slavery in the Netherlands.

The abolishment took place on July 1, 1863. Holland was one of the last countries to abolish slavery, one of the reasons being Dutch parliament took many years to decide about proper reparation of damages (for the slave owners, that is).

Tomorrow (July 1) at 1pm, at the national slavery monument in Oosterpark there will be the official commemoration ceremony. This will be attended by King Willem-Alexander.
The ceremony is the start of the Keti Koti Festival, also in the Oosterpark, which will last the whole day (see http://www.ketikotiamsterdam.nl for more information, Dutch only). Keti Koti is Surinamese (Sranantango) for the day of abolishment.