At the Liberation Festival in Wageningen, one celebrates freedom with a beer in hand, the other with banner and red flyer

Freedom is « a unique and rare privilege, » said Minister Ruben Brekelmans (Defense, VVD), just before a group of demonstrators climbed over the crush barriers on the 5 May square in Wageningen and disrupted the minister’s speech. « Free Palestine« They cried, and then they were tackled by the police. Five activists were towed and arrested.

That action could not count on the public consent, on Monday morning in Wageningen at the National Kick -off of Liberation Day, where dignitaries and veterans were present. The demonstrators were booed. « Choose another day, dude! », Anyone cried. Another: « Are you going to be ashamed! »

The disturbance did not grow up. Brekelmans at the end of his speech: « I also say that to the people we just saw here: let’s hold each other firmly and not let us play apart, that’s what we all have to do. » Prime Minister Dick Schoof, a little later,, according to plan, ignited the ‘freedom fire’; The Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk gave a speech. Spectators clapped cheerfully and relieved for the aer -proof veterans who liberated the Netherlands eighty years ago, all very old. And for the parade of military vehicles and wind chapels, which hurled through the city center around noon.

An hour later, at the start of the Liberation Festival further down in Wageningen, it was hit again. A smoke bomb that spread red clouds was thrown on stage when Prime Minister Schoof had just called freedom « precious », with his Polish colleague Tusk next to him. They were quickly taken away by security guards. In the eyes of many festival -goers, the smoke still looked fairly festive, others spread over the public, at that time red flyers raised the text with the text: « Wageningen draws a red line here. »

Petra Rietberg is in the audience with a banner. The text: « Freedom for everyone ». Rietberg: « This is about freedom. But in the meantime the freedom of so many people is under pressure through the policy of this cabinet: asylum seekers, migrants, transgender people. » And, she says, can it also be about the Palestinians affected by the Gaza War? « Even though Israel violates human rights, this cabinet does not draw a red line. »

Rietberg came to the festival to make that message heard, together with girlfriend and colleague Jenneke van Vliet. « On this day we say ‘never again’ to each other, but never again is now. If shoved here says that freedom is at stake, about what he is talking about? Why does he not say: and that is why Netanyahu is no longer welcome in the Netherlands? We express big words about freedom, but they look like the stage. »

Bystanders responded differently to the action, she says. « There were people who agreed, but I also heard, » Huh, why are you here? Go away here!  » I can really get angry about that skewness, we are here for freedom! ”

Structural financing

Liberation Day is more than a festival. Without the content, liberation day should not be celebrated, the cabinet also believes. For the weekend, State Secretary Vincent Karremans (Youth, Prevention and Sport, VVD) announced that fourteen liberation festivals in the Netherlands receive structural financing, starting with 700,000 euros this year. Before that he set the condition that there must be a substantive link with celebrating freedom. « 

Rianne Kuijer, who came to the festival with her husband and three children, is also aware. « I come here to show my children: this is freedom. Being allowed to celebrate, with music and a beer in my hand. Eighty years ago the children could play happily outside again, so I explain that to my children. That is not obvious at this time, they have Ukrainian friends who have experienced that. »

She finds the actions to draw attention to the Palestinians ‘difficult’. « We live in a country where that is allowed and that is important. But on this day I would like to stick to the definition of Liberation Day: to think about the Second World War and for which our men fought. »

« It is a shame that it should be on such days, » says Artie Blankespoor, who came from Ede with his daughter Madeleen. For the parade, and to introduce her to such a music festival. « I think we already have a lot of attention in the Netherlands for what is happening in Israel, so I would say: maybe today we can show the positive side that we are now celebrating freedom. »

Later in the afternoon, various places in the Netherlands held another action: « On the ground for the Constitution, » in which campaigners sat on the street. About a hundred people participated in the Neude in Utrecht.

Prime Minister Schoof called it on Monday afternoon in a reaction against the NOS « a pity » that Liberation Day « is used for demonstrations for very different things that play in other parts of the world. »

Student Roos Hamelink, who lives in Wageningen, sees « the contradiction » of it. « The whole point is of course that we ‘never want war’ again, but that there is still war. » So for an action she does understand, « as long as it’s peaceful. » She herself came for the festival. « What freedom means for me? It mainly meant this morning that I thought: I put on strange eye shadow today, » she says laughing.

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