On a windy Thursday morning, our group of cultural heritage students set off on a bike trip to ‘de Punt’, the place where a train hijacking took place in 1977. We debarked the Harmonie building at 10 in the morning. The weather had taken an unfortunate turn, and instead of enjoying the sunshine that had blessed our city for some time, all of us had to face the coldest day in weeks. The sky was overcast with a thick blanket of clouds, and as we cycled further and further from Groningen, the wind picked up as well. There is a saying that no matter which way one cycles in the Netherlands, it will certainly be against the wind. We rapidly learned that this was true, as the vast majority of our journey was spent fighting the elements. Some of us had prepared accordingly; they showed up wearing sports clothing and packing sufficient amounts of water and food in their bags. Others, not so much; as they had greatly underestimated the challenges they were about to face on this field trip. Some had bikes that weren’t meant for long distances, others found that out only half-way in. Nevertheless, the day was faced with sparks of hope and anticipation; it was different to sitting in a lecture hall, after all. The scenery of rural Groningen was as stunning as one could imagine: endless green fields separated by rivers, picturesque farm houses sitting by the road and diverse animals running on the fields as we cycled by.
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| On the road |
After a 45 minute bike ride, we arrived at a grass field which the train tracks cut through. There, an archeologist and our guest lecturer Job Wijnen, who had been studying the site for 4 years, was waiting for us. He took us into the field and we walked through the high grass, towards a small cluster of bushes. These bushes, he told us, were where the Moluccans were in hiding while waiting for the train to come. A brief history lesson on the (mis)treatment of the Moluccans by the Dutch followed, in order to give us some perspective on how the Moluccan community got to the point of a train hijacking, and why they demanded better treatment. Then we continued on, farther into the grass fields until we reached the train tracks. Here we could see where the train came to a stop and where the police and governmental forces were stationed; in the golf club and farm nearby. Our guest lecturer pulled out a photo, printed on canvas on which we could clearly see the bullet holes that had been shot in the metal poles next to the train tracks. These holes had been put there by snipers stationed in the farm located about 100 meters from the train tracks. We were told the hijacking lasted three weeks, and was put to an end by having jet fighter planes fly over the train at a very low altitude, causing the train to shake heavily and force the hijackers to get down on the floor. This allowed the police to take control and put an end to the hijacking. After this all in all around 1 hour lecture, we walked back to our bikes to have a quick lunch break before continuing our bike tour to Bovensmilde.
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| Jobbe Wijnen showing us the bullet holes at the train tracks |
Half of the students had had enough by the time it was time to depart to the school; instead, they cycled back to their homes. The weather had taken its toll and the road had tired them out. The remaining students faced the music and continued the long journey. Luck was not a lady on that day: as more time went on, the students became increasingly worried. Were we going to make it in time? Were we going to make it at all? It became apparent that this trip was taking longer than any of us had anticipated. A couple more students threw in the towel during the second half of the trip: exhaustion had truly kicked in. Some of our bikes were making foreign noises that had not been there earlier in the morning.
After a 2 hour ride to Bovensmilde, we had a guest lecturer teach us about the 1977 primary school hijacking by four armed Moluccans. 105 children and five teachers were held hostage for four days before the children were forced to be sent back home due to the spread of an airborne disease and lack of sanitation. The guest lecturer told us about the Moluccan children could leave home before the Dutch children and the teachers kept as hostages before they were released. Then something unexpected happened: an actual victim who overheard our lecture joined in our discussion. He clarified to us he had reunited with the hijackers and victims alike. He explained the heritage was unknown by the locals compared to the train hijacking: it was overvalued due to the number of fatalities. We were later taken to the monument of the school hijacking, where the school building used to be stand. The hijacking victim explained to us that the memorial was there to represent the catastrophes that traumatized many Dutch and Moluccan children. The monument was said to be a symbol of unity between both communities that were affected. We took notes while the time was ticking away. Due to the lack of time, some of us had to leave early due to work. When we glared at our watches, it was almost 16:00, and it seemed almost impossible to bike back in time. Four students in including us excused the lecturer to leave earlier and catch the next train, and so we found our way back to the station and returned to Groningen.
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| A victim of the school hijacking tells us his story |
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| Mosaic remembrance art |
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| All the students and lecturers listen in silence to the victim speaking |
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"We willen samen leven" We want to live together
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Written by: Jesse, Saru and Sandra
