Multiple Homemaking by Ruben Gowricharn

Author:Ruben Gowricharn [Gowricharn, Ruben]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, Emigration & Immigration, Political Science, General
ISBN: 9781000219920
Google: kBEHEAAAQBAJ
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Published: 2020-11-11T04:09:23+00:00

5.3 The Dutch context

During the run-up to the independence of Suriname in 1975, ethnic relations polarised to the brink of ethnic riots. Neighbouring Guyana had suffered from race riots between Creoles and Hindustanis from the early 1960s on and the Surinamese feared similar riots despite a peaceful racial history. As a result, Surinamese of all ethnic backgrounds fled to the Netherlands. Figure 5.1 gives a snapshot of these Hindustani ‘fugitive’ families arriving at the Dutch airport Schiphol. The immigrants were accommodated in hastily established centres all over the country, most of them located in rural areas. Prior to this, Surinamese immigrants had settled predominantly in the major cities. Hindustanis had a ‘tradition’ of settling in the city of The Hague because of family relations, while most Creoles settled in Amsterdam and Rotterdam for similar reasons (Choenni 2014). The Surinamese ‘runaway’ immigrants were offered housing and employment in remote areas. Some accepted the provisions and most of them gradually migrated to the cities, notably The Hague, and to a lesser degree to Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Utrecht. Family, marriage, jobs, housing and community life were the major drivers of this domestic migration.

Figure 5.1 Hindustanis arriving in the mid-’70s at Schiphol, the national airport of the Netherlands

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