Demonstration against Sinterklaas tradition cancelled

A demonstration by two far-left artists and activists against the Dutch tradition of Sinterklaas has been cancelled at the last minute. The organisers have been inundated with furious reactions over the past few days.

The protest march was to be held in the Eindhoven city centre on Saturday. However, the extreme leftwing organisation Doorbraak, one of the organisers, announced on Friday that the demonstration had been cancelled due to “the numerous threats from extreme rightwing sources”.

The demonstration was part of an exhibition in the Van Abbe museum in Eindhoven on identity, nationality and social cohesion. Under the title ‘Be(com)ing Dutch’, two artists from Sweden and Germany produced a work with which they wished to express the opinion that Sinterklaas is a racist celebration.

Sinterklaas is the Dutch equivalent of Santa Claus. Aided by helpers commonly known as Zwarte Pieten (’Black Peters’), Sinterklaas travels by steamboat from Spain to the Netherlands every year in November to throw presents down chimneystacks on 5 December and disappear again.

Dutch children believe that the Black Peters are black because they climb down chimneys. Apparently unaware of this background, the foreign artists, Anette Kraus and Petra Bauer, intended to link to their project a demonstration in the shopping area of Eindhoven against “the racist structure behind this tradition”.

During the past few days floods of angry reactions were received by the Van Abbe museum and the Eindhoven city council, which had initially given permission for the demonstration. Doorbraak claimed that “the museum and the council have now given way to threats from racist and nationalist elements, which are winning more and more support in society.”

Source: NIS News, 30 August 2008