The Hague, 18 August 2020 - Today sees the publication of the gold Dutch East Indies 1945-2020 stamp, which is part of the End of the Second World War series. With this stamp, PostNL commemorates the fact that the Japanese army laid down its arms in the former Dutch colony on 15 August 1945, ending an occupation that lasted more than 41 months.
The gold stamp features a soldier hoisting the Dutch flag on a beach on the island of Timor, surrounded by cheering bystanders. The photograph was taken in September 1945. The words NEDERLANDS-INDIË are printed on the left half of the stamp, and the years 1945 and 2020 are printed on the right.
15 August 1945 was the official end of the Second World War in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. On this day, Japanese emperor Hirohito officially announced that his country had surrendered to the allied forces. This also meant that the war in the Dutch East Indies was finally over. The Japanese occupation of the then Dutch colony started when the Dutch and allied troops surrendered on 8 March 1942.
It was not until 1988 that an official national remembrance day for the end of the war in the Dutch East Indies was finally introduced. Since then, we have been remembering all victims of the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies annually on 15 August at the Dutch East Indian monument in the Hague. The official name of this ceremony is the Nationale Indiëherdenking (National Dutch East Indies Memorial Ceremony). It is one of three memorial events in our country, in addition to the Nationale Dodenherdenking (National Remembrance Day) on 4 May and the Nationale Holocaustherdenking (National Holocaust Memorial Day) on the last Sunday in January.
The stamp featuring the Dutch East-Indies is the last stamp in the End of the Second World War series. Earlier this year, PostNL published gold stamps about Operation Market Garden (23 January), Anne Frank (20 March) and the liberation of the Netherlands (May). Each stamp in the End of the Second World War series is made from 24-carat gold.
The End of the Second World War series can be ordered while stocks last only in the webshop and from the Collect Club customer service on +31 (0)88 868 99 00. The stamp is marked with ‘Nederland 1’, the denomination for items weighing up to 20g destined for delivery in the Netherlands. The validity period is indefinite.