The Dutch National Remembrance Day ceremony to commemorate those who died in World War II and armed conflicts since will go ahead this year but without any public present. The ceremony takes place in Amsterdam each year with commemorative wreaths placed strategically on Dam Square, along with speeches and a minute of silence.
The event on May 4 typically involves members of the Dutch Royal Family and a few other dignitaries laying wreaths and it usually draws a massive crowd. It will be a very different scene this year, taking place without any members of the public. Another thing that has been confirmed is that King Willem Alexander will give a speech.
The renowned Liberation Day pop festivals in 14 different parks throughout the Netherlands on May 5 have been cancelled due to the tighter coronavirus measures that came into place this week, which includes gatherings being banned until June 1.
May 5, 2020, is a public holiday and marks 75 years of liberation of the Netherlands from the Nazi occupation. In this landmark year, there were several additional commemorative activities planned, like “Liberation Month” which have now been scrapped.
The National Committee in charge of the event would still like the public to be involved in some way. In these exceptional circumstances of physical distancing, the exact ways of getting involved have yet to be defined.
Gerdi Verbeet, a spokeswoman of the National Committee made an appeal to the public to show their solidarity during this year’s Remembrance Day: “We are asking everyone’s special consideration for the veterans and all those people who experienced the horrors of this war first hand and who are now extra vulnerable to coronavirus.”