Belga Sport is a Flemish documentary television series depicting turning points in Belgian sports history. The program, made by Woestijnvis and shown on the Flemish public broadcaster Canvas, digs up fragments from the VRT sports archives and sheds new light on “known” facts through testimonies. The subtitle therefore reads Old sports stories in a new light. The first series was broadcast in the spring of 2007. A new series was recently released in 2024. In June 2008, Belga Sport was awarded the Prize of Television Criticism. And in early 2011, the program received a nomination from the Flemish Television Stars in the category “Best Information Program.

There is also a podcast with the creators of Belga Sport. Which can be found here.

In the 1980s, the Broadcasting Museum, the predecessor of the Institute for Sound and Vision, realised that the time was ripe to record the stories of the pioneers of the National Broadcasting Corporation. The programme makers were now well into their old age. The Broadcasting Museum took this opportunity to record their life stories for posterity. These interviews – initiated by Harrie Vossen – contain valuable information about the early years of broadcasting and the further lives of the pioneers. After thirty years new interviews were held. 

This collection therefore consists of two parts that differ in character: the first set of 31 audio interviews with broadcasting pioneers dates from 1982-1993 and were conducted by Harrie Vossen. They therefore fall under the Harrie Vossen collection and can be found via DAAN, the digital archive of Sound & Vision with the metadata creator name: “Vossen”. These interviews cover the period 1930-1980 and highlight the early years of the National Broadcasting Company. Also see the following two overviews on the wiki of Sound & Vision concerning the collection Harrie Vossen and broadcasting pioneers: first, an overview of the interviewees of these interviews. Second, an overview of these interviews themselves with parts of the transcripts. The collection Harrie Vossen is a treasure trove for information regarding broadcasting pioneers.

The second series of 139 interviews is from 2010-2012 and deals with employees’ experiences of working for broadcasting. These interviews cover the period 1940-2012. Both young and old participated in these interviews so the content varies widely. These interviews can be found in the archive of Sound and Vision under the series Oral History of Broadcasting.

Also see our article on this collection “De verborgen schat van Beeld & Geluid” (The hidden treasure of Beeld & Geluid)

Herman Teerhöfer managed to interview a large number of survivors, starting from their life stories, about their personal experience and perception of the events and circumstances before, during and after World War II.

The poignant stories have been recorded in people’s homes, in image and sound. All interviewees also give a message for future generations in the interview.

Central questions in the interviews are:

• How were they able to survive and what did they draw strength from?

• Where did they draw mental support from? What was their footing?

• How did they make sense of their lives after the war despite many experiences of loss and trauma?

• How did they experience anti-Semitism prior to and after World War II?

• What message do they have for future generations regarding tolerance and forbearance?

   

   

From the testimonies and stories goes the warning “Never again war” and at the same time they call for cherishing and celebrating the freedom we now enjoy.

Wide-ranging interviews
Over the years, a large collection of interviews has been produced. The topics cover a wide range of aspects of World War II, due to the diverse background and environment the interviewees were in.

Smolinski Foundation aims to unlock a large collection of interviews in a way suitable for use during lessons in schools and presentations for cultural and civil society organisations. Digital, interactive teaching materials are also being developed. Interview fragments can also be used in museum presentations.

Overview of available interviews

• 84 life stories of Auschwitz survivors:
  • 20 interviewees were deported from Camp Vught to Auschwitz
  • 28 interviewees were deported to Auschwitz from Camp Westerbork
  • 36 interviewees were deported to Auschwitz from other camps and ghettos outside the Netherlands
• 25 life stories of Jewish people who managed to survive in hiding during World War II
• 11 life stories of people who participated in the Jewish resistance during World War II
• 8 life stories of survivors of Westerbork and Bergen-Belsen
• 3 life stories of survivors of Westerbork only
• 1 life story of a survivor of e.g. Camp Amersfoort
• 10 life stories of survivors of Japanese camps in the former Dutch East Indies
• 2 life stories of people who were children of NSB parents during World War II
• 8 life stories of resistance fighters and former political prisoners from Camp Vught
• 20 life stories of people who survived the Second World War and who, for example, witnessed a bombing (Nijmegen, Tilburg or Rotterdam), or experienced the hunger winter, or joined the Allies at liberation, or other testimonies of the Second World War in the Netherlands
• 10 life stories of people who witnessed the persecution of Jews in, for example, Amsterdam, Leiden and Tilburg, people who witnessed prisoners being put to work outside the camp in Camp Amersfoort or Camp Vught during World War II. These people lived in the immediate vicinity of Camp Amersfoort or Camp Vught at the time of the war.
• 10 life stories of people who experienced Anne Frank before and/or during the war in Amsterdam and/or in Westerbork, Auschwitz-Birkenau and/or Bergen-Belsen. They were classmates or close friends of Anne Frank in Amsterdam, or they were fellow prisoners in Westerbork, Auschwitz-Birkenau and/or Bergen-Belsen.

The Living Memories/Menghayati Kenangan Foundation recorded life stories as part of Het Gebaar (Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, 2000). The aim that this would ensure that the colonial part of history would not be forgotten. The life stories of the interviewees were largely recorded chronologically.

The interviews focus on events and experiences in the years 1930 – 2007.
They mainly discuss the Netherlands and Indonesia. Themes include Japanese occupation, ‘bersiap’, Indonesian revolution, repatriation wave 1962, experiences in the Netherlands, resistance.

After the 30 September 1965 coup, many Indonesians were killed and thousands were imprisoned on suspicion of communist and leftist sympathies. After returning to Indonesian society, they faced stigmatisation.

The Taporal project started in the 1990s. After years of repression and silence, former political prisoners began writing down their memories of the period after the 30 September 1965 coup, their imprisonment and the years after their release. Others were unable or unwilling to write down their stories. They were asked to record their experiences in an interview. The aim of the project was to record as many life stories of ex-political prisoners as possible to ensure that this part of history would not be (consciously) forgotten. The project received partial funding from the IISH in 1993.

The interviews focus on events and experiences in the years 1945 – 2000. They mainly discuss Indonesia. Themes include internment camps, concentration camps, political prisoners, forced labour camps, 30 September 1965 coup, stigmatisation, Suharto regime.

Indonesian soldier before executing so-called communist suspects. [Source:  insideindonesia.com]

Ik kom terug!

Met het project IK KOM TERUG worden de herinneringen van evacués en de impact van het oorlogsverleden verzameld, vastgelegd en gedeeld. De herinneringen zijn op een andere manier invoelbaar gemaakt in een expositie en podcast, en worden daarmee doorgegeven aan de huidige en volgende generatie.

Vluchten

Ongeveer 150.000 inwoners uit Arnhem en omstreken moesten tijdens of na de Slag om Arnhem evacueren (1944-1945). Sommigen konden elders in Nederland terecht bij familie, maar duizenden anderen werden ondergebracht bij wildvreemden of vonden onderdak in openbare gebouwen. Mensen trokken vaak van het ene naar het andere adres met dezelfde zorgen: zou er genoeg voedsel en brandstof zijn? Zou de bezetter de mannen komen oppakken voor tewerkstelling? Wanneer konden ze weer naar huis? Zou er nog wel iets zijn om naar terug te keren? Het duurde nog tot september 1945 voordat de meesten konden terugkeren naar wat over was van hun huizen. Veel tijd om stil te staan bij wat mensen hadden meegemaakt was er niet. Op de puinhopen bouwden zij hun leven weer op.

Alle verhalen bij het Airborne Museum

Afgelopen maanden zijn honderdtien evacués en of hun families geïnterviewd over de impact van de Slag om Arnhem, vluchten en weer terug komen. Al deze herinneringen verschijnen op de website van het Airborne Museum.

Listen in as new generations adopt memories

Twenty of the memories were included in a podcast series with Linda Geerdink. Together with poet Jesse Laport and illustrators from Funny Farm, teenagers translated the evacuees’ stories into the present. Experience their encounter and feel what war does to you.

>>From 12 April, four episodes each week can be listened to via your favourite podcast channels.

The train symbolises the stories of war that go around the world. From the past, but also from today. The grief people carry with them. That is the meaning behind the train I drew on the edge of the board.” 

-Tren Nieuwhart-

Interviews with former members of the Arbeiders Jeugd Centrale with as a common thread their personal experiences, and the possible role of the AJC in this, during World War II. The interviews are the basis for the book by Geertje Marianne Naarden (Amsterdam, 1979), 112 audio cassettes of which (as yet) 24 have been digitised. The cassettes mainly feature interviews with former members of the Arbeiders Jeugd Centrale (AJC), with an emphasis on their experiences during World War II and any role the AJC played in it. The interviews are the basis for the book Onze jeugd behoort de morgen…: de geschiedenis van de AJC in oorlogstijd by Geertje Marianne Naarden (Amsterdam, 1989). All interviews were conducted by Geertje Marianne Naarden, accompanied in part by co-interviewer Ad van Moock. Besides the interviews, some cassettes contain a radio broadcast, a work meeting, an AJC reunion, a lecture with discussion afterwards and some group meetings. 1 interview was done by Rie Spanjer for her book De AJC dat waren wij . This interview was also used by Naarden as a source for her book Onze jeugd behoort de morgen…: de geschiedenis van de AJC in oorlogstijd .

Oral history with schools around 8 themes

Econonomic story of Wase companies and professional sectors supplemented by personal stories.

8 themes:

• Boelwerf Temse
• Shipyard Chantier Naval Rupelmonde (CNR)
• Service personnel
• Agriculture
• The Kruibeekse polders
• Brickworks Scheerders van Kerckhove (SVK)
• Meert carpet factory
• Works at the docks

Around the middle of the last century, the Waasland region experienced a great economic boom, in business sectors such as the textile industry, metal construction and shipbuilding. Large and small companies employed thousands of people. In the last quarter of the 20th century, however, many of these companies were forced to stop their activities, with all the consequences that entailed.

50 years of work in the Waasland region is an oral history project. The Heritage Unit Waasland supplemented the history of the Waasland companies and professional sectors with the personal stories of people who worked here in the second half of the 20th century. These testimonies paint a colourful picture of what “work” meant in the period 1945-1995.

The results were compiled on a DVD with video and audio clips and accompanying documents.

This archive contains a wealth of information about the Jewish presence in Antwerp and also testifies to the life and work of Sylvain Brachfeld, author and guardian of the history and memory of the Antwerp Jewish community. The archive consists of two large parts: the manuscripts and publications of Sylvain Brachfeld himself, with hundreds of articles, various books and poems written by him. In them, he describes every possible facet of Jewish life. The second part contains the testimonies he collected, including some 200 audiocassettes, more than 1200 photographs, slides, negatives and videotapes. Various books and studies relating to Judaism in Belgium are also present. The audio cassettes form a very important part of the archive. In the 1970s, Mr Brachfeld interviewed many Jewish families in Antwerp, resulting in about 120 stories with precious memories, since many of those witnesses are already deceased. He himself belongs to the last generation who can still testify directly about the Shoah.

Sylvain Brachfeld used his research for several publications

The interviews relating to the 1953 flood were conducted as part of an oral history project by several groups of (180) students from the Documentation Centre for Contemporary History (DNG) of the University of Amsterdam in 1990-92. Many of the interviewees were direct victims of the disaster, others were related to it as relief workers, administrators etcetera. 

The entire project was led by Dr Selma Leydesdorff. She used the interviews in her book Het water en de herinnering. De Zeeuwse watersnoodramp 1953-1993 (with pictures by Ed van Wijk), Amsterdam: Meulenhoff, 1993.