1969 Curaçao uprising

1969 Curaçao uprising.
The 1969 Curaçao uprising was a series of riots from 30 May to 1 June on the Caribbean island of Curaçao, then part of the Netherlands Antilles, a semi-independent country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. A protest rally during a strike by oil workers turned violent, leading to widespread looting and destruction in the center of Curaçao's capital, Willemstad, as well as two deaths and hundreds of arrests. The protesters achieved their demands for higher wages and the government's resignation. The uprising's leaders gained seats in parliamentary elections in September. A commission investigating the riots put the blame on economic issues, racial tensions, and police and government misconduct. The uprising prompted the Dutch government to undertake new efforts to fully decolonize the remnants of its colonial empire. Suriname, another constituent country of the Netherlands, became independent in 1975, but leaders of the Antilles resisted independence out of fear of economic repercussions.