KRALENDIJK- On August 26, the biography of L.D. Gerharts, the man who has stood at the cradle of the business, tourist and political development will be presented on Bonaire.

Gerharts brought electricity to the island in the early 1930s, persuaded Albert Plesman to fly KLM to Bonaire in 1936, built the first professional supermarket and bakery, was involved in the foundation of the Washington-Slagbaai National Park and played a role in the protection of the flamingos. In addition, he founded the first hotel on the island (Zeebad), and was responsible for the construction of the hospital in the 1970s. During the Second World War, he provided bread, vegetables and meat for the prisoners in the internment camp and their guards. In addition, after the war he was a member of the parliament of the Netherlands Antilles, he was a deputy on Bonaire and in 1948 a member of the delegation of the Round Table Conference where the decolonization of the colonies of Curaçao and Suriname was discussed.

Politics

All these matters are discussed in detail in the biography. A few chapters are also devoted to the origins of political culture on Bonaire and Gerharts’ role in it. Important to take note of for anyone who wants to better understand the political business on Bonaire.

Of course, attention is also paid to Gerharts’ conviction for fornication with underage boys. A black page in his life, which he has always maintained was a political intent. The search for the truth reads like a thriller.

The book provides a unique insight into the life of L.D. Gerharts, his initiatives and decisiveness against the background of the rustic Bonaire of almost 100 years ago.

Author

René Roders, the writer of the biography, started collecting information about L.D. more than 10 years ago. Gerharts. He was able to consult Gerharts’ personal archive and spoke to people who knew him. Over the past year, he has collected everything of interest from more than fifty sources and described it in 14 chapters. The book will be published in the Netherlands as well as on Bonaire and Curaçao, has almost 280 pages with 29 photos and is published by LM Publishers in Edam, the Netherlands. The book is available on Bonaire from August 27 at the Bruna bookshop. The writer is there between 10 and 12 o’clock. The book costs $28.50.

Presentation

The presentation of the book by the writer will take place on August 27 at August 27 at Bruna from 2 to 4 in the afternoon at the Bruna bookstore.