Bulldozer protest in West-Friesland: A farmer is fighting for his country!

Bulldozer protest in West-Friesland: A farmer is fighting for his country!

In the current documentary series "Van Kloeten Naar Kavels", the ruin caveling in West-Friesland and its effects on the landscape is discussed. In the third episode, Jan Ruijter from Venhuizen focuses on, who drew attention to himself with an impressive protest: he lay down in front of a bulldozer to demonstrate against the planned implementation of agricultural areas. Ruijter, an experienced tuinder that built potatoes, onion flowers and cauliflower, was very afraid that fertile land could be lost irrevocably, such as streekomroep West-Friesland reported.

The protest from Ruijter was not without consequences: the police were forced to stop the work due to his courageous engagement. "He experiences it as if you were plowing your soul," says his daughter Marijke Ruijter. Together with your cousin Liesbeth Verst, you researched the history of your family and published a magazine entitled "Grondezet". After the ruin caveling, unusable earth finally remained in the fields. Jan Ruijter later worked in the Fabrik at Verkade for a few years. Today his protesting acts are highly valued by his descendants that recognize the importance of his action.

background and other developments

The documentary series consists of a total of four episodes that offer new insights into the topic every Sunday. It is produced in cooperation with NH Nieuws and deals with the personal stories of those affected by the ruin caveling. In the first episode, Tjalling James, a former civil servant of the cultural service service, has his say, who carried out the ruin tank project in the Polder Het Groatlag. In addition, Lisa Timmerman, consultant for landscape and cultural history at Mooi Noord-Holland, explains the changes in the landscape of West Friesland and the differences between old and new areas, such as nh nieuws reported.

The region, which used to consist of small plots and numerous trenches, faced a comprehensive plan for Ruil caveling in the past 50 years, which aimed to make the area future -proof. Larger plots were created, which brought advantages for the landowners, such as lower maintenance costs and better accessibility.