Bear with Full Belly

Nine-year-old Margreet Kuiper arrived at Camp Tjideng in Batavia with nothing. The last suitcase with any of her belongings was lost along the way. But then she found this teddy bear in the garbage. The Japanese, who occupied the Dutch East Indies in 1942, interned the Dutch in special camps. A reign of terror prevailed in Camp Tijdeng. Hunger and disease were rampant and in the absence of medicine, the death toll rose. In this difficult period Margreet cherished this teddy bear.