Henk Sneevliet
Biography
Hendricus Josephus Franciscus Marie Sneevliet, known as Henk Sneevliet or by the pseudonym "Maring" (13 May 1883 – 13 April 1942), was a Dutch communist politician who was active in both the Netherlands and the Dutch East Indies. As a functionary of the Communist International, Sneevliet guided the formation of both the Communist Party of Indonesia in 1914, and the Chinese Communist Party in 1921. In his native country, he was the founder, chairman, and only Representative for the Revolutionary Socialist (Workers') Party (RSP/RSAP). He took part in the communist resistance against the occupation of the Netherlands during World War II by Nazi Germany, for which he was executed by the Germans in April 1942.
Known For & Full Filmography1 Titles
Movie - 2006, 2h 15m • as Self (archive footage)
In the Netherlands, a viaduct is named after him; in China, in the museum in Shanghai, he is depicted alongside Mao Zedong as one of the founders of the Chinese Communist Party. Who was Henk Sneevliet, what drove him, and how would he have viewed the realization of his ideal while traveling through present-day China? In Sneevliet’s Footsteps, René Seegers travels through present-day China and reports on what has become of Sneevliet’s ideal. He wonders how Sneevliet would have viewed present-day communist China. Prof. Tang Boalin (biographer of Chen Duxiu) and Ms. Li Yuzhen (Chinese biographer of Sneevliet) provide an explanation of Sneevliet’s historical role. Zhang Wensheng (Director of the Institute for the Study of Socialism) and Prof. Wang Hui (Editor-in-Chief of the critical journal Dushu) offer their views on the nature of Communism in present-day China.