Willem Leonard Oltmans (addressed as William Oltmans in some English publications; 10 June 1925 – 30 September 2004) was a Dutch

investigative journalist Investigative journalism is a form of journalism in which reporters deeply investigate a single topic of interest, such as serious crimes, political corruption, or corporate wrongdoing. An investigative journalist may spend months or years rese ...

and author active in international politics. Due to the highly critical stance he often took towards Dutch foreign policy, as of 1956 the Dutch government conspired to keep him out of work. A lengthy lawsuit (1991–2000) involving the

Royal family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term ...

led to the state having to pay him damages.

Early life

Oltmans was born into a wealthy family with roots in the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

. During the Second World War he was a member of the Dutch Resistance. "We blew up a German train," Oltmans told the Dutch daily ''Reformatorisch Dagblad'' in 2003. "Hitler called me a terrorist, but I saw myself as a freedom fighter." He studied at

Nyenrode Business University Nyenrode Business Universiteit (abbreviated as ''NBU''; nl, Nyenrode Business Universiteit) is a Dutch business university and one of the five private universities in the Netherlands. Founded in 1946, it is located on a large estate in the town ...

(1946) and

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

(1948), without graduating. Originally intent on a career with the diplomatic corps of the foreign service, he ended up working in press offices in the Netherlands (1953–1955). He was a close confidant of both

Beatrix Beatrix is a Latin feminine given name, most likely derived from ''Viatrix'', a feminine form of the Late Latin name ''Viator'' which meant "voyager, traveller" and later influenced in spelling by association with the Latin word ''beatus'' or "bles ...

and Gertrude Büringh Boekhoudt (March 24, 1893 – September 3, 1982) who had been Crown Princess

's tutor since April 1951. He married in 1955 and worked as a freelance reporter in Rome in 1956 for ''De Telegraaf'' when he interviewed and befriended Indonesian president

Sukarno Sukarno). (; born Koesno Sosrodihardjo, ; 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967. Sukarno was the leader of ...

during Sukarno's trip to Italy in 1956. This started his career as a controversial journalist which the

Dutch Security Service The General Intelligence and Security Service ( nl, Algemene Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst, AIVD; ) is the intelligence and security agency of the Netherlands, tasked with domestic, foreign and signals intelligence and protecting national ...

would closely watch for many decades. On June 10, 1958, he moved to United States. Convinced that a well connected and informed individual could play a decisive role in the international political arena, he assumed a pro-active part in global political developments, becoming both a news reporter and news maker.

Dutch state conspiracy

Against the will of the Dutch government, Oltmans interviewed

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

n president

in 1956. Once he became a confidant of Sukarno and part of his inner circle he took it upon himself to convince the broader public in the Netherlands of the legitimacy of Sukarno's viewpoints. In 1957 he pleaded for the transfer of

Dutch New Guinea Dutch New Guinea or Netherlands New Guinea ( nl, Nederlands-Nieuw-Guinea, id, Nugini Belanda) was the western half of the island of New Guinea that was a part of the Dutch East Indies until 1949, later an overseas territory of the Kingd ...

to Indonesia while in Indonesia. He claimed to have prevented a Dutch war against Indonesia over New Guinea by sending a memo to US president. Subsequently

Joseph Luns Joseph Marie Antoine Hubert Luns (28 August 1911 – 17 July 2002) was a Dutch politician and diplomat of the defunct Catholic People's Party (KVP) now merged into the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist. He served as Secretary ...

, Minister of Foreign Affairs, covertly tried everything to sabotage Oltmans' career, with considerable success: for a long time, Oltmans was forced to live off welfare. Luns, who now had become Oltmans' nemesis, called him a 'one engine mosquito'. In 1995 Oltmans published his book '' My friend Sukarno''. He fought a long lawsuit (1991–2000) against the Dutch state, which he eventually won. In 2000 a commission awarded him eight million guilders (four million dollars) in damages, after taxes. Having paid two million guilders in lawyer's fees, Oltmans bought a penthouse on a canal in Amsterdam and a Steinway piano.

Kennedy conspiracy

Oltmans was based in the USA in the 1960s, where he worked as a reporter for Dutch TV broadcaster NOS and lobbied members of the President Kennedy's administration regarding New Guinea. On April 5, 1961, he attended a meeting with the United States

National Security Advisor A national security advisor serves as the chief advisor to a national government on matters of security. The advisor is not usually a member of the government's cabinet but is usually a member of various military or security councils. National sec ...

McGeorge Bundy McGeorge "Mac" Bundy (March 30, 1919 – September 16, 1996) was an American academic who served as the U.S. National Security Advisor to Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson from 1961 through 1966. He was president of the Ford Founda ...

at which he supported the transfer of New Guinea from the Netherlands to Indonesia which occurred on August 15, 1962, with support from the United States.

, who was a prominent Dutch diplomat, vehemently opposed this transfer and subsequently had Oltmans declared ''persona non grata'' for life. After Kennedy was assassinated in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

in 1963, Oltmans interviewed the mother of accused assassin

Lee Harvey Oswald Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963. Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at the age of 12 fo ...

, Marguerite Oswald whom he met in March 1964 at JFK Airport and was seated next to her on a flight.Een reportage over de Kennedy-moordenaars’
by Willem Oltmans (1977) from dbnl.org website. Translation a
A report on the Kennedy assassins
/ref> Further investigation led him to Oswald's acquaintance

George de Mohrenschildt George Sergius de Mohrenschildt ( ru , Георгий Сергеевич де Мореншильд; April 17, 1911 – March 29, 1977) was an American petroleum geologist, professor, and known CIA informant. De Mohrenschildt is best known for havi ...

. On 15 October 1967, Oltmans interviewed the de Mohrenschildts for NOS which resulted in a 40 minute film that was the only full-length filmed interview of George de Mohrenschildt. However, the film, which was kept at

Hilversum Hilversum () is a city and municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. Located in the heart of the Gooi, it is the largest urban centre in that area. It is surrounded by heathland, woods, meadows, lakes, and smaller towns. Hilvers ...

, disappeared in 1975. In 1977 De Mohrenschildt agreed to disclose information to Oltmans, but disappeared from their meeting place and was found dead in Florida a few weeks later. On March 3, 1977, De Mohrenschildt and Otlmans flew to the

Schiphol Airport Amsterdam Airport Schiphol , known informally as Schiphol Airport ( nl, Luchthaven Schiphol, ), is the main international airport of the Netherlands. It is located southwest of Amsterdam, in the municipality of Haarlemmermeer in the province ...

in the Netherlands where De Mohrenschildt had left his luggage, money and keys at Oltmans home and then, a few days later, flew together to Brussels where they had a 12:30 lunch date with a Soviet diplomat with whom De Mohrenschildt conversed with in Russian and abruptly left the table but Oltmans never saw De Mohrenschildt again.Willem Oltmans’ zoektocht naar de ware moordenaars van JFK: ‘De man achter Lee Harvey Oswald’
by Stef Ketelaar (24 November 2020) from Historiek website. Translation a
Willem Oltmans' search for JFK's true killers: "The Man Behind Lee Harvey Oswald"
/ref> On 29 March 1977, De Mohrenschildt was found dead at his daughters home in Florida due to an apparent self-inflicted shotgun wound via the mouth. Oltmans stated that a taped recording of the event existed in which footsteps can be heard, followed by the sound of a shotgun discharging, and then footsteps heard again.

L. Richardson Preyer Lunsford Richardson Preyer (January 11, 1919 – April 3, 2001) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina and later a United States representative from North Carolina. Educat ...

of the

House Select Committee on Assassinations The United States House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) was established in 1976 to investigate the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1963 and 1968, respectively. The HSCA completed its i ...

investigating the assassination of Kennedy stated that De Mohrenschildt was "a crucial witness, based on the new information that he had". A few days later, Oltmans told the HSCA that de Mohrenschildt had implicated himself in the conspiracy to kill President Kennedy. And Pat S. Russell, who was De Mohrenschildt's attorney said "I definitely feel there was a conspiracy and that definitely was the opinion of George." Oltmans testified for three hours behind closed doors and told the committee that De Mohrenschildt told him he had discussed the assassination of Kennedy with Lee Harvey Oswald from A to Z. "De Mohrenschildt told me that Oswald acted at his (De Mohrenschildt's) instructions and that he knew Oswald was going to kill Kennedy," Oltmans said. Although Oltmans had given information to the Committee shortly before, De Mohrenschildt's death had released Oltmans from his promise not to divulge certain information. Oltmans revealed that De Mohrenschildt, whom he had known for ten years, had told him that there had been a conspiracy to assassinate Kennedy and that he had played a role in the conspiracy. De Mohrenschildt said that CIA and FBI personnel were involved as well. Oltmans played the role of De Mohrenschildt in

Oliver Stone William Oliver Stone (born September 15, 1946) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Stone won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as writer of '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and wrote the gangster film remake '' Sc ...

's 1991 film about the assassination, ''

JFK John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...

''.

In the Soviet Union

In the 1980s Oltmans endeavoured to create a more balanced opinion in the West about the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. Looking for a more poised perspective on the one sided bad image of the evil empire's communist power, he often traveled to Russia. Together with the Kremlin's foreign expert Georgi Arbatov, he wrote the book 'The Soviet position', elaborating on Moscow's perspective on the East-West issues in 1981. The book received much attention and was published in several languages.

In Suriname

Also in the '80s, Oltmans actively interfered with the

postcolonial Postcolonialism is the critical academic study of the cultural, political and economic legacy of colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the impact of human control and exploitation of colonized people and their lands. More specifically, it is a ...

Dutch-Suriname relationship. He recognised a bilateral relationship based in negative sentiments similar to the Dutch-Indonesian relationship. Intent on playing a mediating role Oltmans traveled to

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

to interview military dictator Bouterse. He published a book that was banned in Suriname and misunderstood in the Netherlands.

In South Africa

Due to the ban imposed on him by Minister Luns, Oltmans was forced to help support himself through his family's inheritance; the death of his parents (1966 and 1974) and some bad investments caused him financial difficulty. In the late eighties he intended to use his large global network as a consultant to introduce entrepreneurs to Eastern European business opportunities. Through a string of quarrels with his stakeholders this initiative failed completely and Oltmans left for

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. Both his brothers had settled in South Africa in 1948. He had visited the country regularly and in 1990 decided to settle there permanently. In South Africa he continued his tendency of actively intervening in local politics. His investigative reporting was not appreciated by the shaky South African regime of the time and in August 1992 he was deported to Jordan on charges of espionage. Oltmans always insisted the Dutch Security Service was involved in his deportation.

Publications (selected)

* ''Persona Non Grata'' (Papieren Tijger, Breda, 1994) * ''Mijn vriend Sukarno'' (Spectrum, Utrecht, 1995) * ''De staat van bedrog'' (Papieren Tijger, Breda, 1998) * ''Cry for war'' (Papieren Tijger, Breda, 2003) * ''Laatste wapenfeiten'' (Papieren Tijger, Breda, 2009) * ''Reporting on the Kennedy Assassination'' (University Press of Kansas, 2017)

Filmography

References

Notes & citations

Bibliography

* Oltmans, Willem (1995)
''Mijn vriend Sukarno''
'My Friend Sukarno'' Spectrum, Utrecht. . * Oltmans, Willem (Sep. 25, 1996)
''Liegen Tegen Beatrix''.
Breda, Netherlands: Papieren Tijger. . * Oden, Edwin (2010)

Balans, Amsterdam. .

External links

Official website Willem Oltmans Foundation

Various works - Digital Library of Dutch Literature

Willem Oltmans, The Eight Million Dollar Man – Documentary

Jaap de Wreede, 'Publicist Willem Oltmans kan het dwarsliggen niet laten', In: Reformatorisch Dagblad, 24 May 2003

Biography – Dutch Institute of Netherlands history

National Library of the Netherlands Official website

Online dossier – National library of Netherlands.

Online selection of TV interviews.

Online portrait by newspaper 'de Volkskrant'.

IMDb profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oltmans, Willem 1925 births 2004 deaths Dutch investigative journalists Dutch political writers Dutch political commentators Dutch autobiographers Dutch memoirists Dutch biographers Male biographers Dutch male writers Dutch essayists Dutch diarists Dutch critics Dutch television personalities Dutch people of Indonesian descent Dutch male film actors Dutch republicans Dutch male short story writers Dutch short story writers Dutch conspiracy theorists Dutch gay writers Dutch LGBT journalists Dutch LGBT broadcasters LGBT memoirists Writers from Amsterdam Male actors from Amsterdam Indo people Researchers of the assassination of John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories John F. Kennedy conspiracy theorists Nyenrode Business University alumni Yale University alumni Deaths from cancer in the Netherlands Deaths by euthanasia Euthanasia in the Netherlands People from Huizen Male essayists 20th-century essayists 20th-century Dutch journalists 20th-century memoirists 20th-century diarists