By 16 April, the major part of Friesland had been liberated. But some important targets of the Canadians had not yet been achieved. They wanted to win the Frisian ports and the Head of the Afsluitdijk from the Germans as quickly as possible. But they would be hard fought. Both the ports and the Afsluitdijk were used by German soldiers to escape to North Holland.
As elsewhere in Friesland, the Canadians were helped by resistance fighters from the Dutch Domestic Armed Forces (N.B.S.) They suffered several casualties near Makkum. On 16 April, Schelte Bruinsma and Simon Sipma were killed in an attack on a farm in which the Germans had entrenched themselves. The next day, another group tried to occupy a bridge under Makkum. However, the Germans caught sight of them and in the ensuing gunfight, Rinnert Anema, Roelof van der Meer and Hendrik Postma were killed. Makkum was liberated on 18 April, as one of the last villages in Friesland.
The monument at the Buren in Makkum was unveiled in 1952 in commemoration of the members of the Dutch Domestic Armed Forces who were killed around the village during the struggle for liberation.
Often to understand, we have to look into emptiness – Michelangelo Antonioni
Winter line skean tsjin de apelhôven, liet de mûle in lang swijen, begjin april, spoaren fan lytse hoefdieren yn de snie en oer de mûnier, dêr’t in rûge froast syn flierren sloech, de rop fan in ûle. Earne út nacht syn ûnderwâlen wei kaam in frou, in pear redens om ’e hals, de ring fan it lantearneljocht yn en ferdwûn, in skaad foar har, in skaad achter har, de iisbaan oer, it tsjuster yn. Inkeld útsinnige kiel wie ik doe’t by in hast dierlik oerémisk roppen ik út myn dreamen wekker skeat en mysels weromfûn yn de dize oer de Po-flakten fan Antonioni, dêr’t in kamera oer de sompen glied. Ik seach iisblommen op de ruten, begjin april, sette de ôftiteling stil by de namme fan Anna. Winter line skean tsjin de apelhôven, liet de mûle in lang swijen. Der gie in snijen, sûnder ophâlden.
Bakkeveen
Information point Hindeloopen (Frisian Ice Skating Museum)