26 Facts About Theo Bot

Theodorus Hendrikus "Theo" Bot was a Dutch politician and diplomat of the defunct Catholic People's Party now merged into the Christian Democratic Appeal party and jurist.

Theo Bot applied at the Royal Military Academy in Breda in January 1933 to be trained as a reserve Artillery Officer in the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army graduating as a Lieutenant in September 1936.

Theo Bot worked as a civil servant for the Dutch East Indies Government in West Java from November 1936 until March 1942 in Purwakarta from November 1936 until August 1939 and in Sukabumi from August 1939 until March 1942.

Theo Bot was called to active duty and served in an air defense artillery platoon during the Dutch East Indies campaign.

On 8 March 1942 Theo Bot was captured following the Battle of Borneo and detained in the Japanese internment camp Kampong Makassar.

Theo Bot was later transferred to the internment camp Thanbyuzayat in Burma to work on the Burma Railway and was detained until 30 September 1945 and following the end of World War II moved back to the Netherlands.

Theo Bot worked as a civil servant for the Ministry of Colonial Affairs from March 1946 until March 1949 as Deputy Director-General of the department for Constitutional Reform from March 1946 until June 1948 and as Deputy Director-General of the department for Political Affairs from June 1948 until March 1949.

Theo Bot worked as political advisor for the High Commissioner of the Dutch East Indies Tony Lovink from March 1949 until December 1949.

Theo Bot served as Deputy Secretary-General of the Netherlands-Indonesian Union and as a political consultant for the Ministry of Colonial Affairs from December 1949 tot March 1954.

Theo Bot worked as a civil servant for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Director-General of the department for NATO and Western European Union affairs from March 1954 until November 1959.

Theo Bot was elected as a Member of the House of Representatives after the election of 1963, taking office on 2 July 1963.

The Cabinet Marijnen fell on 27 February 1965 after a disagreement in the coalition about reforms to the public broadcasting system and continued to serve in a demissionary capacity until the cabinet formation of 1965 when it was replaced by the Cabinet Cals with Theo Bot appointed as Minister for Aid to Developing Countries, taking office on 14 April 1965.

The Cabinet Cals fell on 14 October 1966 after the Leader of the Catholic People's Party Norbert Schmelzer had proposed a motion that called for a stronger austerity policy to further reduce the deficit was seen an indirect motion of no confidence and continued to serve in a demissionary capacity until the cabinet formation of 1966 when it was replaced by the caretaker Cabinet Zijlstra with Theo Bot continuing as Minister for Aid to Developing Countries, taking office on 22 November 1966.

In December 1966 Theo Bot announced that he wouldn't stand for the election of 1967.

Theo Bot remained in active in national politics, in September 1967 he was nominated as Ambassador to Canada, taking office on 17 January 1968.

In June 1973 Theo Bot was nominated as Permanent Representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency and Ambassador to Austria, he resigned as Ambassador to Canada the same day he was installed as Permanent Representative to the IAEA and Ambassador to Austria, serving from 1 July 1973 until 1 August 1976.

Theo Bot was known for his abilities as a negotiator and consensus builder.

Theo Bot continued to comment on political affairs until his is death at the age of 73 and holds the distinction as the first serving Minister for Development Cooperation.

Theo Bot's eldest son Ben is a politician and diplomat and who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 3 December 2003 until 22 February 2007.

Theodorus Hendrikus Bot was born on 20 July 1911 in Dordrecht in the Province of South Holland in a Roman Catholic family as one of three sons of Maria Theresia Frederica Creemers and Lourens Bot, a German language teacher.

Theo Bot followed an education at the "School voor Reserve-Officieren der Bereden-Artillerie" in Ede.

From 1936 to 1942 Theo Bot was sent out for the civil service to the Dutch East Indies and would serve with the east-Asian service in Batavia, Purwakarta and Soekaboemi.

Theo Bot served as State Secretary of the Interior, in charge of matters concerning Netherlands New Guinea, from 23 November 1959 until 24 July 1963 in the De Quay cabinet.

Theo Bot was shortly a member of the House of Representatives from 2 July until 24 July 1963 when he became Minister of Education, Culture and Science in the Marijnen cabinet.

Theo Bot finally served as Minister without portfolio in charge of matters concerning development aid, from 14 April 1965 until 5 April 1967, in the Cals and Zijlstra cabinets.

Theo Bot is the father of Ben Bot, who would become minister of foreign affairs.