Overijssel, a province in the eastern part of the Netherlands, played a significant role in the April-May strike of 1943. The strike began in Hengelo at the Machine Factory Stork when Femy Efftink, the operator, spread the news of the strike to anyone who called and asked them to join. The message quickly spread to other companies. The strike extended to farmers who stopped milk deliveries and traffic services on the following day. However, the Germans reacted harshly in Enschede, announcing police standing law for anyone still outside at 8 p.m. on Friday evening. Before then, they had already started shooting people at random in the streets, even those who were in their own garden. There was also a strike in
Haaksbergen, where Lieutenant Schatz ordered the staff to be questioned about the strike. Nine men and women were then put out of the car and seven men were killed immediately and two managed to escape. A.B. Wijlens was arrested the next day at the factory and subsequently shot, while Herman Goering was the only one who could escape and went into hiding. He was the only one who could recount what had happened. In the provinces of
Groningen and
Drenthe, the strike was not limited to workers alone. In fact, several farms belonging to members of the
Dutch National Socialist Movement (NSB) were set on fire by the strikers, causing the night sky to turn red on May 2-3. The town of
Marum also joined the strike by rendering milk trucks and boats inoperable, and blocking roads with trees to prevent milk deliveries from resuming. In response, a German sergeant and his soldiers stationed in the small town of Trimunt arrested 18 people in Marum, including a thirteen-year-old boy, and locked them up in a barrack near Trimunt. On the same day, the prisoners were shot in groups of four, with the young boy falling to the ground after a German volley. The Germans did not inform the mayor of Marum of the killings, leaving the fate of the victims uncertain for a long time. It was only months later that the mayor received goods that had belonged to the victims.
Southern provinces In the night of 29-30 April, over a thousand workers at the State Mine Maurits in the southern provinces went on strike, and by Friday afternoon, all mines, including both lignite companies, had joined the strike. Civil servants also followed suit. However, the strike was met with violence, and on Monday, seven men were executed. This resulted in larger strikes, including on bus and tram services, causing traffic congestion and tug captains deserting in the
Juliana Canal. Farmers and milk drivers also joined the strike until Sunday. Drs. L. Moonen played a significant role in the resistance in
Roermond, including persevering the strikes.
Gelderland and Utrecht The first strike in
Utrecht started at the breadfactory where half of the staff went on strike. Various office staff in the area followed, but the attention was mainly paid to the Dutch Railways. Despite the management's decision not to go on strike, women working at the telephone exchange of the Dutch Railways did go on strike, led by G. Hekkert, who was later sentenced to 15 years in prison.
't Bildt and the rest of Friesland Consultations about the possibility of striking had already taken place in 't Bildt on Thursday evening. The strike began on Friday morning, with men cycling to neighboring villages to hasten the outbreak of the strike, buses being stopped, shops being closed, and farm workers being taken off the land. Resistance centered around the town of
Sint Jacobiparochie and only ended after a robbery car drove into the village on Thursday 6 May. The milk strike continued for a long time by farmers in the rest of Friesland, despite the pressure exerted on them. In Suameer, a farmer was shot dead because he refused to stop striking.
Other provinces In
The Hague, 400 women from the Postcheque and Giro service went on strike, led by 25 women from the typing room. In
Rotterdam, a dozen women from the telephone office also went on strike, mainly because they distributed the strike messages and learned firsthand about the situation in other parts of the country. ==The role of Radio Oranje==