Queen Beatrix will no longer be involved in the formation of a new cabinet following a vote in parliament on Monday evening. A large majority of MPs voted for the change which means in future parliamentarians will first debate a general election result and then decide who should negotiate between […]
Dutch MP Hero Brinkman has announced he is breaking ranks with Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party over a lack of internal democracy. As a result, the government’s support in parliament has been weakened, but Brinkman said he will not withdraw his support for Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s minority coaliton. “All my […]
For school children, students and anyone curious about Dutch history there is the Canon of the Netherlands. It’s a list of the 50 most important people and events in Dutch history. Critics complain that it pays too little attention to the negative and shameful side of the past. They argue […]
In the Islamic world, rumours have been circulating for some time: a Muslim version of Facebook is coming. It is called Salamworld.com and is due to be launched during the Ramadan at the end of June. Its makers say, the site will uphold ‘family values’. Nevertheless, Salamworld will make money, […]
Seven Dutch children are among the 28 people killed in Tuesday night’s bus crash in a Swiss tunnel, according to media reports on Wednesday evening. The three other Dutch children on the bus are among the 24 injured, Nos television reported. Three of the injured are very seriously ill in […]
Prime minister Mark Rutte is not yet convinced by the report commissioned by Geert Wilders into the reintroduction of the guilder, he told parliament on Tuesday. He was reacting to a number of opposition MPs who asked him to comment on the report, which was published on Monday. Several opposition parties, […]
The Dutch embassy in the Syrian capital Damascus will remain open as long as the security situation permits. A spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry has said this in response to France closing its embassy in protest against the violence by the Syrian regime against its civilian population. Spain also ended […]
The Netherlands and Turkey have expressed their support for the opposition in Syria. The foreign ministers of the two countries, Uri Rosenthal and his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu, met on Tuesday for the start of celebrations in the Netherlands marking 400 years of diplomatic relations. Speaking at a press conference in Rotterdam, […]
The anti-euro report commissioned by Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party, has been widely condemned in Dutch political circles. The report argues that the introduction of the euro has cost the Netherlands a fortune and that it would be cheaper to reintroduce the old Dutch guilder than remain part of the euro […]
Leading Dutch retailer HEMA is being taken to court in Belgium after a female employee was fired for wearing a headscarf. The Belgian Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism (CGKR) is pressing charges against the firm. HEMA dismissed the Muslim employee a year ago after customers complained about […]
July, Muslim women will be able to wear headscarves during football matches. FIFA has decided to drop its 2007 ban on the hijab or headscarf. The ban was introduced because […]
The Netherlands should drop the euro and reintroduce the guilder, according to a study commissioned by the Freedom Party (PVV). The eurosceptic party, led by anti-immigration MP Geert Wilders, says that the introduction of the euro has cost the Netherlands more than it has yielded. The Dutch gained 800 euros […]
Islam is a mishmash of earlier religions. Muhammad was an Arab version of the Greek poet Homer. Islam didn’t arise in Mecca but in the Jordanian city of Petra. The Arab conquests came first, and only then the Muslims. In his new book The Fourth Beast, British historian Tom Holland makes […]
Credit: Daily Graphic Ghana: The prince is seen here in the Austrian Alps last year Dutch Prince Johan Friso, injured in an avalanche last week, is in a coma and may never regain consciousness, doctors treating him in Austria say. Prince Friso, who had been on a skiing holiday in […]
Prime minister Mark Rutte on Thursday again refused to condemn a website set up by the anti-immigration PVV where people can complain about central and eastern Europeans, following a meeting with the chairman of the European parliament. In a joint news conference after the meeting, Schultz said both he and […]
The ancient Romans used to expose unwanted babies on hillsides. Thankfully, we have come a long way since those bad old days. We would never countenance letting a baby die of exposure or get eaten by animals. No, today’s infanticide promoters insist that babies be killed painlessly. After all, we aren’t barbarians! […]
Islamic students at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, HvA, have taken to praying in a stairwell as a protest against the closure of the school’s meditation room. They hope to force the school to provide them with their own prayer room. However, the school board is refusing to meet […]
The Dutch law allowing euthanasia under certain sharply defined circumstances often raises eyebrows abroad. And it gives rise to countless unfounded allegations. The criticism is often made in foreign media that euthanasia is too easy in the Netherlands. The elderly are said to fear for their lives in Dutch hospitals. […]
Ethnic Turkish woman candidate for Labour’s leadership NRC Handelsblad was the only weekend newspaper not to lead with the royal grief for the country’s prince. The internal battle for the Labour Party leadership was given front page coverage and in-depth analysis. “Integrity. The compliment was thrown so often at [resigned leader] […]
A ceremony has been held in Amsterdam to commemorate a mass strike staged in February 1941 in protest at the deportation of Dutch Jews by German troops during World War II. The ceremony was opened by Sijbolt Noorda, who heads the Amsterdam War Commemoration Committee and chairs the Federation of […]