The official results of last week's election for Dutch parliament were released today and the report includes a breakdown of votes by Dutch citizens in the USA.
The official results show that about 7,700 votes were issued through Dutch embassies world-wide. The Embassy in Washington, DC saw the biggest turnout with 2,379 votes. That is 36% higher than two years ago in 2010, when 1,767 votes were cast.
A big part of the increase went to D66, most likely due to the campaign by D66 candidate Eelco Keij who traveled throughout the USA and the Netherlands to gain support for his expat-friendly platform.
In total, there were 2,379 votes (13 blank or invalid); here are the results:
VVD: 757
PvdA: 330
PVV: 65
CDA: 91
SP: 105
D66: 748
GL: 163
CU: 47
SGP: 6
PvD: 29
Piraten: 9
50PLUS: 6
We left out parties that received less than 5 votes.
Mr. Rudolf Bekink was formally accredited this week as the new Dutch Ambassador to the United States. He presented his Letters of Credence to President Obama on Monday.
In press release Mr. Bekink spoke of the historical ties between the two countries. "It's a great honor to represent the Netherlands in the United States. Our countries have a strong bond that spans more than four centuries and continues to thrive today. The Netherlands is the 3rd largest foreign investor in the U.S. and we have a vibrant partnership in many areas such as peace and security and economics. I look forward to strengthening our ties further,” said Ambassador Bekink.
His predecessor, Mrs. Renee Jones-Bos, returned to the Netherlands this summer and is now Secretary-General for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
A return to the United States
Ambassador Bekink's posting to Washington is a return to the U.S., where he served as the First Secretary to the Embassy's political department from 1982 to 1986. Prior to this new posting in Washington, Ambassador Bekink served as the Dutch Ambassador to three countries: the People's Republic of China (2008-2012); Belgium (2004-2008); and Sweden (2000-2004).
Throughout his 36-year diplomatic career, Ambassador Bekink has served as the Chargé d'Affaires in Ghana; Deputy Head of Division of the Ministry of Economic Affairs; Deputy Head of Mission to the Mission of the Dutch Permanent Representation to the Office for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris; and Director of Protocol for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Mr. Bekink is married to Austin business woman Gabrielle de Kuyper Sheshunoff.
With a wreath-laying ceremony in Washington, D.C. this Saturday, officials from South Korea and the Netherlands paid tribute to the Dutch soldiers who fought in the Korean War. Although the conflict has not been formally resolved to this day, an armistice was signed on July 27, 1953. The ceremony was held at the at the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington DC, in D.C.'s West Potomac Park, near the Lincoln Memorial and just south of the Reflecting Pool on the National Mall.
Freedom is not free
The Korean War Veterans Memorial dates from 1986 and honors members of the armed forces who served in the war.
"The words on this wall, 'Freedom Is Not Free', express gratitude for the service of members of the military," said Air Commodore Tom de Bok, the Netherlands Defense Attaché.
During the ceremony, a detachment of the Dutch 12th Infantry Battalion marched with the colors of the Dutch Korea veterans, the Nederlands Detachement Verenigde Naties (NDVN). The day before, a similar ceremony was held on Arlington Cemetery.
Rudolf Bekink, the new Ambassador Appointed, was present in one of his first public appearances in the United States. Mr. Bekink will present his formal credentials tomorrow, July 30th, to President Obama at the White House.
Frank Amaro of the Italian American War Veterans Department Of Illinois said that ceremony in 2013 will be larger, since it will mark the 60th anniversary of the armistice.
Prime Minister Rutte has offered the resignation of his cabinet to the Queen, preparing the country for new elections in September. The proposed restrictions on dual citizenship for Dutch citizens are now on hold. This is great news for Dutch citizens abroad who were at risk of being unable to keep their Dutch citizenship when applying for that of their new home countries.
Dual citizenship law considered "controversial issue"
The 18-month old coalition between the conservative-liberal VVD and the Christian democratic CDA was supported by the far-right PVV. The Netherlands is in danger of breaking the 3% rule imposed by the European Union and the three parties were negotiating new budget cuts. Those talks broke down unexpectedly on Saturday and the PVV revoked its support for the coalition.
New elections will most likely be held on September 12. Until that time, the VVD and CDA will formally remain in power but will no longer take on "controversial issues". It is now clear that both VVD and CDA, as well as most opposition parties, consider the proposed law "controversial" which means it will no longer progress. A May 15 meeting to discuss the proposal has been canceled.
CDA: "A PVV thing"
The main opposition parties have always opposed the restrictive law and in recent days the governing parties seem to have come around as well. CDA spokesperson Mirjam Sterk said in an interview with Dutch newspaperDe Telegraaf about the proposal: "That is a kind of PVV-thing that we've always found difficult".
Eelco Keij, the main organizer of the protests against the law: "Recently, the VVD made clear they were struggling with the proposal, and it was a courageous thing to air those disagreements."
New elections
The elections in September will determine the shape of the new coalition. It seems unlikely that the PVV will be part of a coalition again, which bodes well for those who are in favor of dual citizenship. For more information on how to cast your vote while abroad, contact your local Consulate or Embassy or read more information in Dutch at Kiesraad.nl.
Last Friday the Dutch government sent the contested bill regarding dual nationality to parliament for a vote -– despite concerns expressed by thousands of Dutch people worldwide.
The controversial law would severely restrict the ability for Dutch citizens to hold another citizenship, and would impact many thousands of Dutch-Americans and Dutch nationals worldwide. Earlier reports that the new minister does not consider this bill to be a priority turned out to be incorrect.
Call for action
The action group Nederlander Blijven is calling on all Dutch citizens to contact their representatives in Dutch parliament:
"There are still several phases in parliament that need to be dealt with before the bill can be put up to a vote. During these phases it is of utmost important that each spokesperson of each political party is well informed about the various downsides of this piece of legislation. With enough valid arguments, a majority within parliament may agree to amend the bill and to reverse its strongest restrictions. The actual vote may be up as soon as this June – after which the second branch of parliament will also need to vote on it (probably somewhere later in 2012)."
Eelco Keij, the main organizer against the proposed law, has more information on his website and a list with contact information of Dutch politicians.
Minister Donner expects to present his proposal for modifying the Dutch nationality law to parliament before Christmas.
In October we wrote about Minister Donner's plan to eliminate dual nationality for Dutch citizen. The proposal, which has not yet been officially presented to the Tweede Kamer (the Dutch House of Representatives), will be sent to parliament before the Christmas break. Minister Donner answered this in response to questions by House member Gerard Schouw of the D66 party.
Importance of Dutch expats
The minister estimates that there are about 850,000 Dutch passport holders living abroad, but it is not known how many of them hold dual nationality. The minister "acknowledges the importance of Dutch expats for the Dutch economy and Dutch diplomatic relations".
Position of the Tweede Kamer
The new law, which if it was accepted would have a significant negative effect on Dutch citizens living abroad, is controversial. A majority of parties in the Tweede Kamer has spoken in support of Dutch citizens abroad who could no longer maintain their Dutch nationality when applying for foreign citizenship.
On November 22nd a motion was brought forward to ask the minister to reconsider the aspects of the proposal that would impact Dutch citizens abroad. The motion did not get a majority in the Tweede Kamer though since the VVD did not support it, on technical grounds. Eelco Keij, who initiated the online petition against the proposal, remains optimistic: "This was just a procedural move by the VVD. When it comes to the content, they already publicly stated they are on our side."
The petition by Dutch citizens abroad has received almost 19,000 signatures and significant coverage in the Dutch media. More information in Dutch about the petition can be found on NederlanderBlijven.com.
This books describes the daily life of a family in Cuba. Yoani started an (illegal) blog, and become world-famous with it. The book collects her stories from 2007 through 2010.
I didn't know much about daily life in Cuba, and this is an eye opener. Incredible, to read about a communist failed state that still exists. I have heard a lot about how life was in Bulgaria before 1989, and it's amazing to read this book. It's no wonder the Cuban authorities are unhappy about this blogs and others like it. The endless list of damning details about people suffering from a lack of basic everyday items speaks very strongly to how the regime in Havanna is totally failing its people.
The book has amazing details. How people, when hearing Castro speak on TV, remembering only one thing: the promise that every Cuban can get a glass of milk whenever he wants to -- and the state TV that cuts to a commercial the moment the replay of that sentence comes on.
These are uncertain times for the European Union. Last week Paul Krugman wrote an article in the New York Times about the problems facing the Union and the euro, and the possible scenarios that could unfold. A few days later The Economist argued that Greece and possibly Ireland and Portugal should restructure their debts, the first rich-country sovereign defaults since 1948:
"This mess leads to a depressing conclusion: Europe’s bail-out strategy, designed to calm financial markets and place a firewall between the euro zone’s periphery and its centre, is failing. Investors are becoming more, not less, nervous, and the crisis is spreading. Plan A, based on postponing the restructuring of Europe’s struggling countries, was worth trying: it has bought some time. But it is no longer working. Restructuring now is more clearly affordable than it was last year. It is also surely cheaper for everybody than it will be in a few years’ time. Hence the need for Plan B."
Tomorrow, October 10, the Federation of the Netherlands Antilles will cease to exist.
The islands of Sint Maarten and Curaçao, following the political path of Aruba in 1986, will become constituent states within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Bonaire, Saba, and Sint Eustatius, will become special municipalities of the Netherlands.
Curaçao and St Maarten will become fully self-governing, except in matters of defense, foreign policy, and judicial and financial affairs, which will remain the responsibility of the Dutch government. There will be specific exceptions for the islands, such as the phasing in of the U.S. Dollar as the official currency come January 2011 instead of the euro, and the islands can take a different standpoint on issues like abortion, euthanasia and gay marriage.
Dutch Prince Willem-Alexander and his wife, Princess Máxima, are on Curaçao to attend the ceremonies around the transition.
Mr. Rudolf Bekink was formally accredited this week as the new Dutch Ambassador to the United States. He presented his Letters of Credence to President Obama on Monday. 
With a wreath-laying ceremony in Washington, D.C. this Saturday, officials from South Korea and the Netherlands paid tribute to the Dutch soldiers who fought in the Korean War. Although the conflict has not been formally resolved to this day, an armistice was signed on July 27, 1953. The ceremony was held at the at the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington DC, in D.C.'s West Potomac Park, near the Lincoln Memorial and just south of the Reflecting Pool on the National Mall.
Last Friday the Dutch government sent the contested bill regarding dual nationality to parliament for a vote -– despite concerns expressed by thousands of Dutch people worldwide.
Wow. Osama bin Laden dead, what a huge moment.