Petition against Covid access pass signed 500,000 times in three days

In three days, over 500,000 people signed the petition by former CDA State Secretary Mona Keijzer to immediately abolish the coronavirus access pass. The appeal to the Rutte Cabinet went online on Friday. On Sunday evening around 9:30 p.m., the Petities.nl counter passed the half a million mark. It was sometimes so busy this weekend that the webpage regularly crashed.

The petition refers to a manifesto under the motto Undivided Open. A broad coalition of prominent figures argues in favor of reopening society without the coronavirus access pass. "Now that it becomes clear that this coronavirus will also become endemic, coronavirus access passes should not be given a place in the 'toolbox' of a free democracy. We call on the government and parliament to abolish coronavirus access passes with immediate effect," they said.

Among the drafters of the manifesto are ex-politicians, doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, and scientists, including former MPs Joel Voordewind (ChristenUnie), Marianne Thieme (PvdD), and Michel Rog (CDA). Professor Jan Rotmans, comedian Guido Wiejers, and directors Dick Maas and Martin Koolhoven also signed the call.

Mona Keijzer was State Secretary of Economic Affairs and Climate. She was summarily dismissed last year after she opposed the introduction of the coronavirus access pass in De Telegraaf.