Controversial FVD-affiliated school reopens with state funding confirmed
The primary school affiliated with Forum voor Democratie in Almere will reopen its doors in August after having closed two years ago due to financial difficulties and limited popularity. The Renaissanceschool previously depended solely on private contributions from parents and supporters. According to Thierry Baudet, the school has now secured government funding, a development also confirmed by a spokesperson for the Ministry of Education.
“The school has met the necessary requirements to be allowed to start: demonstrating sufficient interest, a positive assessment from the education inspectorate regarding the quality of education, certificates of good conduct for board members and supervisors, and an invitation to education partners in the region for a meeting,” the spokesperson said.
Baudet calls the reopening “an absolute milestone in the development of our own ‘pillar’.” He outlines a long-term vision of a party capable of “training our own civil servants, producing our own specialists and talking heads: to become economically, socially, culturally, intellectually and financially strong.”
According to him, the broader goal is to create a movement capable of driving wide-ranging cultural, economic, and political change that he views as essential for the continuation of society and civilization.
Concern is growing in the Dutch parliament about the rising support for Forum voor Democratie in opinion polls. During a recent debate, party leader Lidewij de Vos was criticised across the political spectrum over what GroenLinks-PvdA leader Jesse Klaver called a “far-right aura” around the party.
Several MPs argued that she had not clearly distanced herself from groups involved in violent protests against asylum seeker centres. They also pointed to past affiliations of some FVD members, including councillors, with far-right organisations such as Geuzenbond and the Nederlandse Volks-Unie.
The school starts with group 1. “It is built on the belief that old Europe was better than the new one,” Baudet explains. “We offer separate learning tracks for boys and girls, because we recognize the biological differences between the sexes.” In classes of up to 15 pupils, there is “old-fashioned attention to basic skills such as mental arithmetic and writing with a pen.”
Forum voor Democratie is planning further initiatives in education. “Let us ensure that this class can eventually grow into our own secondary school, and who knows, one day even our own university,” Baudet writes.
