populism

Almost a third of Dutch voters want to punish the Rutte III government for its policy during the Provincial States election on March 20th, according to the latest poll by research bureau I&O. A quarter of voters want to support the cabinet with his or her vote. And almost half said that they won't take into account whether or not the government coalition will get a majority in the Senate when they cast their vote, AD reports.

Minister Sigrid Kaag of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation thinks that stronger rebuttal must be made against populism, she said during the Abel Herzberg lecture on Saturday. While she didn't mention populist parties PVV and FvD by name, she strongly referred to them during her call to better protect democracy, AD reports.

Dutch citizens with dual nationality must lose their voting rights and must not be eligible for political positions in the Netherlands, according to PVV leader Geert Wilders. This is in the interests of "the Netherlands' survival", he said in an interview with the Telegraaf.

"The Netherlands is our country. It must be run by Dutch, who are elected by Dutch. By Dutch wo do not even have the appearance of double loyalty", he said to the newspaper. 

New nationalist party FvD lost another member, the third this week. On Friday morning Susan Teunissen announced on Twitter that she canceled her membership to the party because she can not possibly conform to the course the FvD has taken. She also accused the party of being undemocratic.

"In view of the course that the FvD has taken and to which I can not possibly conform, I canceled my membership this morning. The way in which the party management deals with constructive criticism is far from democratic", Teunissen wrote on the social media platform.

New nationalist party FvD expelled two party members because they tried to seize power, Thierry Baudet's party said in a statement. The members involved are ex-senator Robert De Haze Winkelman and Betty Jo Wevers, both former members of ruling party VVD, ANP reports.

People are often unfairly depicted as "angry citizens", CDA leader Sybrand Buma said in the annual HJ Schoo lecture in Amsterdam on Monday. According to him, you can also call the angry citizen an ordinary, frustrated Dutch person who keeps running into walls, RTL Nieuws reports.

PVV leader Geert Wilders called it "great news" that right-wing populist Marine Le Pen of Front National reached the second round of the French presidential election. In the second round Le Pen is up against Social-liberal Emmanuel Macron. 

"A wonderful day for patriots inside and outside France who want more national sovereignty and less EU and immigration", Wilders said to news wire ANP. "I just sent her my congratulations. Now on to a feisty second round, but I'm hoping for President Le Pen!"

The parliamentary election in the Netherlands on Wednesday had the interest of journalists and media sources from around the world. The main question on everyone's mind was whether, after the Brexit and after Donald Trump, the populism trend would spread to the European continent. With Mark Rutte and his VVD winning the election, most foreign media sources are focused on Geert Wilders and his PPV's loss.

PvdA Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem thinks that PVV leader Geert Wilders and his discriminatory statements poison the atmosphere in Dutch society, he said to broadcaster BNR on Thursday.

Dijsselbloem was responding to German President Jaochim Gauck expressing his concerns about the Netherlands in the Telegraaf. Gauck said that nationalism can now be seen in most of the founding countries of the European Union. He called the movement a "poison" and "infection". 

In its annual report Amnesty International is sounding the alarm about the rise of populism across the world and the implications it has for human rights. According to the human rights organization, the situation deteriorated significantly over 2016, and that can be attributed political forces rebelling against the established order. Also in the Netherlands populism is a rising problem, the organization said in a brief press conference about the report, NOS reports.

A group of Dutch multinational companies signed a pact and started a "broad movement" against "encroaching populism and negativism", two representatives of the movement said to Financieele Dagblad on Saturday. This movement will not only fight negativity, but also boost the Dutch economy, they said.