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I didn't know the anti-Muslim sentiment was this bad, I thought Holland was renowned for its tolerance of other cultures and religions. And what is with using a religion in the name of a political party?
Dutch Christian Democrats win most seats
By ARTHUR MAX, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 23 minutes ago
The Dutch prime minister's center-right Christian Democrats won the most seats in elections Wednesday, but nearly complete returns showed a sharply splintered — and possibly deadlocked — parliament with no alliance winning a clear mandate to govern.
The Dutch divided their votes between a government coalition that has been tough on immigration and pro-business, and socialists — led by the Labor Party — promoting a softer approach.
No combination of left- or right-wing parties will easily muster full control of parliament, state-funded broadcaster NOS predicted after more than 94 percent of the vote was counted.
The vote could result in weeks, or months, of coalition haggling with smaller parties in a position to demand a heavy price for their support. Even if a coalition emerges, the result could be an unstable government that would have difficulty completing a four-year term.
Still, an upbeat Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende pledged to "build on the foundation we laid." But he acknowledged the result was "complicated," and said coalition negotiations would require "a level head and perseverance."
"It's chaos. It is extremely difficult to distill a government out of these results," said Finance Minister Gerrit Zalm of the free-market Liberal party, Balkenende's current partner in parliament.
"The jigsaw can still be laid in many different ways," said Nebahat Albayrak, a top-ranking Labor candidate.
Balkenende's Christian Democrats, cashing in on an economic revival and popular measures to crack down on immigration, easily beat its closest rival, Labor, winning 41 seats to Labor's 32, according to the unofficial late results.
Official results are not expected until Monday.
The Christian Democrat's narrow victory was predicted early in the day in an exit poll by the TNS Nipo market research group and released on RTL television — based on responses from 27,000 voters.
"If the polls are right, I'm very happy because we're still the biggest party," said Marja van Bijsterveld, the chairwoman of the Christian Democrats. "We had great candidates, a strong program and a leader who was solid as a rock."
But it's still not enough for a majority in parliament for the Christian Democrats. Even in parntership with the free market Liberals, any Christian Democrat-led coalition would need to bring several more parties on board to reach a majority of 76 seats in the 150-member legislature.
Labor, led by Wouter Bos, emphasized how difficult it will be for their rivals to rule.
"What is clear is that this Cabinet has no mandate to continue," said Michiel van Hulten, Labor's campaign chairman. "That is good news. The Netherlands has opted for change."
At the same time, no combination of leftist parties appears capable of forming a majority, leaving open the possibility of an uncomfortable alliance among ideological foes, or even a "grand coalition" of the two largest parties.
The Socialist Party, led by political veteran Jan Marijnissen, made the biggest gains Wednesday. One exit poll predicted the Socialists would gain 17 seats, to 26, in the new parliament, nearly triple their current total.
"We expected to double our seats but this is absolutely fantastic," said Socialist Party lawmaker Agnes Kant. "I am proud the Netherlands wants to move to the left."
Right-wing maverick Geert Wilders also had cause to celebrate. After leading a one-man faction in the outgoing parliament, his allies were forecast to win nine seats on the strength of his powerful anti-immigrant message.
"We are a normal party that wants lower taxes and tougher sentences, but we are also proud of our culture and against the rise of Islam in Dutch society," he said. "There are enough Muslims in the Netherlands and enough mosques."
About six percent of the Dutch population is Muslim.
The country has been engaged in a rancorous debate over immigration and the threat of Islamic terrorism following two political murders tied to Islam in recent years.
But immigration and Islam were barely mentioned until the final days of the campaign, when Balkenende's hard-line immigration minister, Rita Verdonk, said the government intended to outlaw burqas and other face-covering apparel.
Fawaz Jneid, a Muslim cleric who has been criticized for his radical statements, said the attempt to ban the burqa would backfire on the government.
"The number of women in the Netherlands who wear a face-covering cloth is very few," he said. "The reality is that this law will hurt the Netherlands much more than it will hurt the women."
Labor's Bos campaigned saying he agreed generally with the government's call for restrictions on immigration, but called for a revival of the Netherlands' traditional tolerance of newcomers. He hammered the conservatives over what he called a heartless social policy, but kept his criticism on immigration policy muted.
"On one side ... we have to ask people to prepare to come to the Netherlands so they can adapt to our society's core values," Bos said in a televised debate Tuesday. "But we must also ask our society to do something: Make people feel welcome here."
If he became prime minister, Bos said, he would grant pardons and citizenship to thousands of frustrated asylum seekers who have been living illegally for years in the Netherlands.
Balkenende, in contrast, insisted the illegal migrants be deported. He said his government's immigration and integration policies had made progress in the past four years, "but there is still work to do."
Balkende's ruling coalition collapsed in June after a minor party, D66, pulled out to protest immigration minister Verdonk's botched attempt to revoke the citizenship of Somali-born lawmaker and strident critic of radical Islam, Ayaan Hirsi Ali.
In a first for Europe, the Party for Animals was forecast Wednesday to win at least two seats. The animal rights' party wants to curb inhumane practices in industrial farming.
By ARTHUR MAX, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 23 minutes ago
The Dutch prime minister's center-right Christian Democrats won the most seats in elections Wednesday, but nearly complete returns showed a sharply splintered — and possibly deadlocked — parliament with no alliance winning a clear mandate to govern.
The Dutch divided their votes between a government coalition that has been tough on immigration and pro-business, and socialists — led by the Labor Party — promoting a softer approach.
No combination of left- or right-wing parties will easily muster full control of parliament, state-funded broadcaster NOS predicted after more than 94 percent of the vote was counted.
The vote could result in weeks, or months, of coalition haggling with smaller parties in a position to demand a heavy price for their support. Even if a coalition emerges, the result could be an unstable government that would have difficulty completing a four-year term.
Still, an upbeat Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende pledged to "build on the foundation we laid." But he acknowledged the result was "complicated," and said coalition negotiations would require "a level head and perseverance."
"It's chaos. It is extremely difficult to distill a government out of these results," said Finance Minister Gerrit Zalm of the free-market Liberal party, Balkenende's current partner in parliament.
"The jigsaw can still be laid in many different ways," said Nebahat Albayrak, a top-ranking Labor candidate.
Balkenende's Christian Democrats, cashing in on an economic revival and popular measures to crack down on immigration, easily beat its closest rival, Labor, winning 41 seats to Labor's 32, according to the unofficial late results.
Official results are not expected until Monday.
The Christian Democrat's narrow victory was predicted early in the day in an exit poll by the TNS Nipo market research group and released on RTL television — based on responses from 27,000 voters.
"If the polls are right, I'm very happy because we're still the biggest party," said Marja van Bijsterveld, the chairwoman of the Christian Democrats. "We had great candidates, a strong program and a leader who was solid as a rock."
But it's still not enough for a majority in parliament for the Christian Democrats. Even in parntership with the free market Liberals, any Christian Democrat-led coalition would need to bring several more parties on board to reach a majority of 76 seats in the 150-member legislature.
Labor, led by Wouter Bos, emphasized how difficult it will be for their rivals to rule.
"What is clear is that this Cabinet has no mandate to continue," said Michiel van Hulten, Labor's campaign chairman. "That is good news. The Netherlands has opted for change."
At the same time, no combination of leftist parties appears capable of forming a majority, leaving open the possibility of an uncomfortable alliance among ideological foes, or even a "grand coalition" of the two largest parties.
The Socialist Party, led by political veteran Jan Marijnissen, made the biggest gains Wednesday. One exit poll predicted the Socialists would gain 17 seats, to 26, in the new parliament, nearly triple their current total.
"We expected to double our seats but this is absolutely fantastic," said Socialist Party lawmaker Agnes Kant. "I am proud the Netherlands wants to move to the left."
Right-wing maverick Geert Wilders also had cause to celebrate. After leading a one-man faction in the outgoing parliament, his allies were forecast to win nine seats on the strength of his powerful anti-immigrant message.
"We are a normal party that wants lower taxes and tougher sentences, but we are also proud of our culture and against the rise of Islam in Dutch society," he said. "There are enough Muslims in the Netherlands and enough mosques."
About six percent of the Dutch population is Muslim.
The country has been engaged in a rancorous debate over immigration and the threat of Islamic terrorism following two political murders tied to Islam in recent years.
But immigration and Islam were barely mentioned until the final days of the campaign, when Balkenende's hard-line immigration minister, Rita Verdonk, said the government intended to outlaw burqas and other face-covering apparel.
Fawaz Jneid, a Muslim cleric who has been criticized for his radical statements, said the attempt to ban the burqa would backfire on the government.
"The number of women in the Netherlands who wear a face-covering cloth is very few," he said. "The reality is that this law will hurt the Netherlands much more than it will hurt the women."
Labor's Bos campaigned saying he agreed generally with the government's call for restrictions on immigration, but called for a revival of the Netherlands' traditional tolerance of newcomers. He hammered the conservatives over what he called a heartless social policy, but kept his criticism on immigration policy muted.
"On one side ... we have to ask people to prepare to come to the Netherlands so they can adapt to our society's core values," Bos said in a televised debate Tuesday. "But we must also ask our society to do something: Make people feel welcome here."
If he became prime minister, Bos said, he would grant pardons and citizenship to thousands of frustrated asylum seekers who have been living illegally for years in the Netherlands.
Balkenende, in contrast, insisted the illegal migrants be deported. He said his government's immigration and integration policies had made progress in the past four years, "but there is still work to do."
Balkende's ruling coalition collapsed in June after a minor party, D66, pulled out to protest immigration minister Verdonk's botched attempt to revoke the citizenship of Somali-born lawmaker and strident critic of radical Islam, Ayaan Hirsi Ali.
In a first for Europe, the Party for Animals was forecast Wednesday to win at least two seats. The animal rights' party wants to curb inhumane practices in industrial farming.
) we have to be tough on immigration, but what you describe is false, the current imigration laws were not made under this administration but under the former labourminister Job "Rooijbos" Cohen. The last goverment finaly got around to implementing them. Also the current imigration minister Rita Verdonk has given asylum to more people then ever before in modern history.
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