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Dutch collapse: Sign of the global geopolitical dislocation
by Newropeans-Magazine
2010-03-05 09:14:09 |
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Conversations with Franck Biancheri, president Newropeans and Reinder Rustema, dutch member of Newropeans board
Both internationnaly and domestically, the socio-political fabric of past decades is unravelling.
 The fact that it is NATO's policy which generated the fall of the Dutch government is a sign of crumbling US influence in Europe. Supporters of Washington policies are more and more at odds with their own public opinion. But, as the EU offers no credible alternative right now on many issues, on short term this situation may benefit neo-fascist/xenophobic trends.
The fall of the Dutch coalition government last Saturday because it could not come to an agreement over whether or not to extend the Netherlands' military mission in Afghanistan, illustrates this trend of what experts call «the global geopolitical dislocation»* (see GEAB).
NATO's secretary general filed an official request for the extension of the Dutch mission in the Afghan province of Uruzgan.
A majority in the Dutch parliament wants to leave Afghanistan and withdraw all 1,600 Dutch soldiers no later than December 2010. This majority is composed by the opposition plus the Labour party (PvdA,) who was part of Balkende's coalition cabinet.
On the other side Christian Democrats and ChristenUnie prefer to stay because NATO asked for it and they want to look good in Dutch transatlantic relations. They prefer never to disappoint the US friend.
The Dutch political crisis, as well as the impact of NATO's policies on European national polics, cannot be ignored by the international community.
In the Netherlands, the game will be played closely.
According to opinion polls, the second biggest party in the country will be the one-man populist party 'Geert Wilders' with 24 seats (currently 9 seats) in the opposition. In some polls, Wilders is even bigger than the Christian Democrats who are supposed to lose at least 10 from the 41 seats they have now.
There is an unwritten convention that the 'winner' of the election can take the initiative to make a new coalition. But with whom?
There are 150 seats. The government coalition needs a majority in order to rule comfortably. With less than 75+1 seats, the remaining parties in Parliament can vote collectively against any proposal, resulting in interesting political debates in Parliament. Such a minority cabinet has never occurred in the Netherlands.
On the other hand, a new election and the rubsequent months of confusion to find a coalition is bad timing during this so-called crisis. On top of that, a lot of issues will be passed on to a new government. What is left of this government will only take care of ongoing business and not address anything new.
Suppose Geert Wilders wins and starts a minority coalition with the Christian Democrats and the party he once belonged to, the Liberal-Popular party. In his program you find that he wants to leave the Euro, even the EU. He wants to lower taxes, raise the retirement age from 65 to 67, enhance law and order, put an end to the "hobbies of the left" such as immigration, development aid and the scam about the change of the climate.
Another observation: the CDA might shrink even further if they do not explicitly say they do not want to form a coalition with Wilders. Part of the Christian electorate of CDA are upset by the hateful position of Wilders-the-atheist towards a certain part of the population. He does not apply the command 'love thy neighbor as thyself' to Muslims, he wants to throw them out of the country immediately because they are strangers to this country... or something along that line.
We are heading full speed towards very very difficult times.
Meanwhile, in the US too, the same Washington policies are generating a rapidly increasing wind of revolt. With the testimony of Joe Stack, the guy who threw his plane on the tax building in Austin, you will find another example of the violence creeping out of US society and trying to become political. Marianne Ranke-Cormier
Arriach, Austria
Notes: 1. NRC Handelsblad
2. Elections are in June, the 9th, the day before an important soccer match in South Africa. The timing is strange, because the law says the election should be 83 days after the cabinet resigned. This is 100 days.
3. Testimony of Joe Stack
3. Joe Stack Hailed as Hero in American 'Patriot' Resurgence - ABC
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