The Hindu : Results show major shift to right

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 17, 2002

International

International

Results show major shift to right

By Vaiju Naravane

THE RIGHT TURN?: The Christian Democrat CDA party leader, Jan Peter Balkenenden, and his wife Bianca smile after his party claimed the most seats in the Dutch election on wednesday. - Reuters

The Hague May 16. In what can only be described as a historic, even astonishing election, the outgoing Labour-Liberal alliance in The Netherlands was given the whipping of its life, while the Christian Democrats (CDA) and the List Pim Fortuyn (LPF), named after the populist anti-immigration politician, Pim Fortuyn, assassinated ten days ago, won a landslide victory.

Wednesday's vote in The Netherlands confirms Europe's decisive shift to the right with concern over immigration and immigration-linked crime becoming central issues. Over the past one year, leftist governments have been thrown out in Italy, Denmark, Portugal and France. The high score of Mr. Jean Marie Le Pen's National Front party in France has fuelled fears that Europe might be on the verge of flirting with neo-fascist forces again.

In The Netherlands, the Christian Democrats, ousted from power eight years ago after seventy years of uninterrupted participation in government, have returned with a bang winning a record 43 seats in the 150-member Parliament. The List Pim Fortuyn, often called "the dead man's list" and a now leaderless movement whose charismatic chief was shot dead by an alleged animal rights activist ten days ago, has ridden the crest of a populist and sympathy wave to coast in second with 26 seats. The party was formed a mere three months ago. There are indications that the Christian Democrats could begin negotiations with the Pim Fortuyn List on a possible coalition. But such a move would not receive the support of mainstream CDA voters.

The outgoing Prime Minister, Wim Kok's Labour party (PvdA) and its liberal allies, the free market VVD or People's Party for Freedom and Democracy, and the D66 liberals have taken the severest drubbing of recent times, losing more than half their seats. Labour now has 23 seats, down from 45; the VVD's seat count fell from 38 to 23 while the D66 halved its earlier score of 14.

Jan Peter Balkenende, 45, the dynamic new Christian Democrat leader who has been nicknamed the "Harry Potter of Dutch politics", is tipped to lead the new government. With his party's strong showing, he will not necessarily need the support of the Pim Fortuyn List but could govern with the liberals and a few smaller parties. He is expected to shift public policy decidedly to the right, urging a curtailment of Holland's ultra-liberal laws on euthanasia and abortion.

Security at the Hotel des Indes in The Hague was extremely tight with sniffer dogs and uniformed gorillas — private security men — blocking passage to journalists who had not asked for the LPF's private accreditation. In a glittering, gilded salon dominated by a portrait of the shaven-headed Fortuyn cradling his two pet Pekinese dogs, the LPF spokesman. Mat Herben, said: "It's a wonderful result but there is no real joy. Today we feel like orphans. Our teacher is dead. If Pim had lived this would have been the biggest party ever."

Fortuyn's party was made up of a handful of handpicked persons. Now he is dead, his party has fallen apart with its leaders quarrelling among themselves. The Number Two on his list is Jaoa Varela, a 27-year-old immigrant from Cape Verde, often described as Pim's "token black". The party president, Peter Langendam, was forced to resign after holding the left responsible for Fortuyn's murder.

Although Fortuyn is dead and the future of his movement is uncertain, political observers say it could fall apart in the next year or two, the issues he raised have come to dominate public debate. ''He threw a boulder into a tranquil pond. The effect was that of an earthquake. The ripples will not die down,'' said writer Eildert Mulder, who has published a book on the immigration situation in The Hague.

Immigrants make up ten per cent of Holland's population of 16 million, the majority being Muslims from Turkey and Morocco. Nevertheless, there is a sizeable community from the Dutch Antilles and Surinamese, about 100,000 of Indian origin.

"Fortuyn has scored almost 25 per cent in The Hague. Nearly 50 per cent of the population of The Hague is made up of migrants. Many migrants have voted for Pim Fortuyn. Partly because they were fascinated and attracted by his flamboyance and style, but also because a substantial number of immigrants are worried about the rise in crime."

Among the immigrant population, support for Pim Fortuyn came from the Indian community. "The Indian community here comes mainly from Surinam and we are originally from Uttar Pradesh having gone there as indentured labourers in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

There is nostalgia for the mother country and the Hindus here were happy when the BJP was elected. Kashmir is not an issue, but Ayodhya and the recent burning of the Godhra train certainly find an echo. After Ayodhya many people collected money and sent bricks for the Ram temple. Fortuyn criticised the Muslims, describing Islamic culture and religion as backward.

Many Hindus were tempted to vote for him because he was anti-Muslim. They do not realise that they too are foreigners and that tomorrow they too will become targets. Times are very bleak and I foresee a clampdown on immigration, family reunions and asylum seekers. This election will lead us to a definite shift to the right," Rabbin Baldew Singh, a Surinamese Indian who is a socialist party municipal councillor in The Hague told The Hindu.

Muslim leaders denounced the move to the right. Yassin Hartog, head of the Islamic Citizenship Office in The Hague said: "The risk now is that the extremist elements in PFL will take over further radicalising the divide."

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