Parliamentary Elections in the Netherlands
The Netherlands will hold parliamentary elections on October 29. The government of Prime Minister Dick Schoof lost its majority in early June after the far-right PVV, led by Geert Wilders, left the coalition.
Recent events have highlighted the contrast between the political landscape in the Netherlands. On September 20, fascists rioted in The Hague following an anti-immigration rally, intimidating people of color and vandalizing the office of the social-liberal D66 party.
- Fascists carried out Nazi salutes and waved orange-white-blue flags associated with the Dutch National-Socialist Movement.
- Others carried flags of the colonial East India Company, the VOC, showing connections between fascism and colonialism.
In contrast, on October 5, a quarter of a million people marched through Amsterdam to show solidarity with Palestine.
The growing far-right presence in the Netherlands has led to increased tensions and conflicts.
Author's summary: Elections in the Netherlands amidst rising far-right tensions.
The contrast between the far-right and the left could hardly be sharper, with the left stagnant and the far-right gaining confidence.