News from Amsterdam


To the front page

11/1 Jurists want to stay in Oudemanhuispoort

8/2 Mayor’s portrait

8/2 Websites for social cohesion

7/2 Spreading tourism proceeds with difficulty

7/2 GroenLinks on districts: Be a man

6/2 Zuideramstel opens new office on Sabbath

5/2 The truth about integration

4/2 Wilders has little support on Amsterdam

3/2 Elite involved in neighbourhood

2/2 Johnnie Walker avoids taxes in Amsterdam

1/2 Rotterdam to tinker with district councils as well

31/1 Wooden rowing boats to disappear from Amstel

31/1 ZeeburgTV launched

27/1 Privacy activists to mess up loyalty card system

27/1 A few were still coughing, but that was an act

27/1 Chrisis in de Baarsjes

26/1 Youth have positive view of districts

24/1 Action groups call for Carmel and Jaffa boycott

24/1 PvdA members dismiss plan for districts

23/1 KLM takes on crisis with new uniform

23/1 District office not squatted

21/1 Merge districts

20/1 Closing squat bar Vrankrijk not necessary

20/1 Cleaners welcome new Schiphol director

18/1 Palestine at the Jewish Historical Museum

18/1 What is the right size for a district?

17/1 PvdA Oost against fewer districts

16/1 Committee: 7 districts by 2010

15/1 Soldiers may attend Afghanistan debate after all

15/1 Bait bike leads to arrest

14/1 Youth for Christ to republish vacancies

13/1 Paintings of the Zuidas

13/1 New Youth for Christ contoversy

11/1 Social cohesion initiative raises eyebrows

10/1 Fewer districts in 2010

10/1 Zuidas: People feel that we are losers

9/1 Fun on the ice - but not for all

9/1 Supermarket coupon fraud thwarted

9/1 I Amsterdam must remain exclusive

8/1 Use term Apartheid in every discussion

8/1 No city kiosk in Amsterdam yet

7/1 Snow

7/1 Fatima Elatik to run Zeeburg

7/1 Municipal managers to return to shop floor

4/1 Police: take photo of strange people

3/1 Gaza protest criticises politicians

1/1 Thousands to protest against attacks on Gaza

1/1 Mustapha Laboui leaves district council

 

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2006 Archive

2005 Archive

 

 

 

 

To The Hague?

8 August 2006 - On the authority of Intermediair Magazine, het Parool reports that the following Amsterdammers are available to become candidates for the Parliamentary Elections, which will probably be held on 22 November:

• Hester Maij (CDA), currently member of the city council. Reportedly, she was put forward as a candidate by the provincial party branch, in collaboration with the Christian-Democrat Women’s Foundation. “And for the rest, I do not know what the procedure is like. We will see”.
• Joop van Riessen (VVD), former police commissioner.
• Karina Schaapman (PvdA), member of the city council.

Earlier, the newspaper reported that two other Amsterdammers would like to go to The Hague:
• Ageeth Telleman (D66), currently chairwoman of the Amsterdam party branch.
• Boris van der Ham (D66), already a member of parliament.

Two potential candidates have announced that they are not available:
• Haci Karacaer (PvdA), until recently leader of the Turkish Milli Görüs organisation. He would have been approached by PvdA party leader Wouter Bos.
• Eddy Terstall (PvdA), movie director. Would have been approached by Bos as well. According to regional broadcaster RTV NH, Terstall first wants to finish his political satire Vox Populi. He blames ‘policy makers in the movie world’ for making it impossible for him to finish the film in time to be able to participate in the elections.

UPDATE 9 August 2006 – NRC Handelsblad reports today that almost all current VVD MP’s are available as candidates for the November elections. Party leader Mark Rutte would owe too many people favours, which could mean that the intended renewal of the party will be frustrated. The following Amsterdammers would like to return after the elections:
• Laetitia Griffith. Recently, she left the Amsterdam City Council, after discovering that a position as Alderwoman would not become available. This time as well, her loyalty is not absolute: “In the end, the members who attend the general meeting decide the definitive order of the list of candidates. When that has been decided, I can choose whether or not to accept that place”.
• Anton van Schijndel. Like most colleagues, he would like to continue: “There are all kinds of issues that I am still working on”.

UPDATE 14 August 2006 – At5 reports that Hester Maij is not available for Parliament after all. Contrary to earlier reports she decided against it, because she “was chosen as party leader of the CDA in Amsterdam to promote the interests of the city”. She would also want to stay in Amsterdam for personal reasons.

UPDATE 15 August 2006 – The CDA has today announced who will be recommended as a candidate. The list contains two Amsterdammers:
• Joop Wijn, Minister of Economic Affairs. Until recently, he was State Secretary of Finance, but when D66 left the cabinet, the place of Minister Laurens-Jan Brinkhorst became available.
• Karien van Gennip, State Secretary of Economic Affairs.

UPDATE 25 August 2006 - Today, Geert Wilders announced the candidates of his right-wing populist Freedom Party. The list includes:
• Raymond de Roon, Sollicitor-General
• Hero Brinkman, hard-line policeman

UPDATE 6 September 2006 – More information about candidates has become available:
• Anton van Schijndel (VVD) has had a meeting with the right-wing populist EénNL party founded by Marco Pastors and Joost Eerdmans. He was not content with his 35th position on the draft list of candidates – not high enough to be elected according to the current polls. He also thinks that the party is too moderated on minorities and Europe and that Minister Rita Verdonk has too little influence on the party. Today, the Volkskrant reported that Van Schijndel will be put on the spot by party leader Mark Rutte.
• Former police commissioner Joop van Riessen had proposed himself as a candidate, but he has not been selected. The leader of the Amsterdam VVD, Eric van der Burg, told the Parool that not selecting Van Riessen was ‘the most unpleasant part’ of the list of candidates.
• The capital has a strong presence on the D66 draft list. The second position is occupied by Ageeth Telleman, at present chairwoman of the Amsterdam party branch. The third place is occupied by Amsterdammer Kajsa Ollongren, currently high-ranking civil servant at the Department of Economic Affairs. The current MP Boris van der Ham for now has to be content with a sixth place, but he hopes to improve his position by mobilising member.
• The Socialist Party (SP) has five Amsterdammers and a former Amsterdam council member on its proposed list of candidates. It regards Harry van Bommel (former council member), Ewout Irrgang, Ronald van Raak (currently member of the Senate) and the current council members Jasper van Dijk and Sadet Karabulut. At the bottom of the list is the Amsterdam theologian, poet and writer Huub Oosterhuis. Local party chairman Laurens Ivens is not concerned about the possible departure of two council members: “Fortunately, we recruited good candidates for the city council last year, with many people who have the required capacities and enthousiasm. We will therefore be able to quickly fill the void that Jasper and Sadet will hopefully create by other passionate members of the SP”.

UPDATE 6 September 2006 - The VVD has removed Anton van Schijndel from the party and from the list of candidates.

UPDATE 14 September 2006 – The Amsterdam VVD calls on its members to support the candidates from Amsterdam, for ‘we find a liberal Amsterdam voice in Parliament very important’. The list contains six Amsterdammers: Laetitia Griffith, Wiet de Bruijn, Oswald Schwirtz, Pieter Litjens, Bas Mouton en Anoushka Schut-Welkzijn.

 

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