Nieuws van de afdeling

28 February 2008

Netherlands should close airspace to outmoded NATO planes

The Netherlands' airspace must be closed to NATO's outmoded, noisy and environmentally-damaging AWACS aircraft, according to SP Member of Parliament Jan de Wit. De Wit urged the Ministers of the Environment and Defence to stop AWACS flights, as it emerged that the planes would remain in service until 2035. Plans to continue their use are in direct conflict with the expressed will of the majority of Dutch MPs, who recently voted to answer NATO stubbornness over the aircraft with a ban on their use in the country's airspace.

28 February 2008

'Ex-ministers' pronouncements on Iraq should be public'

Former ministers from the first government headed by current Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, which was in power at the time of the US-British invasion of Iraq in 2003, have recently declared their backing for an enquiry into the Netherlands' support for the attack – but anonymously. They should come out of the shadows and declare their support openly, according to a call endorsed by the whole of Parliament during a debate on the matter requested by SP foreign affairs spokesman Harry van Bommel, which took place on Wednesday. His request was provoked by a report from the United States which revealed that during the run-up to the war the US government lied on 935 occasions over the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

26 February 2008

SP: ‘If necessary, we'll put 935 questions demanding clarification on Iraq.’

Parliament will tomorrow debate, following a request from SP Member of Parliament Harry van Bommel, the reasons why the Netherlands supported the war against Iraq. “This war is a text book example of mismanagement concerning subjects of life and death, war and peace," said the SP's spokesman on foreign affairs. “A politician who tolerates such a thing is in my view not worth a damn."

24 February 2008

Only a ban can put an end to organ trafficking

If organ tourism is to be prevented, argue Andre den Exter, Agnes Kant and Ineke Palm, a ban on payment for illegal organ transplants performed abroad is needed, as is the ratification of a number of treaties.

23 February 2008

"Turkish Ambassador must be put on the carpet over invasion of Iraq"

Harry van Bommel has asked Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Verhagen to summon the Turkish ambassador and make clear his strong disapproval of the invasion of Iraq. The SP Member of Parliament and foreign affairs spokesman is extremely concerned over this latest invasion carried out in the north of Iraq by Turkish land forces. Tens of thousands of troops are said to have crossed the border and according to an announcement from the Turkish army leadership they will remain there until 'the goals are achieved.'

22 February 2008

SP demands openness on tax on multinationals

When it comes to the rate of taxation paid by Dutch multinational corporations (MNCs), the government should stop ducking the question, says SP Member of Parliament and finance spokesman Ewout Irrgang. Demanding openness about the matter, Irrgang says: “If it turns out that multinationals are indeed paying scarcely any tax, then the law should be adjusted." During the weekly parliamentary question time he intends to ask Jan Kees de Jager, Secretary of State for Finance, for an explanation regarding revelations in leading Dutch daily newspaper NRC Handelsblad, which alleges that MNCs are paying little or no company taxes.

International