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The End of an Era: Time's Up for Orbán

As the Iran war flits from one grotesque extreme to another, like a flying carpet, the Ukraine war grinds on remorselessly, bogged down in the black earth of the steppe. While the various fronts of the war in the Middle East change by the minute, the war in the Ukraine is the same as it was last year and the year before that. Certainly, the West’s approach has not budged: ever more sanctions against Russia, ever more billions shovelled into the war. Ralf Dekker MP recently reminded the Dutch parliament that the Netherlands has sent 21 billion euros directly to Ukraine since the war started and continues to send 3 billion every year in military aid. These are only the visible costs and do not include the cost of refugees, higher energy prices, markets closed to business, and so on. While ordinary Europeans are struggling to make ends meet, the honey pot never runs dry for the Ukrainians. FVD’s position is clear: stop this madness, it is not our war.<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArbhFOXhJPI">Watch Ralf Dekker’s speech here</a><img src="/uploads/image_e87e94dc6b.png">Meanwhile the European political establishment is determined, perhaps more than anything else, to kill off its own population through abortion, while simultaneously replacing it with other populations through industrial levels of immigration. The right to abortion has become one of the supreme moral reference points of our age. Support for it is so extreme that it goes way beyond what the law itself allows. As Gideon van Meijeren MP recently recalled, abortion law decriminalises certain acts under certain conditions, it does not create a right. In particular, doctors must tell women who want abortions about the alternatives. In reality, this does not happen. On the contrary, you can now obtain abortion pills online without consultation. This is a crime in Dutch law – but it is ignored. What would we say if you could order suicide pills legally by post? You could perhaps argue on the basis of consent – a consent which is, to put it mildly, absent from the unborn child. Can we not at least agree that the law should be enforced? Apparently not, but only FVD seems to care.<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6axGIgloOEA">Watch Gideon’s van Meijeren’s speech here</a><img src="/uploads/image_a60352bb6d.png">Why does FVD always stand out from the crowd? Because FVD is genuinely interested in life, creativity and the unexpected. This is the opposite approach to that of the careerist politicians who smother all inventiveness in the name of security, procedure and stability.&nbsp; Peter van Duijvenvoorde MP recently bemoaned the stifling conformism of Dutch and European universities – something which did not exist a generation ago when different universities offered different, sometimes opposing, views of life. Now they have all been&nbsp;gleichgeschaltet through political correctness and the dead hand of bureaucracy – bureaucracy which believes that it can and should direct the pursuit of knowledge to so-called ‘useful’ ends. This is nothing but the politicisation of science which, like the politicisation of the arts, kills it.<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MH7PdS-ZKhU">Watch Peter van Duijvenvoorde’s speech here</a> <img src="/uploads/image_61fa292504.png">Tom Russcher MP has teamed up with the prominent influencer Dutch Travel Maniac to shed light on the terrifying lawlessness of asylum centres. These centres exist all over Europe and in the Netherlands. DTM has made videos about them and the crime and abuse which festers in and around them: drug dealing, weapons, violence, sexual assault - you name it. DTM’s videos –&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XZ5XclNBkA">here</a> and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dielIirf8M">here</a> – are superb examples of investigative journalism (naturally, never carried out by legacy MSM) and truly shocking. Please take time to read the questions. You will shake your head in disbelief that our collective suicide is so far advanced.<a href="https://fvdinternational.com/article/dutch-travel-maniac-exposes-abuses-and-misconduct-at-the-Central-Agency-for-the-Reception-of-Asylum-Seekers-Tom-russcher-submits-parliamentary-questions">Read Tom Russcher’s questions here</a><img src="/uploads/image_e940e85973.png">Marta Havryshko, a Jewish Ukrainian academic based in Massachusetts, was our guest on The Forum this week, together with classicist and journalist Isabelle Buhre, to discuss forced mobilisation in Ukraine. If you missed it, you can watch back by clicking below. <a href="https://theforumfriends.substack.com/p/the-forum-and-friends-forced-mobilisation">Watch The Forum &amp; Friends here</a>

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The Weekly Forum - 8 April 2026

Europe is about to be plunged into a long and severe recession thanks to the Iran war, which the USA and Israel are losing. To be sure, Iran is suffering greatly but bombs continue to penetrate Israel’s so-called ‘Iron Dome’, including onto essential IDF military control centres; US fighter jets are shot out of the sky and AWACS surveillance planes destroyed on the ground; and thirteen US military bases across the Gulf have been severely damaged. The increasingly erratic American president, and the warmongering Israeli prime minister, appear to have launched their war of aggression with no strategic planning or exit strategy. Stated war aims change every day. Trump’s latest message to the Europeans – if you want Gulf oil, go and get it yourselves – spells the end of the Atlantic Alliance, which is the intellectual framework, or straitjacket, of swathes of the European political class, especially in the Netherlands where the governing VVD party is essentially a NATO regional office. Only FVD keeps focussed on reality. Ralf Dekker MP addressed these sombre developments in a speech in Parliament this week, stressing the dark times ahead and the overriding need to protect the Dutch people. Incredibly, as severe energy shortages loom, the Dutch government continues to refuse to open the Groningen gas field, the largest in Europe, all because of insane climate policy. Surely this is collective madness – or, rather, suicide.<a href="https://fvdinternational.com/article/the-war-against-iran-the-netherlands-should-stay-out-and-look-after-its-own-people">Read Ralf’s speech here</a><img src="/uploads/image_70ea715363.png">Meanwhile, as if the future were not dark enough, enemies are trying to blacken the past as well. A recent vote in the UN General Assembly has referred to slavery as a crime against humanity. This will no doubt be used to demand reparations from European countries– but not from the Arab and African slave traders from whom they bought their workforce. The main problem with this is that it was the European states who brought an end to the slave trade – Britain first, then the whole of Europe at the Congress of Vienna in 1815. Moreover, although it was then condemned in the name of ‘the principles of humanity’, the concept of a ‘crime against humanity’ was not formulated until 1945.&nbsp; Nullum crimen sine lege. As usual, only FVD understands and warns about the dangers this resolution represents. Tom Russcher MP and Ralf Dekker MP have put down questions to the Dutch government about it.<a href="https://fvdinternational.com/article/will-the-un-resolution-on-slavery-lead-to-more-development-aid-and-even-reparations">Read Ralf’s and Tom’s questions here</a><img src="/uploads/image_55a35a11c7.png">FVD International’s director John Laughland was once again a guest on Ian Proud’s ‘Peacemonger’ podcast recently. Ian is doing a fabulous job bringing together realist commentators to discuss current events. John and Ian discussed the ongoing outrage of EU sanctions against individuals, including EU citizens. These are punitive measures taken for explicitly political reasons (the EU defends them&nbsp;<a href="https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/why-sanctions/">saying</a> they are part of foreign policy). Although the EU denies the sanctions are punitive, which is a contradiction in terms since a sanction is a punishment, it also insists that breaking sanctions is a crime. All this is done outside any judicial framework: what judicial review there is takes place only after the event and usually fails to change the EU’s mind. In other words, the victim has to prove his innocence! Apparently this is the new Brussels understanding of the rule of law.<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZ59nOjZ94Y">Watch John Laughland’s interview here</a><img src="/uploads/image_ba5ac534a1.png">FVD International is sponsoring a conference on European values in Vienna next weekend.&nbsp; Please sign up and attend! The 39€ fee includes lunch and dinner. Thierry Baudet and John Laughland will both be speaking.<a href="https://uturnforeurope.com/index_en.html">Sign up for the Vienna conference here</a><img src="/uploads/image_5ed66d891f.png">The Substack of our weekly podcast, The Forum and Friends, is now live. All our past podcasts are available there and we will be publishing articles, especially by our guests.&nbsp; Please visit the page and leave your comments.<a href="https://theforumfriends.substack.com/">Visit The Forum and Friends Substack here</a><img src="/uploads/image_a768bb4438.png">Stephen Baskerville was our guest on The Forum this week, to discuss why the Right always loses. If you missed it, watch back!<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58cZW7yDaqU">Watch The Forum and Friends here</a>

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The Weekly Forum - 3 April 2026

26 March 2026Chair,The war against Iran, recently initiated by Israel and the United States, does not appear likely to end in the short term. There had been expectations of a kind of “Venezuela-style surprise scenario,” but Iran clearly proves to be of a different order.Despite devastating attacks causing significant damage and casualties, there is no visible sign of a popular uprising within Iran, the very outcome that these attacks appeared to be aiming for.Nor is there any clear evidence of Iran being militarily weakened, at least not in terms of the intensity and effectiveness of its counterattacks.Iran has now effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz. Only vessels from non-hostile states are allowed through, and even they must pay substantial tolls. Moreover, they are required to trade their oil and other goods in yuan rather than in dollars.In response to American attacks, Iran is also targeting U.S. bases in surrounding countries, as well as parts of their oil and gas production.The economic consequences are a sharp global decline in production and rising oil and gas prices, disruption of global logistics routes, and an impending shortage of crucial products on the world market, such as essential chemicals and fertilisers. As long as Iran holds out and its demands are not met, there is no end to this situation in sight.There are significant risks of further escalation, Iran appears both willing and capable of doing so, with potentially unforeseeable consequences on a global scale.Direct military involvement by major powers such as Russia and China cannot be ruled out.All in all, deeply concerning for both the short and the long term.The most appropriate position for the Netherlands in this geopolitical conflict would seem to be one of restraint. Attempting to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by force, as long as Iran remains standing, is an almost impossible military task, a suicide mission.Participation in such an effort is not the path we should take.As for the economic impact on the Netherlands, it is evident that a severe global energy shortage is looming.For example, the production capacity of Qatar, an important LNG supplier for the Netherlands, has been severely reduced in the medium term. The fill level of Dutch gas reserves has dropped to an unprecedented low of 5.8%. This means high costs and potential shortages for the Netherlands as well.In this context, it is absolutely necessary to immediately halt the closure of the Groningen gas fields.The Netherlands sits on the largest natural gas field in Europe. It must be reopened as soon as possible.At present, the above-ground infrastructure for gas extraction in Groningen is being physically dismantled. This must stop immediately, as this infrastructure cannot simply be rebuilt.If this process continues, our ability to resume gas extraction in the long term will disappear.Furthermore, it is high time to reopen dialogue with Russia, in order to explore the possibility of reconnecting to Russian gas supplies. Part of the Nord Stream pipeline could still be utilised for this purpose.As a short-term measure, reducing excise duties, particularly for the most vulnerable sectors that cannot pass on fuel costs, should be seriously considered.Heroically joining the American-Israeli attacks is not the right course of action. Reducing the energy bills for the Dutch people is.Taboos surrounding Groningen gas and/or Russian gas, upheld in this House for ideological reasons, are no longer realistic.Thank you.

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The War Against Iran: the Netherlands should stay out and look after its own people

26 March 2026Tom Russcher and Ralf Dekker today submitted written questions to the Minister of Foreign Affairs regarding the UN resolution, in which the transatlantic slave trade is described as “the gravest crime against humanity”. The resolution was adopted after almost all African, Middle Eastern and Asian countries voted in favour. The Netherlands, like many other European countries, abstained. Only Israel, Argentina and the United States voted against.Creating a hierarchy of historical crimes is concerning and may have far-reaching consequences for the interpretation of history. At present, it is still unclear what the legal and financial implications will be. However, the adopted resolution undeniably provides the Global South with political backing when it comes to matters such as reparations. The position of Forum for Democracy is clear: no further development aid, no reparations, and no oikophobic approach to history.The written questions from FVD MPs Tom Russcher and Ralf Dekker can be found below.Questions from the Tom Russcher (FVD) and the Ralf Dekker (FVD) to the Minister of Foreign Affairs regarding the UN resolution on the transatlantic slave trade:<ul><li>Are you aware of the UN resolution that designates the transatlantic slave trade as “the gravest crime against humanity” ever?</li><li>Can you explain why the Netherlands abstained from voting rather than voting against?</li><li>Do you share the view that creating a hierarchy of historical atrocities is undesirable? If not, why not? If so, why did the Netherlands not vote against?</li><li>Do you agree that numerous other atrocities are implicitly downplayed by this resolution? If not, why not? If so, why did the Netherlands not vote against?</li><li>How will you ensure that this resolution does not in any way lead to financial obligations for the Netherlands?</li><li>Do you acknowledge that international law at the time of the slave trade did not prohibit slavery, and that retroactive application of modern standards is legally untenable? If not, why not?</li><li>Do you agree that there is no right to reparations for actions that were not illegal under international law at the time? If not, why not?</li><li>How do you assess the call in the resolution to engage in dialogue on reparations for descendants of enslaved people?</li><li>Can you rule out that the Netherlands will, under pressure from this resolution, move towards reparations in the future, in any form?</li><li>Are you prepared to reconsider the previously issued apologies for the slavery past, now that these are being used as leverage for financial claims? If not, why not?</li><li>Do you agree that the apologies offered by Prime Minister Rutte in 2022 and King Willem-Alexander in 2023 have proven to be a strategic mistake, as they have opened the door to further demands?</li><li>Do you believe that modern Dutch citizens bear responsibility for actions that took place centuries ago?</li><li>Are you aware of the historical phenomenon of white slavery in Arab and North African countries, including the so-called Barbary slave trade in which an estimated more than one million Europeans were captured and enslaved, and do you agree that singling out European countries as perpetrators presents an incomplete and misleading picture of history?</li><li>Do you consider it fair that current generations of Dutch taxpayers are held financially liable for historical events in which they had no part?</li><li>Why does this resolution focus exclusively on the transatlantic slave trade and not on the Arab slave trade, which lasted longer and is estimated to have claimed as many or more victims?</li><li>Did the Netherlands, during deliberations in the General Assembly, draw attention to slavery that still exists today in parts of Africa and the Middle East?</li><li>Do you agree that it is hypocritical for countries where modern slavery still occurs to be co-sponsors of a resolution on historical slavery, especially given that at the time these countries actively sold their own people to traders from around the world?</li><li>How does this resolution relate to the fact that the Netherlands was one of the first countries to abolish slavery?</li><li>Do you consider it appropriate to continue providing development aid to countries that simultaneously demand reparations from the Netherlands?</li><li>Can the minister confirm that slavery was a global phenomenon that existed in virtually all civilisations, and that selectively pointing to Western European countries creates a distorted historical narrative?</li><li>Do you agree that the Dutch people do not benefit from a persistent culture of guilt over historical events?</li></ul>

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Will the UN resolution on slavery lead to more development aid and even reparations? FVD submits parliamentary questions

In a shocking documentary, Dutch YouTuber Dutch Travel Maniac reveals large-scale, structural abuses within the asylum system: from drug trafficking to inspection manipulation, from weapons possession to the concealment of incidents. Through conversations with asylum seekers, security guards and staff, Dutch Travel Maniac paints a disturbing picture of how the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) operates. Tom Russcher wants to get to the bottom of the matter as soon as possible and has submitted written questions to the Minister for Asylum and Migration.Questions from Tom Russcher MP to the Minister for Asylum and Migration and the Minister of Justice and Security regarding abuses at COA locations, particularly the reception centre in Ter Apel and AZC Budel, based on the YouTube documentary by Dutch Travel Maniac.<ul style="list-style-type:disc;"><li>Are you familiar with the documentary from the YouTube channel Dutch Travel Maniac, in which anonymous security guards, (former) residents and shopkeepers provide extensive testimony about structural abuses at COA locations, including the reception centre in Ter Apel and the Asylum Seekers Centre (AZC) at Budel?</li><li>Can you confirm that drugs are structurally traded at COA locations, as alleged in the documentary in Ter Apel and Budel, including cocaine, speed and hashish?</li><li>If the answer to question two is affirmative: at which locations is this the case, and what measures have been taken so far to combat this?</li><li>If the answer to question two is negative: how do you explain the multiple independent testimonies about this?</li><li>Is it true that there is no standard frisking or checking for contraband when entering AZC sites, with the exception of the building of the IND Immigration and Naturalisation Service?</li><li>If the answer to question five is affirmative: do you consider this responsible given the persistent signals of weapons possession and drug trafficking at these locations, and are you willing to introduce structural access controls?</li><li>If the answer to question five is negative: how do you explain the multiple independent testimonies about this?</li><li>How do you explain that residents of AZCs can possess weapons such as machetes, kitchen knives and shards of glass on site?</li><li>What measures are being taken to prevent and combat weapons possession at COA locations?</li><li>Are you aware that security guards at COA locations state that large-scale fights and stabbing incidents occur weekly, and that smaller altercations take place daily?</li><li>Can you provide an overview of the number of recorded violent incidents at COA locations over the past three years, broken down by type of incident and location?</li><li>Is it true that security guards at COA locations are structurally confronted with physical violence, including biting, spitting and threats with weapons?</li><li>What are you doing to ensure the safety of COA staff, including security personnel?</li><li>Do you agree that it is unacceptable for the COA to shift responsibility onto the external security organisations it hires?</li><li>Do you recognise the picture that security guards fear losing their jobs if they report abuses?</li><li>If the answer to question 15 is negative: why do anonymous security guards indicate this?</li><li>Are you willing to establish or strengthen a whistleblower scheme specifically for staff at COA locations, so that abuses can be reported safely?</li><li>How do you reflect on the fact that asylum seekers who have genuinely fled war zones state that they feel structurally unsafe at COA locations, and that some place furniture against their doors in order to sleep safely?</li><li>How do you reflect on the fact that women and families with children in AZCs indicate that they cannot move freely due to intimidation and sexual harassment by fellow residents?</li><li>Can you confirm that there are known cases in which AZC residents have committed sexual assault, and that the perpetrators only received a so-called “time-out”, consisting of a temporary transfer to a more basic room, after which they returned to the same location?</li><li>If the answer to question twenty is affirmative: do you consider this an appropriate sanction for sexual offences?</li><li>If the answer to question twenty is negative: why do security guards and (former) residents indicate this?</li><li>Is it true that the so-called Freedom-Restricting Location (VBL) at the Ter Apel site is designed in such a way that residents can easily climb over the fence and return to the centre of Ter Apel?</li><li>If the answer to question 23 is affirmative: what measures are being taken to prevent this?</li><li>Can you reflect on the statement by security guards that an estimated 80% of incidents are not reported or made public?</li><li>Can you rule out that the COA deliberately transports residents away by coach during inspection days or visits by Members of Parliament in order to present occupancy rates and conditions more favourably than they actually are?</li><li>If the answer to question 26 is affirmative: on what basis can you rule this out?</li><li>If the answer to question 26 is negative: are you willing to have an independent investigation conducted into this?</li><li>Is it true that residents involved in such relocations receive financial compensation?</li><li>If the answer to question 28 is affirmative: what amounts are involved and from which budget are these financed?</li><li>Are you willing to introduce structural, unannounced inspections at COA locations in order to obtain a realistic picture of the daily situation?</li><li>Is it true that the initial screening by the IND in some cases consists of only a limited number of yes/no questions?</li><li>If the answer to question 32 is affirmative: do you consider this sufficient to identify potential security risks?</li><li>Is facial recognition or biometric verification used during registration in Ter Apel? If not, why not, and are you willing to introduce this?</li><li>What is your response to the signal that asylum seekers frequently discard or destroy passports and identity documents prior to registration, and that there is trade in false passports via human smuggling networks?</li><li>What measures are being taken to combat identity fraud?</li><li>Can you explain why the police, as stated by multiple sources in the documentary, are limited in their ability to act against AZC residents who commit criminal offences because they do not have a Dutch identity?</li><li>Are you aware that shopkeepers in the vicinity of AZCs face threats, spitting, theft and sexual intimidation by residents?</li><li>Are you willing to engage with the relevant municipalities about additional measures to protect local entrepreneurs?</li><li>How do you assess the fact that residents living near the AZC in Lochem receive €1,000 from the government to better secure their homes? What does this say, in your view, about the safety situation around AZC locations?</li><li>Do you agree that it is irresponsible to open new AZC locations while safety at existing locations is not in order, for residents, local communities and staff alike?</li><li>If the answer to question 41 is negative: why not?</li><li>Are you willing to initiate an independent investigation into how the COA handles safety incidents, their registration, and the functioning of internal complaints procedures?</li></ul>

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Dutch Travel Maniac exposes abuses and misconduct at the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers; Tom Russcher MP submits parliamentary questions

Sometimes things are really simple but people like to make them appear complicated. If the population of a country increases through mass immigration from 15 to 18 million in a quarter of a century, without a concomitant increase in the housing stock, property prices will rise. Tom Russcher MP made this essential point in a recent debate in the Dutch Parliament. But rather than understanding the simple relation of cause and effect, and even less trying to find a way of correcting the problem, MPs from other parties tried to frame Tom morally by pretending not to know what basic demographic and citizenship terms mean. ‘What do you mean by the native population?’ is a question clearly designed to insinuate some form of racism, just like ‘What do you mean by “birthrate below the replacement level”?’&nbsp; When someone speaks the truth, unfortunately many try to pretend that the reality is different simply by ignoring it. This is very bad, in view of the fact that the population is set to continue rising through immigration, while immigrants will continue to be put at the top of the social housing list - ahead of Dutch people. This is not a good way of governing a country but it is precisely how European countries have been run for decades.<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKE-ZO-TVsE">Watch Tom Russcher’s speech here</a><img src="/uploads/image_39618eadcc.png">With immigration at such industrial levels, Islam is increasingly penetrating public life in Europe. Sometimes Muslims hold public events deliberately to make their presence felt, such as when they organise prayer meetings in the street. On other occasions, they insinuate their way into public institutions. Iftars have recently been held in or near Dutch police stations, for instance. What does this signify? Do Christians hold Masses in police stations? Do they hold Corpus Christi or Holy Week processions in or near police stations? And if it is only Muslims, what does this say about the religious affiliation of police officers and about the requirement for the police to observe neutrality? Peter van Duijvenvoorde raised all these issues in writing to the Dutch government: one suspects one knows the answers but only FVD asks the questions.<a href="https://fvdinternational.com/article/police-iftars-raise-concerns-about-officer-neutrality-van-duijvenvoorde-submits-parliamentary-questions">Read Peter van Duijvenvoorde’s questions here</a><img src="/uploads/image_0faa030e70.png">Representatives from JFVD, the party’s youth wing, attended a Women’s Conference organised in Germany recently by the Europe of Sovereign Nations group. The director, Iem al Biyati, was one of the speakers. She gave an excellent talk on how Marxism has always dreamed of destroying the family and how this has now been achieved by a combination of industrialisation and high taxation. Before the industrial revolution, the family was an economic as well as a social unit; now not only do parents (especially men) work away from home but also their income is confiscated by the state. This is why the state wants to push ever more women into work – to increase the tax take. But this only destroys the family even further, while the solution is to stop wasting colossal sums on pointless wars and migrants. Simple, really.<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Mcj5VG7lsM">Watch Iem’s speech here</a><img src="/uploads/image_f98e1ab03b.png">Ulrike Guérot was our guest on The Forum this week. She is one of Germany’s foremost political scientists, currently facing persecution by the state for questioning official narratives on Covid and the Ukraine. She argued very forcefully that the present repressive environment in Europe is due only partly to state control and instead largely to a self-perpetuating ‘community of guilt’ which, supported by huge money flows, ensures that the system continues to defend itself spontaneously and ruthlessly.<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVHTbS83aqI">Watch The Forum &amp; Friends here</a>

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The Weekly Forum - 27 March 2026

FVD Member of Parliament Peter van Duijvenvoorde has submitted written questions to the Minister of Justice and Security following reports and video footage indicating that the police have been involved in iftar gatherings at various locations. In some cases, these events appear to have been organised in or near police stations. Videos circulating on social media show, among other things, the Islamic call to prayer (azan) being recited during such a gathering while police officers in uniform are present. Van Duijvenvoorde is asking the minister to clarify the nature and scale of these gatherings and the role played by the police. He wants to know, among other things, whether such iftar events are organised by or with the cooperation of the police, where they take place, and whether police capacity or other public resources are being used. He also asks whether there are guidelines within the police regarding the organisation or facilitation of religious activities in police buildings.How do such activities relate to the principle that government institutions, and the police in particular, should maintain a neutral position with regard to religion? Is there actually support within the police organisation for these kinds of events, and how are officers who choose not to participate in religious activities treated? The minister is requested to inform Parliament further on these matters.Written questions from the member Van Duijvenvoorde (Forum for Democracy) to the Minister of Justice and Security regarding iftar gatherings organised by the police:<ul><li>Have you taken note of reports and videos circulating on social media indicating that iftar gatherings have been organised or facilitated by the police at various locations, including in or near police stations, where the Islamic call to prayer (azan) was also heard?</li><li>Is it correct that iftar gatherings have taken place at or near multiple police stations organised or facilitated by or with the cooperation of the police? If so, which locations, dates and occasions were involved?</li><li>Is it correct that in the case shown in the video an iftar gathering took place where the azan was recited in the presence of police officers in uniform? If so, who was responsible for organising it and on what grounds was the decision made to hold this gathering?</li><li>Do you consider it appropriate for explicit religious expressions or rituals belonging to a specific faith to take place in or near police stations, given that the police are expected to be a neutral representative of the rule of law?</li><li>Are there guidelines or protocols within the police for organising or facilitating religious gatherings, such as iftar meals, prayer moments or other religious activities, in police buildings or during police-related events? If so, can you share these with Parliament?</li><li>Are police capacity, working hours, facilities or other public resources used for such gatherings? If so, can you provide insight into the nature and scale of this use?</li><li>Are there also examples of other religious traditions—such as Christian, Jewish or other religious gatherings or rituals—being organised or facilitated in a comparable manner by or with the cooperation of the police in police buildings?</li><li>How does facilitating explicitly religious activities align, in your view, with the required neutrality of the police as a government institution?</li><li>Do you share the concern that facilitating explicitly religious activities by the police may create the impression that the police identify with a specific religion, potentially undermining public trust in their neutrality and impartiality? Please explain your answer.</li><li>Do you consider it desirable for police officers in uniform to be present at or participate in religious rituals or calls, such as the recitation of the azan, in the context of an event organised by or with the cooperation of the police?</li><li>Are you willing to consider whether additional guidelines are needed to ensure that police buildings and police activities retain a neutral, non-religious character?</li><li>Is it known to what extent there is support among police officers for organising or facilitating religious gatherings, such as iftar events, in or near police stations? If so, what are the findings?</li><li>How does the police organisation deal with officers who wish to remain neutral in matters of belief and therefore do not want to participate in religious gatherings or rituals, such as iftar events or attending religious calls? Is refusal to participate fully accepted both formally and informally?</li><li>Are there known signals, reports or complaints within the police from officers who have felt pressured, uncomfortable or troubled by the organisation of religious gatherings in or near police stations?</li><li>Are there internal discussions, tensions, frustrations or forms of resistance among police staff regarding the organisation or facilitation of religious gatherings, such as iftar events, by or with the cooperation of the police?</li></ul>

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Police iftars raise concerns about officer neutrality. Peter van Duijvenvoorde MP submits parliamentary questions

Forum for Democracy had spectacular success at the local elections held in the Netherlands on 18 March. FVD won some 300 seats in local councils, up from 54 after the last elections in 2022. It won seats in every single one of the 104 municipalities where it put up candidates (out of 342 municipalities in the whole country). This is an increase of nearly 250 seats with respect to the previous elections, which makes FVD by far the biggest winner: the second best result was that of the liberal-centrist establishment People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), which increased its score by only 65 seats. It is true that this VVD, like the other establishment parties Democrats 66, Christian Democrat Appeal (CDA) and the Green-Labour party (GL-PvdA), have about a thousand council seats each across the country but this result makes FVD the fourth largest national party at municipal level, way ahead of Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party which now has only 100 or so local councillors.<img src="/uploads/image_7f4999ef57.png">It is mystifying that people continue to vote for parties like the VVD. They have been in power without interruption for over a decade and a half, yet during those years the country has gone to the dogs. They win by tricking people. Every time, they say they want lower immigration and fewer asylum seekers. Yet millions of migrants have settled in the Netherlands under their watch since 2010. Worse, they claim to be against immigration but in fact water down anti-immigration legislation at EU level whenever they can. Naturally, only FVD notices this and calls them out.<a href="https://fvdinternational.com/article/vvd-campaigns-for-a-stricter-migration-policy-but-refuses-stricter-return-laws-in-the-eu">Read Tom Russcher’s article here</a><img src="/uploads/image_45b91dce5c.png">Tom has been on the trail of an influential Islamic NGO in the Netherlands which, it turns out, is under the heavy influence of the Turkish government via the religious attaché at the Turkish embassy in The Hague. The diplomat is often at the NGO’s offices and accompanies it on trips. He appears to be its de facto leader. Yet the NGO, which also receives subsidies from the Dutch government, says it is independent. Turkey is a secular state but it has a government department, the famous Diyanet, which essentially controls Islam in the country. In other words, the link to a foreign power is very real and direct. One wonders how widespread this influence is across Europe – in an EU which only ever complains about Russian interference, real or imagined, but which never mentions the American, Israeli or, in this case, Turkish role in national politics.<a href="https://fvdinternational.com/">Read Tom’s article here</a><img src="/uploads/image_a13cc2b411.png">FVD is sponsoring a pan-European cultural-political initiative organised by a German friend and under the patronage of Leo Hohenberg, the great-grandson of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, whose assassination triggered the First World War. Apart from his historic lineage, Prince Leo is a lucid analyst of the ills which beset our world. Stefan Korte, the organiser of the initiative, is convinced that Europe’s ills must be attacked at their cultural and civilisational root - which is more or less exactly what FVD’s leader, Thierry Baudet, has been saying for years. The initiative’s first conference will take place in Vienna in April. If you want to attend, sign up&nbsp;<a href="https://uturnforeurope.com/index_en.html">here</a>.<a href="https://fvdinternational.com/article/european-cultural-initiative-founded-under-habsburg-patronage">Read about the initiative here</a>

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The Weekly Forum - 21 March 2026

Forum for Democracy International

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🏛 The Forum &amp; Friends: Repression in Britain with George Szamuely and Kit Klarenberg

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🏛 The Forum &amp; Friends: Forced Mobilisation in Ukraine with Marta Havryshko and Isabelle Buhre

Groupthink in Academia: Is Free Thought Disappearing? | Peter van Duijvenvoorde | FVD

Home-Delivered Abortion? Platform Puts Women and Unborn Life at Risk | Gideon van Meijeren | FVD

'100 Billion Lost for Nothing' - Ralf Dekker on Ukraine | FVD

The Forum &amp; Friends The Tragedy of Conservatism, Why the Right Always Loses with Stephen Baskerville

23 Million People in the Netherlands? Tom Russcher MP Pushes Back on Immigration | FVD

🏛 The Forum &amp; Friends: Repression in Germany Today with Ulrike Guérot

Forum for Democracy

FVD is a anti-globalist political party in the Netherlands founded and led by Thierry Baudet. John Laughland (right) is director of FVD International.

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