EU-Digest: The Netherlands: Majority of parties in Dutch Parliament say NO to the wearing of head scarfs by police officers

EU-Digest report on the Police head scarf controversy in the Netherlands

The Netherlands: Majority of parties in Dutch Parliament say NO to the wearing of head scarfs by some police officers

A motion presented by the PVV party in the Dutch Parliament last week against the wearing of headscarfs by members of the police was accepted by a large majority of parliamentarians, including the government coalition party CDA, and opposition parties SP, VVD, D66, SGP, the Party of the animals and the Verdonk fraction. The SP noted during the discussions that this guideline should be applied to all forms of religious expression by civil servants and government officials in the Netherlands.
The Christian Union which voted against the motion said they voted against the motion because of its narrow wording. The Christian Party stated to be against the wearing of all religious symbols by the police because the police are required to convey an independent and neutral image when dealing with the Public.

When asked what the Government's next step would be following this Parliamentary motion, Mrs. Guusje Ter Horst, Minister of Internal Affairs (PVDA- Labour Party),said she could not comment on the issue, because her department is still working on establishing a dress code for the police. She said "the advice that was given to her by the Equal Treatment Commission was that the wearing of symbols of religious faith should only be banned if there is a strong case for it, because it could lead to people being banned from working for the police because of their religious beliefs."

Editorial note: Editorial note: The Parliament is correct to ban the wearing of headscarf's by public officials and consequently any statement by the Dutch Equal Treatment Commission to water down this ruling by the parliament is totally inappropriate in a secular society like the Netherlands. There can be no compromise on this issue which has all to do with religion and nothing with culture. Any form of religious expression by a Dutch government official, wherever he or she might be working, should not be tolerated. Let us not forget that the salary of those ( including Parliamentarians) in Dutch Government service is paid by the Dutch taxpayers. These taxpayers represent a variety of beliefs and cultures. The only identification a Dutch Government official should have is that he or she is a citizen of the Netherlands (EU). We hope Mrs. Guusje Ter Horst will make sure to follow the advice of the Parliament.