Interview with Mr. Bernard Wientjes
By Bonnie Klap, Editor in Chief.
Mr. Bernard Wientjes is currently fulfilling his third term as President of the Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers. His vast experience as former businessman and as President of this Confederation enables him to answer a few questions regarding the Dutch economy. He welcomes us in his spacious office overlooking central The Hague and takes his first question:
What can the Dutch government do to improve Dutch export?
“Well first of all, the Dutch economy is dependent on exports, which added value totals EUR 180 billion annually, so it should be a priority to support the export as much as possible. We can do this through economic diplomacy, using the Embassies and Consulates, as they are our foreign trade representatives. Secondly, the Government is responsible for tax-treaties, so they must ensure that there are no tax-barriers for other countries to invest here. Thirdly there is the TTIP, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. The EU is currently negotiating Free Trade agreements with the US, Japan and ASEAN. We expect the Government to fully support these negotiations. Protectionism is a big danger for trade. We are very happy with our Minister of Foreign Trade, Ms. Lilian Ploumen.”
Are you worried about unemployment in The Netherlands and if so, what should be done about it?
“ On the long term I am not pessimistic, but at the moment we are still at the end of the recession. Our GNP did not grow in 5 years. Our national income in 2013 was the same as in 2007. No growth equals unemployment, so we absolutely need growth. The growth forecast for 2014 is 0.5%. That is too low. We need at least 1.5% growth, but world-wide the signs of economic growth are encouraging, so I am a bit more optimistic. Long term, because of demographics, there will be a shortness of labor. I see it as a so-called ‘war on talent.’ We need highly skilled people. Companies such as ASML and Philips already have people with 20-30 different nationalities working for them. We need everybody in The Netherlands. At the moment 22 out 100 Dutch students study technical sciences, in Germany that number is 40 out of 100 students. In Germany there is a very strong industry, so that makes sense. The reason that this is not the case in The Netherlands is because some time ago The Netherlands was likely to become a country of ‘service-industries,’ so the students based their choice of study on service-related courses and social sciences. Today the situation has reversed and the industries are returning to The Netherlands. Technically trained people are in high demand.”
The Netherlands is proud of its ‘Poldermodel.’ Does it still work?
“That is a good question. Many think that the Poldermodel is dead, but in my opinion it is very much alive. As a matter of fact the Government survived because of the Poldermodel. Initially the Coalition agreement was not accepted and it was re-written because of the Poldermodel. The increase in pension-age, the reform of the labor laws all these changes were made possible through the Poldermodel. We know we have to make compromises. The Poldermodel will always be with us. Compromise is in the blood of the Dutch people. On a totally different note I would like to say that I am very happy with the decision not to close the Embassies and Consulates in Munich, Milano, Antwerp and Chicago. At the moment we are fighting to prevent the closing of the consulate in Osaka. The Netherlands is very much dependent on foreign trade and the Embassies are our most important Trade representatives.Therefore they should remain open.”
Australia in The Hague: a proud legal tradition
By Neil Allan Mules, Ambassador of Australia to the Netherlands.
The Australian Embassy in The Hague lies just behind the gardens of the Peace Palace, the preeminent centre for international law and justice opened in 1913. The official residence, not far from the chancery, was built during the same era and has been continuously occupied by Australian Ambassadors since the 1940s. Australia’s role in the development of international law and the delivery of international justice is similarly close and enduring. Recognising early on the utility of a world court, Australia ratified the Statute of the Permanent Court of International Justice in 1921 and subsequently accepted the Court’s compulsory jurisdiction. Australia played an important role in the drafting of the Statute of the Permanent Court’s successor, the International Court of Justice, and advocated in favour of compulsory jurisdiction. The Australian jurist and former Minister for External Affairs, Sir Percy Spender, served as Judge of the Court from 1958 to 1964 and President from 1964 to 1967. Eminent Australian international lawyer, Professor James Crawford, has been nominated for election as a Judge of the Court this year.Australia and Australians have also made a noteworthy contribution in the field ofinternational criminal law. Australia played a significant role in the drafting of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and continues to work to promote its ratification. Australia has contributed financially to all the Hague-based international criminal courts and tribunals. The first Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, Graham Blewitt, came to The Hague having prosecuted former Nazi war criminals in Australia. Three Australians have served as Judges of the Tribunal, including the former Governor-General of Australia, Sir Ninian Stephen, who drafted the first version of the Tribunal’s rules. Today, Australians are working in senior roles throughout the Hague-based legal institutions as investigators, prosecutors, IT specialists, defence lawyers, librarians, researchers, translators, analysts and administrators. The Presiding Judge of the Trial Chamber of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, David Re, is Australian, as is the current Registrar of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, John Hocking. The Australian Embassy continues to provide practical and diplomatic support to the international legal institutions and works to strengthen and improve their governance. Australian diplomats are active in the Assembly of States Parties to the International Criminal Court, the Administrative Council of the Permanent Court of Arbitration and the Hague Conference on Private International Law. The Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote that humankind was at its worst when separated from law and justice. This was proven almost one hundred years ago when war broke out across Europe, less than one year after the Peace Palace opened in The Hague. There is perhaps no more an important time as now to reflect on the necessity of international law and the hope of international justice. Australia is committed to working to ensure that hope becomes reality.Good signs of recovering for the Netherlands
Directly from the European Commission.
WINTER FORECAST EU: Recovery continues
On the basis of about 180 indicators such include GDP, inflation, employment and public finances, the European Commission provides a forecast for economic growth in the European Union, the euro area and their main trading partners. For the first time this forecast casts a look ahead to 2014 and 2015.
The forecasts are the basis for economic monitoring procedures under the European Semester. They are analyzes made by the country desks of the Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs of the European Commission (DG ECFIN).
NETHERLANDS: Economic recovery after two years of recession
Economic growth was positive in the second quarter of 2013 and gaining strength in 2014 and 2015. In 2014, it is still driven by investments. Due to rising domestic demand this growth will accelerate in 2015. Unemployment is at first level will drop to slow towards the end of the forecast horizon. The budget deficit remains close to the 3% of GDP.
You can find the full forecast for Netherlands in Annex or at:http://ec.europa.eu/economy_finance/eu/forecasts/2014_winter/nl_en.pdf
General forecast
According to the winter forecast of the European Commission, the economic recovery in most Member States and in the EU by. Now the economy since the spring of 2013 is no longer in recession and is expected. A moderate increase in economic growth after three consecutive quarters of subdued recovery, Following a real GDP growth of 1.5% in the EU and 1.2% in the euro area in 2014, the activity would accelerate in 2015 to 2.0% in the EU and 1.8% in the eurozone. These figures are revised each compared with autumn 2013 forecast. Upwards by 0.1 percentage point
Diplomat of the Year Awards 2014 at Carlton
The Hague, the Netherlands.
HEAD OF DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS, PLEASE RESERVE THE DATE*.
Fifteen Highest Diplomatic Awards to Head of Diplomatic Missions and diplomats accredited to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Gala-dinner awards ceremony recognises the outstanding achievements of The Hague’s diplomatic community, who are trying to better enhance their nation’s well-being or excelling in bilateral & multilateral relations. The awards represents some of the most influential diplomats in this country. 
This extraordinary event (first of its kind in the Netherlands’ history) will be covered by the Dutch and International media, in the presence of distinguished foreign and national dignitaries**. Selected venue: Carlton Ambassador Hotel, The Hague.
This extraordinary event (first of its kind in the Netherlands’ history) will be covered by the Dutch and International media, in the presence of distinguished foreign and national dignitaries**. Selected venue: Carlton Ambassador Hotel, The Hague.
* More information will follow soon.
**For security reasons, some Dutch dignitaries’ attending this event will be announced at very last minute.
For special queries, please email: diplomatmagazinenl@gmail.com
Kuwait National&Liberation Day
National Day of Kuwait, magnificent event !
On the occasion of the 53th Anniversary of the National Day of the State of Kuwait & the 23rd Anniversary of the Liberation Day, the Ambassador of Kuwait, H.E. Hafeez Mohammad Saleem Al-Ajmi hosted one of the most magnificent diplomatic receptions in recent years at Kurhaus. Some 300 + guests responded to the invitation. It was a culinary-promotional event at the highest level. Guests started to arrive even half hour before scheduled. Diplomat Magazine’s photographer Henri Arvidsson has the results with his camera during a session of colorful pictures taken on Thursday, February 20th, 2014 at Kurhaus. 
FOR MORE RECENT EVENTS CLICK HERE: https://diplomatmagazine.eu/category/event/
Kosovo National Day Celebration
By Enitsa Gabrovska.
Photo album of this event here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/98057281@N02/sets/
On 17th February H.E. Ms. Vjosa Dobruna, Ambassador of Kosovo, held a reception to mark the 6th anniversary of the Independence of the Republic of Kosovo. The reception took place at the Carlton Ambassador Hotel. H.E. Ms. Dobruna addressed the distinguished guests on the occasion of Kosovo’s National Day and welcomed everyone to raise a glass in celebration. The guests also had the opportunity to try traditional jams after “granny’s recipe” from Eastern Kosovo offered by local company Ask Foods. 
CLICK HERE FOR MORE RECENT EVENTS https://diplomatmagazine.eu/category/event/
H.E. James Lambert to host Diplomats Meet Greet in March 6th
His Excellency James Lambert, Ambassador of Canada to the Netherlands will be hosting Diplomats Meet & Greet on Thursday, March 6th at Carlton Ambassador Hotel in The Hague, 6pm. This is announced to be a Canadian evening !!!
Sulfur Mustard Delivered to Latakia and Removed from Syria
Directly from the OPCW in The Hague.
Consignment of Sulfur Mustard Delivered to Latakia and Removed from Syria
The Government of Syria today transported a fourth consignment of chemicals, a quantity of sulfur mustard, to the port of Latakia where it was loaded onto a cargo ship and removed from the country. The sulfur mustard is one of five “priority chemicals” in Syria’s chemical weapons programme and will be destroyed at sea aboard a U.S. vessel, the MV Cape Ray.
“The removal of this sulfur mustard is an encouraging and positive development,” said the OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü. “Much work nonetheless remains to be done, and we look to the Syrian Government to accelerate its efforts to transfer the remaining chemicals in regular, predictable and systematic movements.”
For more details on the OPCW’s activities in Syria, visit our special web page at:http://www.opcw.org/news-room/
Kwibuka 20 commemoration in The Hague
By Roy Lie A Tjam.
On Friday 14 February 2014, Ambassador Jean Pierre Karabaranga hosted the Kwibuka20, honoring its heroes of the “Rwanda massacre” for the 20th time. The solemn event was attended by; officials of the Dutch government, Ambassadors, Friends of Rwanda, Rwandan nationals living in the Netherlands and others. Ms.Josephine, who survived the carnage, delivered a very moving testimony. Dr. Jan Pronk, former Dutch Minister for Development Cooperation from 1989 to 1998 was the guest of honor, Dr Pronk delivered the keynote address. The event was concluded with a reception. 
Exceptional Awards at MINBUZA
By John Dunkelgrün.
Every Yad Vashem ceremony is special: it honours people, who with direct danger to their own lives and those of their families, try to save their fellow men. Yad Vashem is the institute in Jerusalem that honours those non Jews who, during the days of the Shoa, decided to risk all to save Jews. But it has a much wider relevance in that it teaches us all that there are situations in which we have to go against the crowd, even against direct orders, to “do the right thing”.
This was emphasised by Minister Timmermans in a ceremony to commemorate Mr. Joseph Willem Kolkman ,the under consul of The Netherlands in Vichy France. It was only the second time in the history of Yad Vashem that an organization (in this case the Dutch Ministery of Foreign Affairs) in stead of a person received the award for a deceased “Righteous among the Nations”.
Mr. Kolkman managed to get hundreds of Dutch citizens out of the camps where the French concentrated fugitives from the Nazi occupied countries. He housed and fed them in a large villa he had rented and furnished them with (often falsified) papers to transit Spain and Portugal and go to England, the Dutch West Indies or The United States. He facilitated the escape -and so saved the lives- of many Jews, young Dutchmen and women who wanted to join the fight against the Nazis (the so called “Engelandvaarders”) and others who just wanted to bring their families to safety. When he was ordered to “close shop” and leave, he refused because there were so many more people who needed help. After the Germans took over Vichy France in November 1942 he and his wife tried to cross into Spain, but were arrested. His wife was released but Kolkman was sent to the camps in Poland and perished.
More than 70 people gathered Monday in the stately Van Kleffenszaal of the Ministery of Foreign Affairs to hear the testimony by two sons of people saved by Mr. Kolkman and the archivist/historian Mr. S.F.M. Plantinga. The award was handed to the Secretary General Ms. Jones-Bos by the Ambassador of Israel, H.E. Mr. Haim Divon.
