Volt has expelled Member of Parliament Nilüfer Gündogan from the group because of thirteen reports the party received about transgressive behaviour. That’s what party chairman Laurens Dassen has announced on Saturday on behalf of the Volt party board† The reports would come “from all layers of the party”. “They range from pawing and unwelcome sexual advances to harassment and abuse of position.”
The party engaged an outside agency last month to investigate reports it had received of inappropriate behavior by Gundogan. The bureau spoke with sixteen people, the party board writes, but not with Gundogan himself. Volt and the integrity office are said to have “tried in all sorts of ways” to get in touch, but “she has stated several times that she will not respond.”
Gundogan has not yet commented on the suspension. She previously announced that she wanted to keep her seat in Parliament regardless of the investigation. It is not yet clear on Saturday afternoon whether she will actually do so.
The party says it will take measures to prevent similar situations in the future. For example, the screening process for candidates must be reconsidered and the party wants to strengthen ‘the house of integrity’, so that those reporting inappropriate behavior know where to go with complaints. “These painful events make it clear that we as party leadership must also hold up a mirror to ourselves,” the party board writes. “We realize we have fallen short.”
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