The democratic constitutional state will certainly not be abolished with one stroke of the pen. It has been heard often in The Hague in recent days, and the words had to radiate something reassuring. Attack civil liberties? Change the Constitution? That just isn't possible, say the parties that are currently talking to the PVV about a new cabinet: VVD, NSC and BBB. It requires a two-thirds majority in the Senate and the House of Representatives. And hadn't Geert Wilders himself said that he would put many of his plans “on hold”?
But you could also interpret the words as ominous. No, no one is simply going to restrict the principle of equality, as expressed in Article 1 of the Constitution. But erosion of the democratic legal order does not come as a revolution, but as a gradual process. It's because the boundaries of the debate are shifting. Because rules, laws and standards are being stretched. And because the radical voices are no longer confronted with contradiction, but rather determine the rules. Now that the radical right PVV and VVD, NSC and BBB are talking about a new cabinet and have a majority in the House of Representatives, it can be seen how all these processes are happening simultaneously. The PVV has a radical party programme, which has hardly changed in two decades. But now they are the biggest and influence the rest of the House. Wilders' refrigerator is wide open and others eagerly grab his themes from it, like cold beers.
While a critical attitude and contradiction are necessary, VVD, NSC and BBB treat the PVV as if there is already a Wilders cabinet. A good example was the move by VVD leader Dilan Yesilgöz during Wednesday's election debate. She submitted a motion in which she called on the outgoing Rutte IV cabinet (VVD, D66, CDA and CU) and the Senate to temporarily not discuss the dispersal law. This law regulates the reception of asylum seekers by municipalities, in order to do something about the inhumane conditions in Ter Apel. The motion showed in both form and content how effectively the PVV has already pushed the boundaries of the rule of law without having to do much itself. A motion in which the House of Representatives attempts to influence the Senate is borderline constitutional and goes far beyond the limits in such a sensitive issue. In addition, the VVD faction leader attacked the policy that she simply supports as a minister (of Rutte IV) through a motion. And what her group and cabinet colleague Eric van der Burg is working on day and night. Without informing her coalition partners, she exchanged Rutte IV for Wilders I. The double hats were inimitable, and it was not nice from a constitutional point of view.
Yesilgöz's action showed how quickly democratic norms can shift. Not by Geert Wilders, but because other parties do his work. This motion was an example of that. The chaos that arose after the motion was submitted – a split in Rutte IV was immediately a serious option – seemed unimportant to the VVD. This is an embarrassing display for the last real director. And it is not a good omen that the formation will discuss the rule of law and the Constitution as the next step. According to the faction leaders, without any ulterior motive, but every conversation in this phase of a formation is a negotiation – which is what scout and informant Ronald Plasterk himself also said. That can also be seen as a major concession to Wilders, and new proof that standards are changing quickly. The House of Representatives must be vigilant.
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