Iron Rita strikes again

Unfortunately, this is not a pun on the famous Star Wars movie, but the sad truth about Dutch Minister Rita Verdonk, who has threatened to take away the Dutch citizenship of MP Ayaan Hirsi Ali. An immediate debate by parliament has been called.

My feelings toward Hirsi Ali have always been mixed. On one hand a champion for standing up against the abuse of women and for criticizing flawed Islamic customs; on the other hand, a warmonger and cheap shot politician for stirring up hatred against and fear of non-Western immigrants; my feelings never leaned toward favoring her. Her goal might be sound, but the means to reach her goal are not.

That said, revoking citizenship is taking things a bit far. Hirsi Ali is already leaving parliament, but now, she might be forced to leave the country. Verdonk notified her that she might have never held Dutch citizenship. Known for her hard rule, Verdonk has already sent a promising young student home just before her final exams in a high profile case and has declined citizenship for a talented young soccer player who would have landed a spot in the national team.

I don’t understand the reasoning behind Verdonk’s decision, as she is effectively sending a fellow party member away, but I might have been abroad too long to grasp the situation. In my understanding, it is a highly political move; a move to discredit Hirsi Ali.

As Hirsi Ali repeatedly told the media she had lied on her naturalization application, I find Verdonk’s timing to be extremely odd. Then again, it is not that odd when you read Verdonk is a candidate for her party’s leadership. Is Verdonk distancing herself from Hirsi Ali to gain prominence? It would be an unusual way of doing so.

It is the timing that bothers me. I don’t know enough about the legal situation to say whether she should be able to stay or be deported, but I do know that it is a disgrace to see the way this is handled. As Neelie Kroes, a Duth EU commissioner, said: “[I am] ashamed of the Netherlands because a valuable person like Hirsi Ali is being shoved out of the country.”

Allegedly, Hirsi Ali will start at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank in Washington D.C., in September of this year. Again, my feelings never leaned toward favoring her; it has to do with the means of reaching one’s goal.

16 May 2006 | All things Dutch, Civil Rights and Immigration | Comments