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We are animals in the Kunsthal Rotterdam
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The first friendships are created at Partou We make sure your child enjoys himself with other children, finding his place in the group. This way, your son or daughter will start exploring the world full of confidence and good spirit. Find childcare in your area and come and have a look! We would like to show you how we can help your child grow up. www.partou.nl/find + 31 (0) 88 235 75 00 klantenservice@partou.nl
Smallsteps and Partou continue together This means that in the background we have been working hard for some time to fuse Partou and Smallsteps into one new organization. We continue to build on the foundations of the best of both organizations, so that parents can keep on counting on good and reliable childcare, now and in the future.
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FEBRUARY 2021 | 3
Contents Where can I find the Holland Times? The Holland Times is widely distributed for free, in the regions of Amsterdam, Amstelveen, Hoofddorp, Schiphol, Leiden, Delft, Den Haag, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Eindhoven, Maastricht, Wassenaar and Enschede.
5 Scandal unveils lack of government transparency and forces
cabinet to resign
7 Lilianne Ploumen becomes the new PvdA party leader
No more weed for tourists, Amsterdam mayor says
9 2020: a record year for the mortgage market
Second lockdown threatens many sectors of the Dutch economy
You can find The Holland Times at embassies and consulates, international organizations, internationally oriented companies, hospitals, medical clinics, sports clubs, international schools, housing companies, financial services and banks, expatriate centers, restaurants, libraries, kindergartens, language schools, social clubs, movie houses and expat-oriented stores.
11 Dutch multinationals: government intervention required in recycling
Would you like to receive The Holland Times in your organization or become one of our distribution points?
19 Stormy Tulips offered to the Mayor of The Hague
Please contact c.spraakman@argomedia.nl
plastic
Millennials are getting richer quickly, thanks to the baby boomers
12 The Hague, city of peace and justice 15 And the winner is: takeaway and grocery deliveries
The closing of schools leads to major problems
17 Feel at Home fair
Surinamese School in the Stedelijk Museum
20 Tips on how to cultivate good feelings over the lockdown
Most-searched-symptoms in the Netherlands
21 We are Animals in the Kunsthal 23 The good doctor’s sports prescription
COLOPHON
FURNITURE
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ARCHITECTURE
Design & Layout The Holland Times is an independent, English language newspaper with Dutch Caroline Spraakman news, published by Argo Special Media B.V. All Rights reserved by the publisher and/ Total circulation: 80,000 copies or the author(s). Argo Special Media B.V. 2003 The Amsterdam Times Postbus 2203 1500 GE Zaandam The editors try to ensure the accuracy of all information contained within. However, Contributors mistakes and ommissions are possible. Raphael Perachi Vieira, Benjamin Roberts, No rights may therefore be derived Femke van Iperen, Bárbara Luque Alanís, from material published. Juan Alvarez, Nanda Jagusiak Monteiro, Priyanka Sharma, Charlotte Seijger, Would you like to receive The Holland Maurits Seijger, John Mahnen, Lorre Times in your organization or become Luther& Beatriz Negreiros one of our distribution points? Please contact Editor c.spraakman@argomedia.nl Roselaar Tekstadvies Controlled circulation: international Visit our website for news updates: institutions, the diplomatic corps, and www.hollandtimes.nl epicentres of the Netherlands’ international and expat community. For all editorial information and suggestions, please contact us at: The opinions of external authors in the c.spraakman@argomedia.nl Holland Times are published under personal title and do not necessarily reflect Advertising and Inquiries the opinion of the editors of the Holland Bert Versteeg Times. 020-506 39 26 06-33 74 34 63 bert@hollandtimes.nl All photos: Depositphotos
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Mother and Child Center in HMC This year the Mother and Child Center is being built in HMC, which is expected to open at the end of 2021. In addition to the current birthing baths, this Mother and Child Center will have more than six luxurious, brand new birthing baths. One of these has recently been put into use in HMC. Marlou van Nus (31) gave birth in this new bath last fall. “A very pleasant experience!”
HMC. To her surprise, Marlous’ favorite room turns out to be available. “How great!” Different positions “During the contractions I was able to walk back and forth in the spacious, homely room,” she says. “When the last phase started, I got into the bath. The warm water immediately eased my pain. I could adopt different positions: on my back, side and forward in the bath. The bath also has many useful supporting points so that you can take care of the (pushing) contractions with your feet. The bath itself can be raised and lowered: great for the midwife, she told me”. Marlou also does the pushing quite well. “The water makes you weightless, I really liked that.” And then, in the water, after midnight on September 23, a healthy little boy is born: Jurre. Marlou: “By giving birth in the bath, the transition was not that big for him. In my amniotic fluid in the abdomen, he was also in the warmth. Giving birth in the bath was not only very pleasant for myself, but also for Jurre, I think!”
Due to corona, the information evenings about giving birth in HMC will be canceled for the time being, but all information for (expectant) mothers can be found on the webpage www.haaglandenmc.nl/giving-birth. You can also watch the extensive video about giving birth in HMC.
”The rooms are big, beautiful and without typical hospital fluorescent lights”
To prepare for her delivery, Marlou watches the video about giving birth in HMC on the website during her pregnancy. She immediately notices one of the rooms in the video. “Big, beautiful and without typical hospital fluorescent lights”, she describes with a smile. “And most importantly, the room has a brand-new birthing bath. Although there is a chance that the room will be occupied when I have to give birth, I wanted to go for this.”
Marlou looks back with a smile on her delivery in the birthing bath of HMC. “It all went very well, without complications. Jurre’s weight was a bit low when he was born; we had to stay 24 hours for some checkups, but then we could go home, the three of us.”
September 22 is the day that Marlou’s contractions begin and together with her boyfriend she gets into the car towards
Marlou and the baby are both doing well. Jurre is growing very well, according to his proud mother.
Information for expats Information meetings for expats Would you like to know more about information meetings for expats? Contact Nanda Jagusiak-Monteiro, Expat Coordinator E n.jagusiakmonteiro@haaglandenmc.nl
Nanda Jagusiak-Monteiro
Giving birth in HMC continues as usual, even during time of the corona virus. In HMC, just like Marlou, you can opt for a delivery in the birthing bath. But you can also use other tools in our delivery rooms, such as a skippy ball or a birthing stool. Moreover, at HMC we are specialized in (complex) caesarean sections and various forms of pain relief during childbirth and we offer gentle or even maternal assisted caesarean. Pain relief If you need pain relief while giving birth, please do not hesitate to ask. Together, we will try and decide which type of analgesic is the most suited to your particular situation at that moment. When you discuss your upcoming delivery with your midwife or obstetrician, you will be provided with information on the various types of pain relief. You are allowed, but not obliged, to include your pain relief preferences in your birth plan.
Patients Administration Foreign Business Financial issues can be discussed with the employees of the Centrale Kas. E Foreign-business@haaglandenmc.nl Telephone hours of business: Tuesday and Thursday 10.00 - 12.00 am T +31 (0)88 979 29 00 T +31 (0)88 97 97 900 www.haaglandenmc.nl info@haaglandenmc.nl
Cardiac monitoring We continuously monitor your baby’s heart rate during delivery. We do this with a special device that records the heartbeat. We call such a recording a cardiotocogram (CTG). In HMC we use wireless CTG devices. This allows you to move freely, while we look after your child and your health. You can use it in the shower and bath.
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19-1-2021 10:50:05 27-01-21 11:09
FEBRUARY 2021 | 5
NATIONAL
Scandal unveils lack of government transparency and forces cabinet to resign
On 15 January, two months before the March elections, Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced the resignation of his cabinet in response to the fallout from the long-running childcare allowance scandal. This scandal has received increasing attention over the last months, but its origins can be traced back to 2013, when the abuse of the Dutch welfare systems by Bulgarian fraudsters was discovered. Scammers had travelled to the Netherlands, working here and claiming welfare benefits. At the time, such benefits were paid out before the case was properly reviewed. However, by the time this review could take place and the claims turned out to be fraudulent, the scammers had already returned to Bulgaria and the money could not be recouped. The minister of finance at the time, Frans Weekers, argued in Parliament for sharper anti-fraud measures to counter this practice. Parliament, shocked by the fraud, approved of stricter measures. A task force was set up by the tax authority (Belastingdienst) to investigate possible fraudulent claims for welfare allowances. This increased vigilance also applied to the childcare allowance (kinderopvangtoeslag). This allowance offers lower-income families, in which both parents work, the possibility to get a percentage of the costs of daycare for their children refunded. The fraud screening of the task force for this specific allowance was, as has become evident through an investigation by a parliamentary inquiry committee, not only excessively stringent, but even selective in its accusations of fraud. More than 27,000 parents were labeled as fraudsters after they had requested childcare allowance. The allowances were stopped, and the parents had to pay back in full all welfare payments they had received. In some cases, these debts amounted to more than € 100,000. In many cases, the reasons for being labelled fraudulent were small errors, such as submitting the wrong income or wrong number of hours the child visited a childcare provider. Any administrative inconsistency in the case file, and the parents were immediately blacklisted. Even a single missing signature or a spelling error could have elicit an excessive response. In other cases, childcare providers would apply in the name of parents, as was allowed by law. If the administration on the part of the daycare was imperfect, all of the families using this daycare would be blacklisted. Thus, parents were being charged with fraud by the tax authority, without having ever interacted with it directly.
Many families, struck by these massive bills without warning, tried to prove their innocence. This was to little avail, however, as the tax authority stubbornly dismissed their cases as fraudulent and their appeals as more lies. The parents were not even told why they had been labelled as fraudsters, and therefore could not rectify any mistakes they may have made. Even worse is that the courts followed the same policy, since they were bound by the law – which after all had been approved by Parliament
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–, which made it legal to see any inconsistency as fraud. Thus, the courts had no leeway to apply any kind of clemency and appeals were dismissed out of hand.
In 2017, the first stories begin to come into the limelight. Reiner van Zutphen, the national ombudsman – an official fighting on behalf of citizens when they have a conflict with the state – took notice of the excessively stringent methods of the tax authority. This in turn received media attention, and in the haze of journalism it was discovered that parents who were trying to fight the accusations of the tax authority were being actively opposed. Officials working for the tax authority who voiced their concerns were also discovered to have been silenced or downright sacked. In 2018, two Members of the Parliament, Renske Leijten of the Socialist Party (SP) and Pieter Omtzigt of the Christian Democrats (CDA), raised the issue for the first time in the House. The issue had gained enough ground by this point to warrant further investigation. With the support of the two MPs, several affected parents, as well as journalists, ordered the tax authority to show them their case files, which they had never even been allowed to see until then. However, as the NOS, among other news outlets, showed on 11 December 2019, these case files consisted exclusively of blacked-out pages. On 18 December 2019, Menno Snel, the state secretary in charge of the tax authority, resigned. In the summer of 2020, it was discovered that the investigations of the tax authority into fraudulent actively had been heavily influenced by ethnic background. Applicants from migrant backgrounds were more likely to be targeted for excessive investigation. The selection was largely motivated by name: people with ‘foreign-sounding’ names were actively being targeted. In November 2020, a committee led by Chris van Dam undertook an extensive deposition process to produce a comprehensive report on the affair. Depositions were taken from all state officials who were involved, including Prime Minister Mark Rutte. The committee’s report was presented on 17 December 2020, under the title ‘unprecedented injustice’ (Ongekend Onrecht). The report placed the blame squarely on the tax authority, but also pointed to the government in general, citing its failure to protect the citizens. The depositions had shown that many high officials had been aware of the problem, but none had been able to act, as the law in was in favour of strict anti-fraud measures. No one had felt responsible to change the law or to implement it in a more clement way, especially since the tax authority falls under two separate departments, Social Affairs as well as Finance. In response to the findings of this report, on 15 January 2021 the Dutch cabinet Rutte-III tendered its resignation to the king, thus becoming ‘demissionary’. Rutte named the lack of transparency in communications by the tax authority, and the fact that the system allowed this injustice to go untreated for so long, as the primary reasons for his resignation. At the end of the
day, he said, the cabinet must accept responsibility for the actions of the branches of government under its tenure, and therefore it saw no alternative but to resign. The question remains, however, what the resignation actually provides to the injured parents. The resignation is a symbolic admission of guilt, thereby essentially justifying the claims of the parents who have been trying to prove their innocence for years. However, the resignation as such serves little purpose for those whose lives were affected. The cabinet had already decided in December to remit the debts, and to gift € 30,000 to all the unjustly accused families. However, a review would first have to take place in order to verify whose childcare welfare allowance was stopped unjustly. Parents who were vindicated would receive a letter allowing them to claim the money, but so far no one has actually received the promised sum. However, this situation has brought about new problems. Specifically, because the situation was ignored for so many years, many parents have built up substantial further debts in order cover living expenses, for example. They are heavily indebted to other organisations and businesses. Because money owed to the government always takes precedence, when these debts were remitted, these other organisations became entitled to claim the outstanding debts. The government has urged these organisations to remit the debts of these families as well, but this plead has fallen on deaf ears. What does the resignation of the government cabinet actually imply for the country? Important to know in this context is that the moniker of demissionary was going to be applied to the cabinet Rutte-III anyway, once the polls closed after the election in March. This term basically means that the cabinet has resigned, but is still functioning in its everyday capacity of running the country in a caretaker capacity. This means that it can continue to take care of ongoing business, in this case, most importantly, tackling the Covid-19 si-
tuation. Prime Minister Rutte has claimed that in regards to the management of the Covid-19 virus, nothing has changed, and decisions will continue to be made to mitigate the impact. The only restriction on the cabinet is that it can no longer introduce important new legislation. The move, while clearly symbolic, also has a political effect, as Guus Dietvorst, writing for NOS, claimed. As the cabinet has already resigned, Parliament can no longer threaten to sack the government. Nevertheless, individual members of government can still be dismissed at the House’s discretion. Perhaps the most important effect of the whole scandal is that it unveiled a serious underlying problem with the current form of governmental administration. Since the ruling VVD’s majority in the Senate was lost in the May 2019 election, any laws drafted by the Parliament and the cabinet have to be reviewed for acceptance or rejection by a Senate that is not aligned with the coalition government. This has meant that in order to get anything done, some backroom dealing has been necessary. This, however, seems to have become the default way of getting things done. This, in turn, has led to a lack of communication between the branches of government, as many of the processes by which laws came into being were never recorded. Even before this, the tax authority seems to have made it a habit of not recording its decisions on paper: many parents’ files proved to be incomplete and crucial documents had been ‘lost’. This general lack of transparency seems to have caught up with the cabinet, and was cited as one of the primary reasons for their resignation. Prime Minister Rutte has declared greater transparency a main target for the future, but it remains to be seen whether he will be able to implement this urgent change.
Written by Maurits Seijger
27-01-21 20:17
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27-01-21 18:31
FEBRUARY 2021 | 7
NATIONAL
Lilianne Ploumen becomes the new PvdA party leader On 18 January, Lilianne Ploumen became the new leader of the Dutch Labour Party (Partij van de Arbeid), following the resignation of her predecessor Lodewijk Asscher, who stepped down due to his connection to the recent childcare allowance scandal. Ploumen thus becomes the first female leader in the history of the party, and PvdA now joins the group of female-led political parties in the Netherlands, along with D66, the Socialist Party, 50Plus and the Party for the Animals.
According to PvdA chairwoman Nelleke Vedelaar, as De Volkskrant reported, the emancipation struggle that the party wants to develop fits very well with Ploumen’s profile: “Her personal narrative tells the story of the PvdA. The daughter of a milkman from Maastricht can grow into the leader of a movement.” Indeed, Ploumen celebrated her new position as party leader quoting advice she received from her parents at an early age: “You are no more, but also no less than anyone else.”
Having been the first choice for the new leader, amongst options such as Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb and Speaker of the House Khadija Arib, Ploumen takes over the leadership of the PvdA at a crucial time, less than two months away from the general election scheduled for 17 March. Just a few weeks prior, former party leader Lodewijk Asscher resigned over the toeslagenaffair, a scandal in which the Dutch tax authority (Belastingdienst) wrongfully accused almost 30,000 families of childcare allowance fraud, making them pay back to the government, in some cases, tens of thousands of euros.
Ploumen’s career in the PvdA started in 2003 after several years in the private sector, mostly as a market researcher.
From 2007 to 2012 she was chairwoman of the party, and from 2012 to 2017 she acted as Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation in the second Rutte government, in a coalition consisting of Rutte’s VVD and the PvdA. The alliance between the leftist PvdA and the liberal, right-wing VVD was criticized by many Labour voters at the time, and later reversed by the PvdA, which currently serves in the opposition. Now, Ploumen says that she would not be part of a cabinet unless it is joined by at least one other left-wing party, and states that she would prefer a cabinet without the VVD and its current coalition partner, the Christian-democrat CDA. While still minister in 2017, Ploumen became famous internationally as the founder of “She Decides,” a nongovernmental organization devoted to raise funds for global initiatives to spread knowledge about contraception, family planning and abortion, especially in developing countries. This happened as a response to US president Donald Trump’s act of signing an executive order to forbid all US funding for those purposes, which created a vast financial gap in women and girls’ sexual and reproductive education around the world. After managing to get collaboration from several countries, Ploumen’s initiative raised several hundred million dollars to help compensate for the US’s decision. At the time, Ploumen was featured in a piece by the New York Times, and the unofficial tag of the international campaign became #PloumenforWomen.
As Minister of Social Affairs during the second Rutte government, Lodewijk Asscher widely criticized for his role in the scandal. Although he declared that he did not know what the tax authority was doing, he stepped down as leader of the PvdA and further acknowledged that the system had “made the government an enemy of its people”. In her acceptance speech, Ploumen contrasted the “sincere apologies” of Asscher with the lame “excuses” of Mark Rutte and the CDA party coalition leader Wopke Hoekstra, as FD newspaper reported, She declared that the allowance scandal was a symbol of the damage to the constitutional state and the welfare system in the Netherlands: “that’s why the PvdA is sorely needed. We created the constitutional state and the welfare system, and we will rebuild it again,” Ploumen stated.
On 18 January, when presented as the new leader of her party, Ploumen said that she had had some crazy days, but ultimately little doubt: “Politics is the way to change what is wrong, and being party leader is a great platform to accomplish that.” Written by JuanAlvarez Umbarila
No more weed for tourists, Amsterdam mayor says A trip to Amsterdam may be a post-COVID dream plan for many visitors, but if they are expecting to engage in some recreational weed smoking while in the city, mayor Femke Halsema is letting them know they should curb their enthusiasm.
The Green Party leader began 2021 by stating her desire to impose a ban on selling cannabis to foreigners visiting the Canal District in a near future, in a letter addressed to councillors. Attached to the letter was a survey in which 34% of tourists stated they would think twice about visiting Amsterdam if they were barred from buying weed in any of the city’s 166 coffee shops. According to Halsema, the policy would serve as another attempt to control the city’s mass tourism problem. Prior to the pandemic, Amsterdam, a city of less than a million inhabitants, attracted around 19 million visitors each year. “There is a huge demand to get tourists under control,” the mayor has said. She believes that the Netherlands’ relaxed soft drug policy shouldn’t give way to “big groups of youngsters throwing up in the canals because they’ve had too much to smoke”. The measure would also serve to control the paradoxical “backdoor policy” which operates in the city, much like in the rest of the Netherlands – referring to the unregulated cultivation of cannabis, to be sold for public consumption. A similar ban has already been put in place in the southern city of Maastricht, but, given Amsterdam’s world-renowned weed friendly reputation, the mayor’s suggestion has made a far greater splash in international news. The residency requirement would result in the
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reduction in the number of coffee shops, many of which serve mostly tourists. Halsema says that, according to recent studies, 73 of these establishments would suffice to meet local cannabis demand.
The suggestion is not new, but it is perhaps the closest it has been to being enforced; Halsema will discuss it further with the city council at the end of the month. The mayor’s announcement reflects a long-time desire to rid Amsterdam of its current international image, which often leads rowdy tourists to overlook the city’s cultural sites in favor of the red-light district and coffee shops. “Everyone knows Amsterdam - now it’s about improving the city’s reputation” said Nico Mulder, who founded the Enjoy & Respect campaign three years ago. “The coffee shops attract visitors who think everything is allowed in Amsterdam.”
But not all are in agreement with Halsema’s push for a ban of tourists to the city’s coffee shops. Tom Nabben, a criminologist at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, has his reservations. He warns that denying tourists access to weed will only make them look for it elsewhere, encouraging street dealers. But Halsema remains focused on her plan, citing the police and the public prosecutor’s office, who are in full support of the measure. The mayor expects it to cause the tourist demand for soft drugs to decline. One is left wondering if tourist numbers will fall too. Halsema herself predicted that the city could expect up to 29 million visitors by 2025, but perhaps this measure will help to reduce these numbers. Halsema’s announcement comes at a time in which Amsterdam is still under lockdown, due to the rise in new COVID-19 cases and the arrival of new variants over the holiday period. Despite the closure of all non-essential businesses, coffee shops remain open, under the condition they operate only as takeaways. The lockdown will last at least until 9 February. The Dutch government is strongly advising against foreigners to visit the country unless strictly necessary; travel from some countries, such as the UK, is banned completely. If Halsema’s proposition goes through, Amsterdam may look like a very different destination to visitors in the near future. However, the mayor has stated that the measure will probably not be applied until sometime next year.
Written by Beatriz Negreiros
27-01-21 15:40
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27-01-21 17:32
FEBRUARY 2021 | 9
NATIONAL
2020: a record year for the mortgage market The year 2020 is one for the history books as it changed many aspects of our lives; the mortgage market was no exception. Never before have there been such low interest rates, such high house prices, so many people looking to renovate their homes, and such a significant increase in mortgage applications. Don’t mind the virus While the world suffered major problems in 2020 because of Covid, the Dutch mortgage market didn’t seem to mind the virus and continued to grow. According to an inventory by market-leading mortgage broker De Hypotheker, the two main reasons for this increase are the low interest rate and the need for home improvements due to working from home amid the Covid-19-measures. And for now, De Hypotheker’s commercial director Menno Luiten expects this trend continue in 2021. A crisis was expected in the mortgage market, but this did not materialize. Merlyn van den Berg, director of HDN, a data agency for mortgages, recalled that Covid led many experts to believe that the mortgage market would collapse. “But that did not happen, and even at the peak of Covid cases in March and April, mortgage applications poured in.” Van den Berg explained that this unpredicted scenario came with a downside: the average home value rose sharply, making it difficult for first-time buyers and those using the National Mortgage Guarantee (NHG) to buy a home, as well as for entrepreneurs. Due to the tight housing market, the average mortgage amount rose by 7.9 percent to €312,000, while the average home value increased by 9.4 percent to €386,000.
A record number of applications HDN registered a total of 535,375 mortgage applications in 2020, an increase of 24.5 percent compared to the previous peak year 2019, when there were 430,076 mortgage applications. The number of applications for the purchase of a home increased to 303,789, representing an increase of 10.8 percent; the number of refinancing and second mortgages amounted to 231,586; of which 109,875 mortgages were refinances, while 63,126 homeowners applied for a second mortgage to renovate or make their homes more sustainable. This represents a rise of 48.5 percent more than in 2019. The main reason for the rise in refinancing and second mortgages is the historically low interest rate, making a mortgage more profitable than ever before. Together, the total amount applied for in mortgages was over € 136 billion, of which € 3.1 billion was intended for renovations, twice the amount of 2019. Zeeland takes the lead The buyer and non-buyer market grew the most in Zeeland in 2020, by 13.1 percent and 62.2 percent, respectively. In absolute numbers, Zuid-Holland is the number one province leader in the buyer’s market, with 53,665 applications. Only in Flevoland and Groningen the buyer’s market declined in the past year.
the housing market. Nevertheless, more than half of all houses were sold for more than the asking price. Now, these banks expect an increase of 5 percent for 2021. Furthermore, it is expected that central banks will stick to low interest rates to promote the economic recovery after Covid. Peter Boelhouwer, professor of the housing market at TU Delft, points out that there is a shortage of about 331,000 homes. “We still build far too little. With an estimated 65,000 building permits in the past year, we are still well below the desired minimum. So, prices will continue to rise.” Boelhouwer explained that this year’s changes in transfer tax also affect the market. First, the increase in the transfer tax from 2 to 8 percent for property investors will result in increased rents. And the abolition of the transfer tax for first-time buyers up to the age of 35, will probably mean that first-time buyers will be able to place higher bids, driving up prices even more. Written by Bárbara Luque Alanís
The future in the housing market According to De Volkskrant, just after the Covid outbreak, the two major mortgage lenders in the country, ABN Amro and Rabobank, weren’t very hopeful about
Second lockdown threatens many sectors of the Dutch economy With the introduction of the second lockdown in December 2020, several Dutch industries are facing the looming spectre of bankruptcy. Two industries have been particularly hard hit by the COVID-19 regulations: cultural institutions and retail, leaving museum directors and store owners struggling to develop creative ways to stay afloat.
Throughout the Netherlands, museums have struggled to continue operating under the rules implemented by the Dutch cabinet to combat the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Repeated closures have forced several museums to delay planned exhibitions. The Groninger Museum’s long-awaited exhibition, The Rolling Stones – Unzipped, was postponed due to the first lockdown. And the Kunstmuseum Den Haag delayed the opening of an exhibition dedicated to Christian Dior’s work due to the impossibility of recouping the expenses, given the limited numbers of visitors permitted under the COVID-19 restrictions – by now, museums are closed completely, and the online experience cannot compare to viewing works of art in real life. These delays created logistical logjams requiring museum directors to renegotiate contracts and work within scheduling limits imposed by the museum world’s international nature. The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam’s June Paik exhibition was scheduled to open during the first lockdown. The museum managed to extend the show, but only after renegotiating contracts with equipment providers and insurers. Kunstmuseum Den Haag’s exhibitions of works by Anders Zorn and Paula Modersohn-Beker were scheduled to run until the end of January. The museum had attempted to extend this period, since the second lockdown will shorten the availability of the works by over a month. Unfortunately, museums in Germany and Sweden had already entered into contracts to display the work, making extension impossible.
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Responding to the COVID-19 crisis has put many museums in a financial catch-22: cancelling and delaying exhibitions decreases the attractiveness of a museum visit, but at the same time the number of visits to cultural institutions has decreased by more than 50 percent. “We cannot reduce spending on the exhibition program by too much. Now that the Stedelijk is mostly dependent on the local public, we have to ensure that visitors regularly see new things,” explained Rein Wolfs, director of the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, to De Volkskrant. If the second lockdown ends as scheduled on 9 February (which seems unlikely), museums will have been closed for more than 150 days since COVID-19 first emerged as a public health threat last spring. Store owners throughout the Netherlands are also struggling under the financial impact of the second lockdown, leading to frustrations. Stores selling non-essential products, such as clothing and electronics, have been forced to shut their doors from 15 December 2020, a situation much different from the spring, when these businesses remained open under restrictions. “Entrepreneurs are angry, frustrated and desperate. That is truly different than during the first wave,” says Udo Delfgou, director of INretail, the organization representing retail store owners.
Retailers are also struggling due to the virtual impossibility of cancelling previously-placed orders with their suppliers, even though they cannot actually sell these products, at least not in physical stores. And online shopping does not make up for the loss of sales from physical stores. “This lockdown costs me a million every day. Every day I get containers in with things from the Far East that I can not get rid of,” said Michael Witteveen, owner of Blokker, in an interview FD newspaper. Many retailers are staying afloat thanks to government support package created for the COVID-19 crisis, including subsidies for wages and fixed costs. In addition, many struggling store owners took advantage of the option to delay the payment of taxes, rents and interest on loans. However, industry leaders fear that a wave of bankruptcies will follow once lenders start requesting repayment. Particularly physical stores will suffer, since they have been steadily losing ground to online commerce. Written by Lorre Luther
The timing of the second lockdown, in mid-December, increased the impact of the second lockdown on the financial prospects of stores selling non-essential products. Stores were unable to open their doors during the most profitable season of the year, missing out on the Christmas shopping income. Some shops, such as perfume stores, make 50% of their income in the last two weeks of the year, and thus lost a great percentage of their earnings. Furthermore, shops could not sell already-purchased seasonal products like winter coats, warm jumpers and holiday decorations.
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FEBRUARY 2021 | 11
NATIONAL
Dutch multinationals: government intervention required in recycling plastic If a survey was conducted today asking people to choose just one thing that in their opinion is harming our planet the most, it would be safe to say that plastic will be mentioned by most of us. Plastic in its various forms has been in our lives since for the last 70 years and, no matter how hard we try, we are unable to get rid of it. It is so deeply ingrained in our everyday lives that the best we can do is use responsible plastic: recycled plastic. The Dutch government started working on recycling measures as early as the 1980s. Municipalities were made responsible for waste collection and separation; the cost paid by citizens differed by municipality. Since 1994, municipalities were obliged to provide an infrastructure for the separate collection of glass, paper and textiles and since January 2010, they are obliged by law to collect plastic packaging separately. The government intensified its measures by applying a landfilling tax in 1995; an incineration tax was introduced in 2000. So far, all methods seemed to be working, even though the Dutch were meeting only 50% of their recycling goals, instead of 65%. Until recently, the Netherlands conveniently shipped 95% of its plastic to China for processing. However, in 2018 China saw the error of its ways; their country was overwhelmed by pollution which it was not directly responsible for. Most of the plastic coming its way was low-quality and contaminated by food waste. China implemented a cut-off on all imports but the cleanest and highest grade
– set at 99.5% purity standard. Many other South-east Asian countries tried to pick up some of the slack, but they were also soon overwhelmed and cut back on plastic imports.
The problem with recycling plastic is the shortage of good-quality recycled plastic. Processors of recycled plastic require large quantities of plastic, manufactured to strictly controlled specifications and at a competitive price, in order to produce new plastics. However, since plastics are easily customized to the needs (functional or aesthetic) of each manufacturer, the diversity of the raw material complicates the recycling process, making it costly and affecting the quality of the end product. In consequence, the demand for recycled plastics accounts for only 6% of plastic demand in Europe.
but the financial incentives are lacking. It is absurd that recycled plastic is currently more expensive than new.”
It’s sort of a chicken-and-egg story. While the government has ambitious plans and is asking the big multinationals to be more effective in their recycling endeavours, the companies say that they need effective legislation and better collection systems. Waste collection systems vary so much from municipality to municipality that recycling waste becomes difficult and using recycled plastics ends up being much more expensive than using new material. Parliament is already asking for a tax on plastic. It argues that companies must agree to this increase in cost and absorb it as a part of their own recycling goals.
This much is clear: we need better standards for plastic, and government intervention is required, sooner rather than later. New plastic must be of high quality and should be 100% recyclable. The big companies seem to have the same idea. A couple of years back, eleven multinationals, including Coca-Cola and Unilever, promised at the World Economic Forum in Davos to produce their packaging in such a way that it is fully recyclable by 2025. We will have to wait and see whether these companies will come through on their promises. If some drastic measures are not taken very soon, in the fairly near future, we all might find ourselves in a notso-shallow plastic grave. Written by Priyanka Sharma
In 2018, European Commissioner Frans Timmermans presented his ‘Green Deal’ with plans to make Europe fully climate-neutral by 2050. Companies faced increasingly binding rules for this. For example, packaging must be fully recyclable by 2030 and part of the product must consist of recycled plastic. But according to Philips, Shell, AkzoNobel, Heineken, DSM, Friesland Campina and KLM there is insufficient supply of goodquality recycled plastic to comply with these rules. “When you recycle, the quality usually decreases,” says Unilever CEO Annemarieke de Haan. “Innovation is needed to get more plastic of better quality,
Millennials are getting richer quickly, thanks to the baby boomers In 1992, the Dutch sociologist Henk Becker pigeon-holed four distinctive generations in Dutch society in the late twentieth century: the Pre-War generation (born 1910-1930); the Quiet Generation (19301940); the Protest Generation (19401955), and the Lost Generation (19551970). US sociologists have specified three slightly different generations: the Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964); Generation X (1965-1980), and Generation Y or the Millennials (1980-1994). Becker argues that each generation is defined by its outlook on life and chances of succeeding in society’s economic and demographic circumstances, measured when someone is around 17 years old. If you belong to a generation that comes of age in wealth and prosperity, you are likely to have an optimistic outlook for the rest of your life,
whereas if you grow up in economically hard times, you’ll initially be apprehensive and continue to see doom and gloom, even when things get better. When the baby boomers entered the labour market in the 1960s and 1970s, they experienced a golden age. The economy was booming, incomes were on the rise continuously, the standard of living had grown as never before, and job security was at its highest. When Generation X entered the labour market in the 1980s, there was high unemployment, low job security, and government spending for education was slashed. The Millennials, who came of age at the turn of the millennium (hence the name), experienced the crash of the dot.com bubble (2001) and credit crisis (2008). As a result, their generation had
to endure high unemployment, low job security, difficulties in buying a home, and, of course, were bogged down by huge student loan debts after years of government budget cuts in education. Hands down, baby boomers had it the best in the 20th century. Numbering more than 3.1 million people in the Netherlands, this generation accounts for approximately 20% of the total population, and they are the most affluent. However, as they are headed towards the end of their life, their children – primarily the Millennials – stand to inherit the lion’s share of their wealth. According to a 2017 study, the average retired couple in the Netherlands owned approximately €113,000. Another study suggests that half of those households had more than a €100,000, and 11% more than half a million euros. In the US, baby boomers are estimated to leave 45 million trillion dollars to the next generation. Economists call it the ‘great transfer wealth’ and foresee huge changes in the economy. Investment managers are already witnessing the average age of their customers getting younger. In the past, customers used to be in their 60s, now they are pushing 50. In comparison to baby boomers, Millennials are a different breed of investors. For one, a big trend among Millennial shareholders is having active
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ownership, where they invest in companies that allow them to have a voice and active dialogue via shareholder meetings. The second trend is impact investing, where they invest in companies and organizations that not only generate a financial return, but also are socially and environmentally beneficial. Thus, sustainability is a common denominator. Thirdly, as Millennials grew up with computers and internet, they are likely to research their investments more thoroughly than their baby-boomer parents did in the past. Millennial investors are more likely to steer away from stocks and bonds, and are entering other markets, which economists predict will ultimately shift the entire economy in the future. However, according to Forbes, not all of the baby boomers’ wealth will be inherited by their children and grandchildren. As the baby boomers grew up in an era of wealth and prosperity, they are also accustomed to taking vacations and a life of leisure. As public spending for health and medical services is continuously being scaled back, there is a good chance their wealth will also be spent on daily expenses, health services and medical bills. Moreover, around 19% of the baby boomers are not planning or not able to leave any inheritance for their children at all. So, if you are a Millennial, don’t give up your job, just yet. Written by Benjamin B. Roberts
27-01-21 14:30
12 | FEBRUARY 2021
The Hague, City of Peace and Justice Nanda Jagusiak-Monteiro interviews Mr. Jan van Zanen, Mayor of The Hague
Visit of the International Court of Justice, 75 years celebration, together with the President, Mr. Abdulqawi Yusu ©Martijn Beekman
Former posts: Deputy Mayor of Utrecht (1998-2005); Mayor of Amstelveen (2005-2013); Mayor of Utrecht (2014-2020). Mr. Van Zanen has chaired the Association of Netherlands Municipalities (VNG) since 2015 and is joint chair of the United Cities of Local Governments (UCLG). You have been Mayor of the Hague since 1st July 2020. How has it been so far? Was there a culture shock coming from Utrecht, and what impressed you most about The Hague? As you might expect, my first few months as Mayor of The Hague were spent meeting people. Even though that mostly had to take place online because of the stricter pandemic measures. In hard times, like now during the pandemic, you also see the truly positive sides of the city. I was impressed by the dedication and enthusiasm with which The Hague’s residents turned out to help people in their communities, neighbourhoods, and the city itself in these difficult and often uncertain times. A major difference between Utrecht and The Hague, of course, is the presence of the many international organizations, especially the international courts, in The Hague. I have already visited a number of them to get acquainted with this new environment. I am impressed by how they contribute to international peace and justice. Working in a city that supports this work, obviously, is a new experience for me. You are also the Chair of the Association of Netherlands Municipalities (VNG). Can you please tell the readers what that involves? VNG, the Association of Netherlands Municipalities, is an umbrella organisation covering all the Netherlands’ 352 municipalities. The aim of the Association is to strengthen local government so that municipalities can provide their residents with the best possible service. The VNG does this by providing advisory services and by promoting the
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interests of local government to central government. As chair I conduct the VNG’s meetings with ministers and other tiers of government (the Provincial Authorities and Water Boards). I am also internationally active on behalf of the VNG. Since November 2019 I have been joint chair of the global organization for municipalities: United Cities and Local Governments. UCLG represents municipalities and all other decentralized government bodies in global fora, such as the UN. As joint chair I can help influence the direction of the organization. The UN Global Goals are a common theme in the UCLG. In this context my focus is specifically on Global Goal 11: working to create inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable villages, towns and cities, and Global Goal 16: working to create a peaceful and just society for everyone. These both closely match The Hague’s profile and priorities. It is something special to be able to represent the interests of municipalities, and thus give our citizens a voice in both national and global fora. The Hague, City of Peace and Justice, is an important city, housing all the embassies and many of the most important international organizations. There are about 60,000 expats (including partners and children) living here. Do you have a special message for them? For our expats too, the COVID-19 pandemic has been a difficult period. Many of them are still in The Hague, but far from their families and friends. Others cannot return to The Hague but are still in charge of important work. I have sent out a holiday season message to them all, telling them that we appreciate their presence and contribution to our city and wish them every success in these difficult times. Our International Centre (THIC) supports them as much as possible.
Have you already met the DGs/Presidents of the international organizations? And how important is the presence of these organizations for The Hague? Although COVID-19 has not made it easy, I have already visited a number of them. You would be surprised by the variety of organizations in our city, from the Courts I already mentioned, to European organizations working on peace and security, such as Europol, Eurojust, as well as NATO and the OPCW. Not to mention hundreds of NGOs working on the same issues. Their presence is not only important to The Hague in terms of jobs (40,000, by the way); they form the cornerstone of our profile as City of Peace and Justice, and they do important work helping to create a better world for everyone. I actively bring this to the attention of the United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) organization and in my contacts with the UN. It is important to underline just how much cities do with regard to peace, justice and diplomacy. The 75th anniversary of the United Nations was celebrated on 24th November. How was this marked and how important was it for The Hague? The jubilee was celebrated in The Hague and it has not yet finished because the International Court of Justice will mark its 75th anniversary in April of this year. Activities had been planned all over the city but that was difficult because of the pandemic again, of course. But together with UNICEF we still organized an interesting exhibition with 75 stories about 75 years of the UN outdoors on the Lange Voorhout. And we had a nationwide broadcast on YouTube from ‘our’ Peace Palace, focusing on the important role of the UN over the last 75 years. If you want to learn more about the UN and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs or Global Goals) you can visit the Museon (when it’s open again), or have a look at the web page of the Association of Netherlands Municipalities (VNG): www.vng.nl/rubrieken/onderwerpen/globalgoals-voor-gemeenten
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FEBRUARY 2020 | 13 So yes, 75 years of the UN is important and we celebrated it. We also intend to organize a debate on the UN, its relevance and how it could be improved, with Alana O’Malley (Professor of UN studies in The Hague), for example. What is The Hague Manifesto? The programme celebrating 75 years of the UN consisted of personal stories. But also included a Manifesto presented by six young people from The Hague, with suggestions on how to do more in the UN context to fight inequality, climate change, and promote solidarity. They also suggested establishing a permanent seat for youth in the UN. Personally, I was very impressed by their dedication and by their proposals, organized in cooperation with Professor O’Malley. It won’t surprise you that through the UCLG I also actively advocate for more inclusion of local government in the UN system. At the moment, the UN is still an alliance of national governments only; we need to achieve a more inclusive and multi-layered UN system over the next 25 years. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown very clearly that local governments are on the frontline; this is where they act and they are closest to the people. The UN system would benefit a great deal from having them at the table, permanently.
fireworks were thrown at emergency service crews and a fire engine was pelted with bricks. Such behaviour is intolerable. It was good to see that many people respected the call to stay at home and celebrate New Year’s Eve on a small scale. I am proud of all the volunteers, police officers, community service officers, fire service and ambulance crews who sacrificed a night’s sleep to keep things under control. While we must not forget the hospital doctors and nursing staff either. Their day-to-day work is already difficult and exhausting because of the coronavirus, so I have all the more respect for them. King Willem Alexander accompanied you on New Year’s Eve when you visited some places. Could you tell us more, please?
During the night, together with His Majesty the King and the Head of the District Public Prosecution Service and the Chief of Police, I visited De Yp police station where the multidisciplinary command centre is based. After which we together visited Hoefkade police station, we spoke to the people who keep the city clean, and to staff working at the HMC Westeinde hospital. I am proud of all the care professionals who were working so hard on behalf of our city on New Year’s Eve. And even more so, given that the pandemic has already made the past few months extremely difficult for them. If you could describe the city of The Hague in one sentence, what would it be? Please do feel at home here! Just as I do.
What can you tell me about the ‘The Hague against Corona’ campaign, which began on 3rd November 2020? ‘The Hague against Corona’ is a campaign by and for The Hague. Celebrities and ordinary people living in The Hague show us how to observe the rules surrounding the coronavirus pandemic. The campaign is also based on the guidelines developed by the behavioural unit of the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM). The personalities leading ‘The Hague against Corona’ campaign can be seen on advertising columns, lampposts and digital screens all over the city. At the same time the city is distributing posters, uploading videos and stories to the network in the city districts. About 250 contacts share the various campaign materials with their own constituencies. Everyone may use the images and the logo, they are all freely available on the website: denhaagtegencorona.nl. There you will also find the latest coronavirus measures. The website itself and most of the communications have been translated into Arabic, Bulgarian, Chinese, English, Polish, Romanian, Spanish, Turkish and Haags (the city dialect of The Hague).
Visit of HMC Westeinde in October 2020©Martijn Beekman
Is it true that you are biking around in The Hague to discover the various areas of the city and to speak to the people you meet? I have been out and about quite a bit over the past few months in our remarkably green city, whenever possible, by bike. Over the last few weeks, I have had to take a step back, however. I also have to observe the social distancing rules. I do still sometimes, spontaneously and unannounced, hop on the bike to try to give people a boost. I am still learning to find my way around the city and hope to see more of The Hague, and speak to more people in the future. The traditional New Year’s dip in Scheveningen on 1st January was cancelled due to the pandemic. I heard that you were also planning to take part, is that true? Unfortunately, the traditional New Year’s dip on 1 January 2021 had to be cancelled. Which is only logical in view of the coronavirus measures. As Mayor of The Hague, the city with the Netherlands’ biggest New Year’s ‘polar bear plunge’ I certainly intend taking part in the New Year’s dip, as soon as that is possible. I love swimming and the sea. About 30 cars burnt out in The Hague on New Year’s Eve, but it was relatively calm compared to other years. Can you comment on this, please? Every year the city, the emergency services, community service officers and residents together do their best to make sure that New Year’s Eve in The Hague is as safe as possible. Over the last few years this has resulted in a downward trend in the number of incidents on New Year’s Eve. Nevertheless, it was this year again a busy night for the emergency services with incidents in which the fire service, police and welfare workers had to intervene repeatedly. Despite the ban, fireworks were let off, cars were set alight - as you mentioned - and several times
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Biking through The Hague ©Martijn Beekman
27-01-21 19:54
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28-01-21 10:09
FEBRUARY 2021 | 15
NATIONAL
And the winner is: takeaway and grocery deliveries Each crisis has its winners and losers and, during this pandemic one clear winner has particularly stood out, as a recent survey has shown: takeaway and grocery delivery. The Netherlands has a long tradition of grocery deliveries: from 1966, the ‘moving supermarket’, known as the SRV, became a household name on the streets all over the country. Even before this, bakeries, butchers and milkmen were already delivering to people’s homes. But when it comes to meal and grocery home deliveries, the pandemic has caused an unprecedented boom, a survey has found. According to the Food Service Institute Netherlands (FSIN), the overall food delivery market in the Netherlands grew by more than 43 percent last year, and its figures show that so-called ‘delivery players’ accounted for nearly 10 percent of the total food and drink expenditure. Takeaways and groceries Last year, takeaway delivery accounted for nearly 23 percent of the total outof-home food and drink market. The recently published Foodshopper Monitor, an annual survey by the FSIN that looked at the effects of the crisis on consumer behaviour, and in particular at the aspects convenience, budget and enjoyment, shows that the delivery of takeaways grew by 37 percent, to more than € 2.7 billion euros in 2020. Without Covid-19, the FSIN said, this would have been around 14 percent. An even bigger winner, the survey found, was grocery deliveries. Instead
of the projected growth of € 600 million, in 2020 the delivery of groceries by food retailers (supermarkets and speciality stores) increased by an estimated 49 percent to almost € 2.7 billion. All in all, this has brought the total market share of food retail (including wine delivery, cakes and DIY cooking boxes) to 6.1 percent, it was reported. Really taken off “Covid has acted as a driving force,” said Inga Blokker, director of The Food Research Company, the research agency of the FSIN. In a press release and in various Dutch media, she confirmed that food delivery, although a growing trend for some time, has now really taken off. “People who had never ordered before, have now been forced to discover the convenience of having hot meals and groceries delivered at home,” she said. According to Blokker, time has moved forward by a few years with regard to the growth of the delivery market. While delivery services have opened a large number of new branches this year, chains and restaurants that previously offered little or no delivery service also made the switch quickly. Change in variety But it wasn’t just numbers, the variation has also increased. The survey showed that consumers are no longer ordering meals just on Sunday evenings, but also more often on weekdays. The platform for Dutch greenhouse vegetable cultivation,
groentennieuws.nl, also reported that the numbers reveal a new picture: younger generations in particular increasingly opt for delivery when they just don’t feel like cooking. In the past, millennials and the so-called Generation Z may have decided to “cook anyway”, since Covid, having a meal delivered is the most frequently cited alternative when they don’t feel like cooking. They also prefer this to a readyto-eat meal from the supermarket. Future structural growth The growth that has now been accelerated will not simply disappear once the Covid measures are over, said Blokker, who foresees that after corona “even people who did not order food or groceries before will continue to do so, every now and then,” and that the trend of takeaway delivery promises future growth for the delivery
market. “Although the delivery turnover will certainly not increase as much in 2021 as in 2020, as far as food delivery is concerned, the signals for future growth are promising,” Blokker said. This positive prognosis was echoed by Philippe Vorst, CEO of the Dutch chain New York Pizza, whose company experienced ‘extreme’ growth last year: 20 percent. He says the 221 stores had “never sold as many pizzas as last year”, and, as he told AD newspaper, he expects this to continue: “Someone who now has meals delivered will not stop ordering.” But, as Vorst added: “Our success means that others suffer. I would rather have it differently,” highlighting that, when there are winners, there will also be those that lose out. Written by Femke van Iperen
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The closing of schools leads to major problems Thinking back to when many of us were adolescents, the news of school closing would have been music to most of our ears. Not having to go into school and sit behind a laptop all day doesn’t sound all that bad. However, today’s youth has recently been convinced otherwise. Since the closing of the schools in December, the transition to online learning has been a challenge to teachers and students alike. Although the previous school closure in March was a necessary measure, the long-term negative consequences for the younger generation are becoming clearer by the day. According to Het Parool newspaper, an astounding 61% of teachers worry about
the effect it will have on children if schools are unable to open their doors before the end of February.
The concerns that teachers have indicated are very far-reaching. Mental health, lack of social interaction, stagnation in social development and little to no physical exercise all contribute to an overall unhealthier lifestyle for the younger generation. For adolescents, who are supposed to be in the peak of their physical and mental development, these hindrances will prove to be more detrimental to their personal growth than one might initially expect. Teachers are especially concerned about students who are already struggling with academic performance or experience social disconnect with others in their age group. Now that they are even less exposed to situations requiring direct social interaction, or even more easily distracted than at school, these children face extra challenges. Running behind in one’s education can have a lasting impact on subsequent phases of education. Some parents are unable to offer their children constant access to a computer, especially if they have several children following online education at once. Luckily, some schools can provide children with a borrowed
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laptop, but unfortunately not all schools can provide this luxury. The same counts for students with learning disorders or disabilities: some can go to school in order to be taught personally, whilst others are required to work from home like everyone else.
Furthermore, the growing divergence between individual pupils’ performance make lesson planning and design more challenging for teachers. Additionally, increasing expectations on the part of students and parents, require teachers to tend to all these individual requirements even more thoroughly than before. Working through Teams or any other online video platform, teachers need to spend extra time adapting their lessons to fit the medium, whilst leaving room for spontaneous events happening during the (limited) class time. Time needed for team meetings, consulting colleagues and online administration only adds to teachers’ responsibilities. All in all, teachers feel insufficient support from the Dutch government. The additional support and supplementary funding, as promised by the minister of education, have not yet materialized. Hopefully action will be taken shortly to live up to these promises.
Not only teachers, but pupils too have voiced their concerns with online education. Secondary school pupils, united in the National Pupils’ Action Committee (LAKS), have taken action and are insisting on the adaptation of final exams, scheduled to take place in May. Although measures have been taken to take into account increased student absence during exam times, no major changes have as yet been made to the difficulty level of the exams. Some schools have taken measures to ensure a safe learning environment at school, with 1.5-meter distance between pupils and teachers in place. Yet, many schools still lack the means to allow safe physical attendance on school grounds. It seems that stress levels are at an all-time peak for teachers, students and parents alike. While everyone is finding their own ways of coping with these bizarre circumstances, we can all hope that there is light at the end of the tunnel. As everyone is doing their best to accommodate as best as possible, we continue to discover new methods that make everyone’s lives easier in an online environment. Remember, despite the hardship, there is always a silver lining. Written by Charlotte Seijger
27-01-21 19:57
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FEEL AT HOME FAIR
FEBRUARY 2021 | 17
Feel at Home
International Community Fair - online Sunday 14 March 2021, 11am-5pm Keeping Internationals Connected In previous years, the Feel at Home International Community Fair has been a successful one-day event attracting as many as 200 exhibitors and 4000 visitors to The Hague City Hall. Initially, the organisers, TheHagueOnLine, were planning to organise the 14th edition of the Feel at Home International Community Fair in February 2021. However due to the Corona situation, they will not be able to host a physical event with so many people in one location. However, they still believe that there is a need for the Fair to keep international people connected. Therefore they are pleased to announce that they are organising an online event on Sunday 14 March 2021 The Gemeente Den Haag and The Hague International Centre has agreed to be the main sponsor of the 2021 Fair and Volunteer The Hague is also a sponsor. Thanks to this sponsorship, the Fair is free for sports, social & community groups. TheHagueOnLine has devised a new online format for the Fair which can potentially attract an even larger audience given that the online element makes the event easily accessible to all Expats & Internationals living in the Netherlands.
The centre piece of the Fair will be the live streaming via two simultaneous channels from 11:00 to 17:00. You will also be able to engage with stand holders via virtual stands. Channel 1 - Information and Panel Shows On the first channel they will broadcast information, interactive debates and panel discussion shows on themes and information relevant to the Expat & International Community. Online viewers will have the possibility of interacting during the shows and afterwards via breakout sessions. The six shows are: • Welcome to The Hague (by The Hague International Centre) • Work and Careers (by The Hague International Centre and Volunteer The Hague) • Finance (Partially sponsored by ABN AMRO) • Education (Partially sponsored by Leiden University and The Hague University of Applied Sciences) • Well-Being • Making the most of a mobile life (by The Mobile Life) Channel 2 - Enjoying Life in The Hague This channel will stream performances and videos from the Expat and International community, as well as showcasing professional culture, entertainment and sports, along with some surprises. Some of the content will be live but many of the performances will be pre-recorded. Tickets Tickets for the Fair are free. Registration for tickets will open in the middle of February and will be announced on website www.FeelatHomeinTheHague.com Virtual Stands holders Registration for a virtual stand is open. Thanks to our sponsors, “Sports, social & community groups” can have a free virtual stand. There is a small fee for small business and commercial stand holders. To register go to www.FeelatHomeInTheHague.com Participation in live stream shows Any organisation that would like to participate in either the Finance, Education or Wellbeing show please email fair@thehagueonline.com Want to promote your business to the international community? If you have a business that you would like to promote to the international community in The Hague region via an advertisement or by sponsoring a show, please email billy@thehagueonline.com For more information visit our website www.FeelatHomeinTheHague.com
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28-01-21 11:00
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27-01-21 17:29
FEBRUARY 2021 | 19
ART & CULTURE
Stormy Tulips offered to the Mayor of The Hague On 20 January a meeting with the Mayor of The Hague, Mr. Jan van Zanen, took place. The purpose of this auspicious ceremony was to hand over a set of paintings that had been pledged to the city of Den Haag and to the Mayor as a gift by the Pakistani-Canadian artist Alia Bilgrami. The work is a triptych – a painting in three parts – called Stormy Tulips. The painting is very special to the artist, as it narrates the journey or cycle of life. It is rendered in gouache in the miniature painting style, a reflection of her South Asian heritage. In the triptych, two tulips are the protagonists, braving life together, one storm at a time and coming out stronger at the end. Even when one tulip survives the other, life must go on, as reflected in the background of the last painting. Over the summer of 2020, Bilgrami got in touch with the Mayor’s office because she and her spouse had recently become residents of The Hague and they were keen to express their gratitude in some shape or form. The artist’s father inspired them with the idea of giving
one of her paintings as a gift to their new city. Since Bilgrami is a professional artist who loves painting tulips, this seemed like a very good idea indeed. The rest, as they say, is history! To give you a little background about the artist and why she feels so privileged to be here – she thinks that it is the perfect place to create her art, since she loves the tulip as much as the Dutch do! As explained to Mr. van Zanen during the meeting, she never tires of using it as a symbol in various styles, and through a myriad of media. The Mayor took a keen interest in learning more about why she and her spouse moved to the Netherlands and said that he always loves to hear why expats choose to move here. After this they spent a little time discussing Bilgrami’s career as a visual artist and curator. She has a background in contemporary miniature painting that she often combines with analogue photography techniques. The tulip has become a personal symbol in her art that stems from its fascinating history – first cultivated in Turkey and Persia, then finding its way to Europe several centuries later. It sometimes reminds the artist of her own
multicultural life experience, and that of others like her. The Mayor was happy to receive the triptych and Bilgrami felt very honored to be granted a private audience with him. The meeting, attended only by the Mayor, events manager Kevin Verbaas and Alia Bilgrami, due to Covid-19 restrictions, was a lovely and successful afternoon. Both gentlemen took a keen interest in her art and life experiences. The artist feels content that Stormy Tulips has found a home in the land of tulips. After the meeting, she said: “I am honored and happy that the work has found its way to the Mayor’s office walls, where I hope the tulips will contribute to the positive atmosphere and cheer him up on a daily basis!” Maybe one day the paintings will adorn the walls of a museum in the Netherlands; at least that is what the artist aspires to. Written by Nanda Jagusiak-Monteiro For more information about the artist visit www.abilgrami.com or follow her on Instagram: @aliabilgrami.art
Stormy tulips by Alia Bilgramiris Roos
Surinamese School in Stedelijk Museum The exhibition Surinamese School, which opens on 12 December at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, is a celebration of Surinamese painting in all its diversity and depth. Presenting over 100 artworks by 35 artists, Surinamese School explores the key themes and narratives at the heart of Surinamese painting from 1910 to the mid-1980s. Depictions of Surinamese history, spirituality and everyday life, alongside forays into abstraction, and social change, gave shape to artistic developments. The exhibition pays particular attention to Surinamese pioneers who blazed a trail for other artists by spearheading the development of art education and professional practice and, with this, the development of painting. A team of guest curators identified the artist-innovators who put Surinamese art on the map. Some artists combined their artistic practice with social and political activism, in pursuit of a (culturally) independent Suriname. Surinamese School also features a significant number of works by artists who lived and worked in Amsterdam for many years such as Armand Baag and Quintus Jan Telting. In the year in which Suriname celebrates 45 years of independence, the exhibition also recalls the country’s shared history with the Netherlands. One of the legacies of prolonged Dutch colonial rule, for example, led to a dearth of professional art education and, for many years, Surinamese artists were compelled to leave their own country to pursue their art training in the Netherlands. After graduating, many artists returned to Suriname permanently or temporarily. Jules Chin A Foeng completed his education in the Netherlands and, upon returning to Suriname, championed Surinamism in his work and in art education. In addition to art training in their own country, which evolved against a backdrop of mounting nationalism, processes of decolonisation and nation-building, the artistic dialogue between Suriname and the Netherlands impacted the work and life of various artists in the exhibition. Until 31-05-2021 www.stedelijkmuseum.nl
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Armand Baag, ‘Baag Familiy Portrait’, 1989, oil on canvas. Collection Joyce, Sura and Surina Baag, Amsterdam
27-01-21 19:59
20 | FEBRUARY 2021
Tips on how to cultivate good feelings over the lockdown by practicing gratitude Most of us are fed up with the pandemic. The new year has arrived and it’s still here. Blue Monday has passed, but we are still in lockdown and dealing with tight restrictions to stop the virus. This whole situation has made us uneasy and tired of ever-changing measures, leading to feelings of misplacement and loneliness. Gathering around with friends or hugging someone we love never has been so important. Enough, says the brain, but we’re going to need to wait a bit longer until life is back to something closer to normal. However, there is a powerful way to deal with all of it and it’s pretty accessible: to feel gratitude. It might be what we need at the moment to finish the race against Covid-19. The power of feeling grateful Gratitude is a powerful positive force. Moreover, it’s a way for people to appreciate what they have, instead of always reaching out for something new in the hopes it will make them happier. A recent article by Forbes confirms that feeling gratitude has positive effects on emotional wellbeing, motivation, belonging, engagement and physical health. Some philosophers suggest it’s the greatest virtue and that you can’t feel both grateful and unhappy. For example, appreciation of someone can grow into love, gratitude for what you have can lead to greater satisfaction and loving your work can lead to improved performance. Sounds good, but let’s look into science too. A study published in Psychological Science found that being thankful increases patience. In addition, it has been found that gratitude has a positive impact on our mental and emotional states – leading to optimism for example – as well as physical health. It also predicts behaviours such as helping others and exercising. Another article in the Harvard Medical shows the power of cultivating gratitude. In this study, three groups were tested. The first wrote about things that had occurred during the week, that they were grateful for. The second wrote about daily irritations or things that had displeased them, and the third wrote about events that had affected them, with no emphasis on positivity or negativity. After 10 weeks, those who wrote about
gratitude were more optimistic and felt better about their lives. They also exercised more and needed fewer visits to physicians. Researchers explain that these effects occur because gratitude helps us refocus on what we have instead of what we lack. Although it may feel contrived at first, this mental state grows stronger with use and practice. It is an effective exercise to do at home, to try and fight the annoying feelings we seek to silence.
or even better, deliver it and read it out. Make a habit of sending at least one gratitude letter a month. Really important: once in a while, write one to yourself.
Ways to cultivate gratitude The Harvard Medical school made a really cool list suggesting ways to practice gratitude in your life. Let’s take a look at some suggestions:
Thank someone mentally. It may help to just think about someone who has done something nice for you, and mentally thank them.
Gratitude journal. Make it a habit to write down or share with a loved one your thoughts about the gifts you’ve received each day. This can be a nice meal, a great complement, your home, beautiful music, etc. Make a list and write it down once in a while, or even every morning.
Count your blessings. Pick a time every week to sit down and write about your blessings, reflecting on what went right or what you are grateful for. Make a list of three to five things and write about the sensations you felt when something good happened to you.
Write a thank-you note. Express your enjoyment and appreciation for someone who has impacted your life. Send it,
Meditate. Mindfulness meditation involves focusing on the present moment without judgment. It’s also possible to focus on what you’re grateful for (the warmth of the sun, a pleasant sound, etc.).
Pray. If you are religious, you can use prayer to cultivate gratitude. Written by Raphael Vieira
Fever is the Netherlands’ most-searched symptom
From anxiety to loss of taste, we have worked with Lenstore to analyse over 100 common health ailments to reveal the ones we are searching for most. You can view the graphic here: www.lenstore.co.uk/research/most-searchedfor-symptoms Netherlands Most-Googled Health Symptom 1. Fever 2. Diarrhea 3. Migraine 4. Rash 5. Delirium Here are some key stories that may be of interest to your readers: • Across the globe, people are turning to Dr Google for on ailments with Diarrhoea, Anxiety, and Vertigo coming up as the most searched averaging 909,000 monthly searches • Diarrhoea still takes the number one spot and is also the most searched for symptom across Austria, Estonia, France, Greece, and the US • There are also a few symptoms where we may feel a little shy about discussing them with a doctor and are therefore also high up on the list, including ‘vaginal itching’ (214,400) and ‘inverted nipple’ (178,930)
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• COVID-19 has seen those Googling ‘loss of taste and smell’ increase by 733% worldwide Why is it bad? Unfortunately, self-diagnosing on the internet can sometimes cause more harm than good. 1. Unreliable Sites: Unreliable websites, giving incomplete information, poor algorithms and thus wrong conclusions and wrong directions. The websites used must be evidenced-based and good quality. Websites need to have information cross-referenced, evidence-based and peerreviewed information. It can be difficult for the general public to understand which websites are of good quality. 2. Too Medical: Websites written for Doctors/ medical personnel have the basic assumption of training and experience and are only useful for the trained, otherwise may cause more confusion and fear in the non-medically trained. Why is it good? 1. Triage: Helps patients to decide whether to self manage, speak to a doctor or come to a clinicbased on information and questions answered with health information online. It is worth bearing in mind that while symptom checkers may be useful as an adjunct to triage, they are
not recommended as a substitute for triage. 2. Information: Evidence-based, quality, peerreviewed and reliable sources of information will help to give information to patients for self-care and guidance. Can be read in their own time and not given in a tight/rushed consultation. Advice for those who Google health symptoms 1. Only use recognised and reliable websites. 2. Make sure information is not outdated or irrelevant geographically. 3. Ensure a medical professional is consulted as a result – whether a pharmacist for minor symptoms or a nurse or doctor for persisting and serious symptoms. 4. Dr Google is there to assist and help, but should not replace your doctor 5. Use a variety of pages to get a different perspective and to understand the information better, but speak to a doctor for further clarification 6. Google is a great tool to use before seeing your doctor, or going for tests or procedures. Do some bedtime reading before your appointment so that you have some questions to ask on the day
27-01-21 20:04
FEBRUARY 2021 | 21
ART & CULTURE
We Are Animals in the Kunsthal This coming spring, the Kunsthal is inviting its visitors to enter the realm of animal art. The exhibition ‘We Are Animals’ brings together a great variety of extraordinary animal creations by over thirty contemporary artists. Works by artists such as Maurizio Cattelan, Candida Höfer, Paul McCarthy, and David Shrigley show the relationship between human beings and animals, and reveal how we, as humans, see and try to understand ourselves better through animals. Sculptures of feathered polar bears, installations with wild wolves, monumental paintings of cuddly cats, and poignant photographs of zoos: this provocative selection of works has resulted in an exciting, must-see exhibition that offers food for thought. ‘We are Animals’ explores different aspects of the relationship between humans and animals. The works either express edgy perspectives on how humans manipulate other animal species, or celebrate and appreciate animals for being the miraculous creatures that we can recognise so much of ourselves in.
has made a life-sized camel that is nearly able to pass through the eye of a needle. And Paola Pivi’s feathered polar bears are among the highlights of the exhibition. Although these bears may seem lifelike, it’s clear that something strange is going on. These colourful animals are engaged in human activities such as yoga, dancing, or just hanging around with each other. Wild animals Animals can also make us humans shudder as they confront us with the wilderness that we have gotten so far removed from. No wonder that we have become so fascinated by the wolf that over the past few years has been increasingly successful reclaiming his place in our society. Marc Dion is putting this fascinating animal on an unusual pedestal: the ‘Mobile Wilderness Unit’ – an inversion of the mobile homes from which people can discover the wilderness in comfort. In poignant photographs, Candida Höfer has captured how zoos allow us to look at exotic animals that have been taken out of their natural habitats from a distance. On the other side of the spectrum, an extraordinary, life-sized video installation by the artist Douglas Gordon enables
the spectator to come closer than ever before to an impressive elephant. Filled with awe and admiration we can witness how this majestic animal is lying on an art gallery floor while bending and twisting its mighty body in all kinds of unnatural poses. For more information: www.kunsthal.nl 5 February - 21 May 2021
Below: Candida Höfer, Zoologischer Garten Paris II, 1997. Courtesy the artist Bottom left: David Shrigley, I’m Dead, 2011, Private Collection, co Pictoright Amsterdam 2021 Bottom right: Daniel Firman, Nasutamanus, 2012, Courtesy the artist and Perrotin
People love to surround themselves with adorable, cuddly creatures. Colourful stuffed animals fill our toy shops, photographs and videos of cats are massively watched and shared on the internet, and many of us consider our own pet to be our favourite family member. The artists participating in ‘We Are Animals’ explore these mechanisms while simultaneously revealing the downsides. Martin Eder’s greatly enlarged, sugary paintings of internet cats almost transform the adorable into the monstrous. A video compilation by Cory Arcangel featuring cats parading across piano keys results in a cacophony of sound. And the installation by Maurizio Cattelan, with a rabbit hanging from its extremely long ears, makes us aware of the imbalance of power between humans and animals. Fantastic beasts “Go to hell”, a bright blue cock snaps at us. The artist David Shrigley gives animals a voice, often with an ironic undertone. Especially for the exhibition ‘We Are Animals’, he has created a new series of his cartoonlike animals. For as long as we can remember, people have been using animals to tell stories about ourselves. In fables and myths we endow them with human characteristics: the sly fox, the stubborn donkey, the wise owl. These symbolic tales were reexamined by artists. John Baldessari, for instance,
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27-01-21 18:04
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27-01-21 10-11-20 15:36 16:09
FEBRUARY 2021 | 23
SPORT
The good doctor’s sports prescription
The importance of sport in modern society is already well-documented, but its role has been greatly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. When we consider the fact that professional football and other sports continue to play out on the world stage – even in countries under lockdown and curfew – it is hard to deny that sport is one of the most pervasive institutions in our society. Yet the study of sport as an academic pursuit was largely seen as frivolous before the second half of the twentieth century. Today, sport is dissected, analyzed and scrutinized from nearly every conceivable angle, whether it be sociology, neurology and even economics. That scrutiny has been ratcheted up during this global crisis. In the Netherlands, one of the people at the forefront of the study of sport during the Covid period is Dutch professor of neuropsychology, Erik Scherder, at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam (VU). Since his appearance on the popular talk show DWDD in 2015, Dr. Scherder has emerged as the public face of brain health in this country and for as long as he has held sway, his message has been persistent: brain health is inextricably tied to physical activity. Scherder has preached his gospel for a number of years now, tirelessly and with a tint of showmanship that makes him an extremely effective messenger. Since the onset of the pandemic, however, his tone has become even more resolute and he has made his message a solemn plea towards the general public as well as policy makers. Scherder earnestly worries that the Covid crisis is even more lethal than the
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deaths directly attributable to the virus itself. As a result of the virus and the measures taken to combat it, people in the Netherlands are missing out on sport at an alarming rate. Nearly one half of the general population has reduced its physical activity, according to a study from Ipsos, commissioned by the Dutch national sports authority, the NOC*NSF. The short- and long-term effects will be witnessed by our health care ecosystem for years to come. Scherder warns of upticks in diabetes, heart and vascular disease, as well as more frequent onset of cognitive illnesses such as Alzheimer’s.
Nederland in Beweging. The program, featuring Olga Commandeur and Duco Bauwens, celebrated its 20th anniversary last year and saw its audience double from 150.000 to 300.000. Unfortunately, that is only a small drop in the bucket when the challenge is to get some 17 million people moving.
The downturn in physical activity and sport is not being helped by sharpened measures to combat the virus. Gyms and fitness facilities were largely shuttered for a second time before the Christmas holidays. Only outdoor activities are currently allowed, such as cycling, golf, running and skating, but none of these are particularly suited for the winter months. With the exception of ice skating, but, unless the mercury takes a February plunge, this will be confined to the small number of ice rinks in the country.
The government seems to have heard Dr. Scherder’s message, but has been forced to make decisions which put sport and exercise in even greater jeopardy. The curfew is a cruel example of this. For those of you still wondering about the difference between a 20:30 and 21:00 start time, ask anyone involved in an amateur sport club about it – half an hour extra means the difference between one extra class or none. To truly tackle the lack of exercise will require continued creativity and innovation to address the good doctor’s concerns. The solutions that are emerging aid us not only during this crisis, but in the long term as well. The sometime maligned slogan of “Build Back Better” has also been applied to sport and many of its facets are truly steps forward.
Dr. Scherder is not only emphasizing the downsides of a lack of physical activity, but also praises the significant upsides to getting ourselves in motion. Exercise offers one of the best science-backed defenses to Covid-19 available. In a country struggling to inoculate its inhabitants with the newly released vaccines, this is an important message. Another spot of bright news is the surge in viewership for the morning TV exercise program
When looking for sustainable solutions to getting the broader public more active, Scherder has pointed to practices that are uniquely applicable to sports, such as the Athletic Skill Model. ASM is a methodology borne out of scientific work that breaks sport down into movement groups and sets out activities geared toward developing all-round athletes. While it comes from a pedigree of elite sport, its relevance to a much broader
group is remarkably high. The move to specialization in sport, i.e. training for a specific sport, can become a liability during a pandemic. If we were more geared toward holistic approaches, the ability to continue with meaningful movement during times as these would be greatly enhanced for everyone, from elite athletes to the broader population. Dr. Scherder’s message is clear: keep moving! Those not in motion must somehow, somewhere find a way to be physically active. It is worth noting that Dr. Scherder’s message is not limited to our relatively comfortable existence here in the Netherlands; he is also broadcasting it to the less fortunate, emphasizing the necessity and benefits of physical activity though organizations such as War Child. War Child, which incorporates sport in its activities geared toward children dealing with the scars of war, knows firsthand the value of Scherder’s wise counsel. Like similar good causes, such as Join for Africa, Right to Play and Women Win, it merits our attention and, when possible, our assistance. Written by John Mahnen
28-01-21 10:24
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11-11-20 18:12 27-01-21 15:37
