Anti-Semitism is being weaponised by politicians: A’dam mayor

 

Anti-Semitism is being weaponised by politicians: A’dam mayor

December 16, 2024

https://www.dutchnews.nl/2024/12/anti-semitism-is-being-weaponised-by-politicians-adam-mayor/

 

Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema has spoken out about anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim sentiment in a wide-ranging interview with the Volkskrant, in which she reflected on a turbulent year in the capital’s history.

 

Halsema said she is “worried about human rights and the rule of law, particularly when some politicians are not too concerned themselves about the ban on discrimination.”

 

“Groups in our society that have been facing problems for decades are being hurt deeply again,” she said. “Pointing the finger at Muslims based on vague video images of dark-haired boys is discrimination, pure and simple.”

 

“Anti-Semitism is an abhorrent form of racism, and the Netherlands has a great historic debt to pay. But it is now being weaponised by politicians who are guilty of other kinds of racism,” she said. “There are people who think you must protect Jews and that you are free to humiliate Moroccans and Muslims. That’s not how it is.”

 

Halsema also spoke about the way she handled certain high-profile incidents in the Dutch capital this year, including the controversy surrounding the opening of the Holocaust Museum and the Maccabi Tel Aviv football violence.

 

The decision to admit just 10,000 people to the May 4 ceremony on Dam Square was “the hardest decision” she had to make this year, Halsema said. Numbers were reduced following the angry demonstrations during the Holocaust museum opening and the fear that the event would be disrupted.

 

The mayor also criticised some politicians, including VVD leader Dilan Yesilgöz, for undermining the rule of law on social media with her comments.

 

 

“Far-right leader Geert Wilders’ populist moves are predictable,” she said. “When we decide on a complex matter, we often say, ‘Wait for it…’ But the VVD have mayors and council officials who know the pressures that come with complex decisions. Coming from the VVD and a former justice minister makes it worse,” she added.

 

Halsema said she welcomed support from former prime minister Mark Rutte, who defended her after the museum trouble, when he said “our mayors are not taking political decisions when it comes to maintaining public order.”

 

Halsema was less pleased with the current prime minister’s hesitant reaction when the PVV leader said Halsema should “leave the country with the rest of the scum.”

 

“I note the hesitation resulting from the dependence of this cabinet on the coalition parties, and the PVV rhetoric, as well as the constant stress over a potential cabinet crisis,” the mayor said.

 

“The interests I serve are more important than me as a person,” she told the paper. “The need to defend the democratic rule of law remains an urgent issue. My motivation to keep doing what I have been doing has only grown.”