Democrats 66 is a social liberal political party in the Netherlands, which positions itself in the centre of the political spectrum. It is a member of the Liberal International (LI) and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE).
Alexander Pechtold is a retired Dutch politician and art historian. He is a member of Democrats 66.
Paul Schnabel is a Dutch politician and sociologist who served on the Social and Economic Council (SER) from 2013 to 2015 and in the Senate on behalf of Democrats 66 (D66) from 2015 until 2019.
The Arkprijs van het Vrije Woord is a symbolic award created in 1951 by Herman Teirlinck and the editorial team of the Nieuw Vlaams Tijdschrift to counteract ideologically driven restrictions on the freedom of expression.
Joris in 't Veld was a Dutch politician of the Social Democratic Workers' Party (SDAP) and later the Labour Party (PvdA) and jurist.
Irreligion in the Netherlands pertains to atheism, agnosticism, and other forms of irreligion in the Netherlands. Irreligion is the majority religious position in the country since around 2015, making the Netherlands one of the minority of mostly irreligious countries in the world. After that, there is still a very large and prominent Christian minority, plus a large irreligious but former Christian minority. Also, about a million, mostly Sunni Muslims make up about a 5% Islamic minority, making Islam the second biggest religion in the Netherlands – a new development through immigration, mostly since ca. 1970. Until World War II, the Netherlands had a small but influential Jewish minority for centuries. The Holocaust all but irradicated them, but not the Jewish influences in Dutch history and culture.
Vrijdenkersvereniging De Vrije Gedachte (DVG) (English: Freethinkers association The Free Thought), is a Dutch atheist–humanist association of freethinkers. It was founded in 1856 and known by the name De Dageraad ("The Dawn") before assuming its present name in 1957. De Vrije Gedachte strives to use reason, natural science and logic to liberate humanity from prejudices, clerical paternalism, dogmas and false truths.
In the Netherlands, a friendship contract is an agreement which regulates the consequences of a social relationship between two or more persons under family law as well as property law. Such a contract has no prescribed form. From an evidential point of view a written or notarial form is preferred. In addition, parties are in principle (see article 3:40 of the Dutch Civil Code free to determine the content of their agreement. For example, a tangible or intangible duty of care can be established, a power of attorney can be granted in case a party can no longer act on his own behalf, and an arrangement can be made for the event that one party obtains a good that, in whole or in part, is financed with assets of the other. In the Dutch law of persons and Dutch family law, there is no legal effect attached to friendship contracts; this not expected to change in the near future. The friendship contract is therefore currently governed by general Dutch contract and property law.
In the Netherlands, from the entry into force of the Advisory Referendum Act on 1 July 2015, until its repeal on 18 February 2018, most types of primary laws could be subjected to a suspensory, non-binding referendum if requested shortly after royal assent and subsequent proclamation. If a law was rejected by more than half of the votes cast, with a mandatory turnout of at least 30%, its entry into force was to be suspended indefinitely and a follow-up law had to be enacted that either repealed the law or provided for its entry into force.
Humanist Counseling in the Dutch Armed Forces is a task in the Armed forces of the Netherlands. Humanist counsellors, sometimes called humanist chaplain, contribute to the (mental) well-being of military personnel, those related to them, and veterans. They do this through visible presence at the workplace, personal contact and guidance. They hold conversations, give advice and offer support. Issues concerning meaning and ethics are central to their work.
Paul Bernard Cliteur is a Dutch professor of jurisprudence at Leiden University, as well as a politician, philosopher, writer, publicist and columnist. He is known for his conservative perspective, his atheism, his republicanism, and his dislike of Islam. He is a member of De Vrije Gedachte. Since 2015, Cliteur is a member of the Dutch political party Forum voor Democratie, where he is chairman of the advisory board and the party's official think tank. In 2019 he was elected to be parliamentary group leader for Forum voor Democratie in the Dutch Senate.
The Humanistisch Verbond is a Dutch association based on secular humanist principles.
Non-believers: Freethinkers on the Run is a 2016 Dutch documentary on the situation of atheists, especially Muslim apostates, in Dutch refugee camps (AZCs). The film is directed by Dorothée Forma and produced by HUMAN with the support of the Dutch Humanist Association. It is the sequel of Among Nonbelievers (2015), which dealt with some of the situations of former Muslims.
Among Nonbelievers is a 2015 bilingual English–Dutch documentary on the situation of endangered nonbelievers, especially ex-Muslims, around the world. Set in the United Kingdom, Turkey, the Netherlands and Switzerland, the film is directed by Dorothée Forma and produced by HUMAN with the support of the Dutch Humanist Association. In 2016, it was succeeded by Non-believers: Freethinkers on the Run, which dealt with the fate of apostates and freethinkers in Dutch refugee camps.
Anarchism in the Netherlands originated in the second half of the 19th century. Its roots lay in the radical and revolutionary ideologies of the labor movement, in anti-authoritarian socialism, the free thinkers and in numerous associations and organizations striving for a libertarian form of society. During the First World War, individuals and groups of syndicalists and anarchists of various currents worked together for conscientious objection and against government policies. The common resistance was directed against imperialism and militarism.
Mardjan Seighali is an Iranian-born Dutch human rights activist, refugee worker and non-profit director. In 2013 Seighali became director of the Stichting voor Vluchteling Studenten UAF. She serves on the Advisory Board of the College voor de Rechten van de Mens, and a member of the Supervisory Board of Het Loo Palace.
Pepijn van Houwelingen is a Dutch politician, who has been serving as member of the House of Representatives with a short pause since 2021. He is a member of the conservative populist party Forum for Democracy (FvD). Van Houwelingen holds a doctorate and has worked for the Netherlands Institute for Social Research for a decade.
A process of cabinet formation took place following the 2021 Dutch general election, leading to the formation of the Fourth Rutte cabinet in 2022. The coalition consisted of People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), Democrats 66 (D66), Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) and Christian Union (CU), the same parties that formed the preceding Third Rutte cabinet. At 299 days, it was the longest formation in Dutch history.
Romke Harke de Jong is a Dutch entrepreneur and politician of the social liberal party Democrats 66 (D66). He took over and expanded his father's ice cream catering company and served on the municipal council of Opsterland in Friesland between 2010 and 2018. De Jong became a member of the States of Friesland the following year, and he was elected to the House of Representatives in the 2021 general election.
