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Implementing Direct Democracy in the Netherlands: a Contextual Evaluation 1 Implementing Direct Democracy in the Netherlands: A Contextual Evaluation 1 Implementing Direct Democracy in the Netherlands: A Contextual Evaluation Casper F. Arends, 1274723 University College Tilburg Bachelor thesis Liberal Arts and Sciences Supervisor: dr. A.M. Cawston 04-12-2019 Word count: 16.029 Implementing Direct Democracy in the Netherlands: A Contextual Evaluation 2 Abstract This research evaluates the case for implementing direct democracy in the Netherlands. The analysis and evaluation will use a contextual approach. It will be based on an analysis of the history of direct democracy in the Netherlands, the discourse used, the traditions it can be placed in and certain values within the Dutch society. Furthermore, theories within political philosophy will be used in combination with the findings to further assess what the dangers and benefits are in implementing this form of governance. The research finds that there is a need for a change in the political system, however implementing direct democracy within the current context is undesirable. It is advisable to the Dutch government to research other methods in order to gain the trust of the voters and close the gap between citizens and policy. Keywords: Direct Democracy, Referendum, Netherlands, Political Philosophy, Anti- Enlightenment Implementing Direct Democracy in the Netherlands: A Contextual Evaluation 3 Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………………………………2 1. Introduction……………………………………………………………….4 2. Method…………………………………………………………………….7 3. History of direct democracy in the Netherlands..…………………………10 4. Discourse around direct democracy……………………………………….19 5. (Anti-) Enlightenment tradition……………………………………………28 6. Survey……………………………………………………………………...32 7. Evaluation………………………………………………………………….37 8. Conclusion………………………………………………………………....51 Bibliography……………………………………………………………….56 Appendix…………………………………………………………………..60 Implementing Direct Democracy in the Netherlands: A Contextual Evaluation 4 1. Introduction There is an ongoing debate in the Netherlands on whether to implement the referendum in order to assist the representative democracy. Could this be the way towards a ‘real democracy’ or is it a threat to the representative system? The referendum is a form of direct democracy, meaning that there is direct participation of citizens in democratic decision making (T. Schiller, 2019). Through direct democracy a government can assess the opinion of the people and try to implement this in their policy. However, whether they are obliged to is dependent on the form of referendum. In the Netherlands there was previously a system of advisory referendums. This means that the government is not obliged to implement the results of the referendum into policy. This has led to the problem that despite the results of the referendum, the government still pursued its own course of action. This could potentially lead to voter frustration and distrust of government. After only being available for approximately three years, the advisory referendum was abolished in July 2018, without consultation of the public. Currently, there appears to be a lack of voter confidence in parliament and a gap between citizens and policy. There have been state commissions that have recommended using the referendum in order to tackle these problems. However, this research will showcase that implementing the referendum could be problematic. It could be a threat to minority groups within the Netherlands and a threat to the individual rights, values and freedoms of Dutch citizens. Because of the debate and the advice to implement this form of public consultation, it is relevant to look at the situation in the Netherlands and evaluate the case for re-implementing the referendum. There currently does not appear to be enough literature that evaluates the referendum using the context of the Netherlands nor does there appear to be much literature Implementing Direct Democracy in the Netherlands: A Contextual Evaluation 5 on the context of the referendum in the Netherlands in English. Moreover, current referendum discourse appears to be tied to anti-immigrant parties, this increases the importance of evaluating this form of governance and what its implementation would imply. Furthermore, the advice of the state commissions appears to imply that the Dutch parliament is in a dire situation where change is needed. The recommended change by these state commissions is the implementation of the referendum, therefore the evaluation of this situation and whether implementing the referendum as a tool of governance is advisable is of importance. The battle for the referendum in current discourse symbolizes more than just the call for a new form of governing. Therefore, it seems essential to analyze the position of the referendum within Dutch society and discourse. Furthermore, the parties associated with wanting referendums seem to have changed over time, as previously mentioned it is currently dominated by anti-immigrant parties. Implementing the referendum will be symbolic as a win for these forms of parties. This poses the question whether this would be representative of the views of the Dutch society or whether implementing the referendum would currently represent things that the Dutch society is not in favor of. The support of these parties is also an indication that implementing direct democracy could be a threat to minority groups. This research will evaluate the case for reimplementing direct democracy in the Netherlands. The Netherlands has had an interesting relationship with direct democracy in the past which can shed light on the current attitudes of Dutch citizens and politicians towards this form of democracy and has to be taken into account in evaluating whether implementing this form of democracy into the current system is viable and positive. Because of this, this research will take a historical, philosophical and contextual approach but will also use make use of quantitative data in the form of a value survey. The structure of the research will be as follows. In section two the method of the research is discussed. This section will justify why Implementing Direct Democracy in the Netherlands: A Contextual Evaluation 6 certain aspects are highlighted and why the specific approach used is applicable. In the third section the history of direct democracy in the Netherlands will be discussed, this will give further insight into how referendums have been used in the past and illustrate the history of the battle for and against the referendum. Section four will be an analysis of the discourse surrounding direct democracy in the Netherlands from the 1980’s until now. This will give an indication of what implementing this form of consultation would symbolize and how it might be used if implemented. In section five the current battle for direct democracy will be put within a larger tradition, namely that of (anti-)enlightenment. Afterwards, in section six, a survey will be used to determine whether this form of democracy aligns with the values and opinions of the Dutch citizens or whether it would be misrepresentative of the views of the population. The survey used is the European Values Study (EVS) and the data used is from the surveys between 1999 until 2017. After analyzing the history, discourse, tradition and values, an evaluation will be made in section seven using this information and theories found in political philosophy. These theories will be related to the specific context of the Netherlands in order to evaluate whether the benefits outweigh the dangers. Finally, in section eight a conclusion will follow, based on the previously found information, on whether implementing direct democracy in the Netherlands at the present time is advisable. This research finds that although the referendum seems an answer to problems such as a lack of trust and a gap between citizens and policy, the negative aspects of implementing this tool of governance outweigh the possible benefits. Furthermore, the extent to which these benefits would be realized in the case of the referendum being implemented is debatable. Therefore, the advice is to not implement direct democracy in the Netherlands and instead search for other solutions to the problems the referendum purports to solve. Implementing Direct Democracy in the Netherlands: A Contextual Evaluation 7 2. Method 2.1 History and Discourse This research will be a contextual and multi-disciplinary evaluation of re-implementing direct democracy within the Netherlands. It will focus on the specific context of the Netherlands, with its history, discourse and values. Thus, it will not be an evaluation of the system of direct democracy on its own. As the Netherlands is the first democratic country in modern history to abolish the form of direct democracy that is the referendum (S. Hollander, 2019) there is reason to assume its history and context of direct democracy might be significantly different to those in other countries. This makes it important to know what exactly the context and the history is. The research will begin by reviewing the history of direct democracy in the Netherlands. This will provide information on how it has been used in the past and how it fits within the Dutch political tradition. This thesis will also examine the discourse surrounding direct democracy. Both the discourse of the proponents and the opponents will be analyzed at different points of time, as the discourse has changed over time. The discourse could also provide insight into how referendums
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