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Ernst Hirsch Ballin | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Hirsch Ballin in 2013 | |
| Member of the Scientific Council for Government Policy | |
| In office 1 July 2014 – 1 April 2019 | |
| Director | See list
|
| Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations | |
| In office 23 February 2010 – 14 October 2010 | |
| Prime Minister | Jan Peter Balkenende |
| Preceded by | Guusje Ter Horst |
| Succeeded by | Piet Hein Donner |
| Member of the Council of State | |
| In office 1 November 2000 – 22 September 2006 | |
| Vice President | Herman Tjeenk Willink |
| Member of the Senate | |
| In office 13 June 1995 – 1 November 2000 | |
| Parliamentary group | Christian Democratic Appeal |
| Member of the House of Representatives | |
| In office 17 May 1994 – 1 June 1995 | |
| Parliamentary group | Christian Democratic Appeal |
| Minister of the Interior | |
| In office 10 January 1994 – 18 January 1994 Ad interim | |
| Prime Minister | Ruud Lubbers |
| Preceded by | Ien Dales |
| Succeeded by | Ed van Thijn |
| Minister for Netherlands Antilles and Aruba Affairs | |
| In office 14 November 1989 – 27 May 1994 | |
| Prime Minister | Ruud Lubbers |
| Preceded by | Ruud Lubbers (Ad interim) |
| Succeeded by | Ruud Lubbers |
| Minister of Justice | |
| In office 22 September 2006 – 14 October 2010 | |
| Prime Minister | Jan Peter Balkenende |
| Preceded by | Rita Verdonk (Ad interim) |
| Succeeded by | Ivo Opstelten as Minister of Security and Justice |
| In office 7 November 1989 – 27 May 1994 | |
| Prime Minister | Ruud Lubbers |
| Preceded by | Frits Korthals Altes |
| Succeeded by | Aad Kosto |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Ernst Maurits Henricus Hirsch (1950-12-15)15 December 1950 (age 74) Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Political party | Christian Democratic Appeal (from 1982) |
| Parent |
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| Residence(s) | Tilburg, Netherlands |
| Occupation | Politician · civil servant · jurist · author · professor |
| Academic background | |
| Education | Amsterdams Lyceum |
| Alma mater | University of Amsterdam (LLM,PhD) |
| Thesis | Publiekrecht en beleid : fundamentele kwesties rondom het functioneren van de Wetenschappelijke Raad voor het Regeringsbeleid (1979) |
| Doctoral advisor | Luuk Prakke |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Constitutional law |
| Institutions | Tilburg University University of Amsterdam |
| Doctoral students | Alex Brenninkmeijer |
Ernst Maurits Henricus Hirsch Ballin (born 15 December 1950) is a retired Dutch politician of theChristian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist.
After theelection of 1989 Hirsch Ballin was appointed asMinister of Justice in theCabinet Lubbers III, taking office on 7 November 1989. Hirsch Ballin was also appointed asMinister for Netherlands Antilles and Aruba Affairs, taking office on 14 November 1989. Hirsch Ballin served as actingMinister of the Interior from 10 January 1994 until 18 January 1994 following the death ofIen Dales. Hirsch Ballin was elected as aMember of the House of Representatives after theelection of 1994, taking office on 17 May 1994. On 27 May 1994, Hirsch Ballin and Minister of the InteriorEd van Thijn resigned following the conclusions of aparliamentary inquiry report into illegal interrogation techniques used by thepolice. Hirsch Ballin also served again as a professor ofInternational law at the Tilburg University from 1 July 1994 until 22 September 2006 and also as a professor ofJurisprudence at the Tilburg University from 1 September 1996 until 22 September 2006. Hirsch Ballin was elected as aMember of the Senate after theSenate election of 1995, he resigned as a Member of the House of Representatives on 1 June 1995 and was installed as a Member of the Senate, taking office on 13 June 1995. In October 2000 Hirsch Ballin was nominated asMember of the Council of State, he resigned as a Member of the Senate the same day he was installed as a Member of the Council of State, taking office on 1 November 2000. Hirsch Ballin was appointed again as Minister of Justice in theCabinet Balkenende III following the resignation ofPiet Hein Donner, taking office on 22 September 2006. Shortly thereafter Hirsch Ballin announced that he would not stand for theelection of 2006. Following thecabinet formation of 2006 Hirsch Ballin continued as Minister of Justice in theCabinet Balkenende IV, taking office on 22 February 2007. The Cabinet Balkenende IV fell on 20 February 2010 after tensions in the coalition over the extension of the Dutch involvement in theTask Force Urozgan of theInternational Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan and continued to serve in ademissionary capacity with Hirsch Ballin continuing as Minister of Justice and also took over asMinister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, taking office on 23 February 2010. In April 2010 Hirsch Ballin announced that he would not stand for theelection of 2010. Following thecabinet formation of 2010 Hirsch Ballin was not giving a cabinet post in the newcabinet, the Cabinet Balkenende IV was replaced by theCabinet Rutte I on 14 October 2010.
Hirsch Ballin semi-retired from active politics and became active in thepublic sector and occupied numerous seats as a nonprofit director on several boards of directors and supervisory boards (Institute for Multiparty Democracy,European Christian Political Foundation,The Hague Institute for Global Justice,Carnegie Foundation,T.M.C. Asser Instituut,National Archives,Cordaid and theAnne Frank Foundation) and served on severalstate commissions and councils on behalf of the government (Scientific Council for Government Policy,the Dutch Probation Agency andPublic Pension Funds APB) and as an advocate and lobbyist for human rights,anti-war movement,social justice, and democracy. Hirsch Ballin also returned as a distinguished professor of constitutional law andEuropean law at the Tilburg University since 1 April 2011 and as a distinguished professor of human rights at the University of Amsterdam since 1 May 2011. Hirsch Ballin is also a prolific author, having written more than sixty books since 1979 about politics, democracy, and law.
Hirsch Ballin is known for his abilities as a manager andpolicy wonk. Hirsch Ballin continues to comment on political affairs as of 2025 and holds the distinction as the longest-serving Minister of Justice with 8 years, 223 days.
Hirsch Ballin was born to a Jewish father Prof. Dr. Ernst Danny Hirsch Ballin, and aRoman Catholic mother. After completing his secondary education, he studied law at theUniversity of Amsterdam and became a practicingCatholic.
He graduated in 1974, and he received aMaster of Laws degree. He received a Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1979 for his dissertation on public law and policy, which focussed on fundamental issues surrounding the work of the Advisory Council on Government Policy (WRR).
Hirsch Ballin was a research assistant in constitutional law at theUniversity of Amsterdam from 1974 to 1977. He was subsequently employed as a legal officer at theMinistry of Justice. In 1981 he was appointed professor of constitutional and administrative law atTilburg University.
From 7 November 1989 to 27 May 1994 Hirsch Ballin served asMinister of Justice andMinister for Suriname and Netherlands Antilles Affairs in theCabinet Lubbers III. In 1994 he offered his resignation, after turmoil about the Dutch Criminal Investigation Department.
After theCabinet Kok I with a coalition of theDutch Labour Party,People's Party for Freedom and Democracy andDemocrats 66 came to power theChristian Democratic Appeal was pushed to the opposition and Hirsch Ballin became aMember of the House of Representatives a post he held until 1995.
During this period he was also professor of legislative issues at theTilburg University. In 1995 he was appointed professor ofinternational law at the same university and later becameMember of the Senate. He was elected as a member of theRoyal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2005.[1] In 2000 Hirsch Ballin was appointed to theDutch Council of State and he resigned as aMember of the Senate.
Hirsch Ballin has held numerous other positions, among them government commissioner for the review of legislation, member of the Board of theNetherlands Atlantic Association, member of Committee 2004 (for the relationship between the Netherlands, theNetherlands Antilles and Aruba) and deputy justice on the Central Appeals Tribunal and theAdministrative Court for Trade and Industry. He has been editor of the Dutch administrative law journal "Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Bestuursrecht" and the book series European andInternational Law.
On 23 May 2008, satirical cartoonistGregorius Nekschot was arrested which caused (inter)national controversy.[2] Hirsch Ballin wanted to pass a bill on blasphemy, but failed. He was accused of causing the cartoonist to be brought to court for blasphemy to get a verdict to bypass the parliament.
Hirsch Ballin is also an active member of the Justice Leadership Initiative.[3]
Ernst Hirsch Ballin is married; he and his wife have two children.
| Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Knight of theOrder of the Holy Sepulchre | Holy See | 10 December 1990 | |
 | Knight of theOrder of the Netherlands Lion | Netherlands | 8 October 1994 | |
 | Grand Officer of theOrder of Leopold II | Belgium | 21 March 2008 | |
 | Officer of theLegion of Honour | France | 30 October 2014 | |
 | Grand Officer of theOrder of Orange-Nassau | Netherlands | 1 April 2019 | Elevated from Officer (3 December 2010) |
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister of Justice 1989–1994 2006–2010 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Rita Verdonk Ad interim | Succeeded by | |
| Preceded by Ruud Lubbers Ad interim | Minister for Suriname and Netherlands Antilles Affairs 1989–1994 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of the Interior Ad interim 1994 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations 2010 | Succeeded by |
| Non-profit organization positions | ||
| Preceded by Sijbolt Noorda | President of the T.M.C. Asser Instituut 2012–present | Incumbent |
| Preceded by Frans Slangen | Chairman of the Supervisory board of Cordaid 2013–2018 | Succeeded by Ton Heerts |
| Preceded by | Chairman of the Supervisory board of the Anne Frank Foundation 2017–present | Incumbent |
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