Hans Dijkstal | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Hans Dijkstal in 1985 | |
| Parliamentary leader in the House of Representatives | |
| In office 30 July 1998 – 23 May 2002 | |
| Preceded by | Frits Bolkestein |
| Succeeded by | Gerrit Zalm |
| Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy | |
| In office 30 July 1998 – 16 May 2002 | |
| Preceded by | Frits Bolkestein |
| Succeeded by | Gerrit Zalm |
| Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands | |
| In office 22 August 1994 – 3 August 1998 Serving with Hans van Mierlo | |
| Prime Minister | Wim Kok |
| Preceded by | Wim Kok |
| Succeeded by | Els Borst Annemarie Jorritsma |
| Minister of the Interior | |
| In office 22 August 1994 – 3 August 1998 | |
| Prime Minister | Wim Kok |
| Preceded by | Dieuwke de Graaff-Nauta |
| Succeeded by | Bram Peper as Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations |
| Member of the House of Representatives | |
| In office 19 May 1998 – 1 September 2002 | |
| In office 30 July 1986 – 22 August 1994 | |
| In office 11 November 1982 – 3 June 1986 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Henri Frans Dijkstal (1943-02-28)28 February 1943 Port Said,Egypt |
| Died | 9 May 2010(2010-05-09) (aged 67) Wassenaar,Netherlands |
| Cause of death | Bone cancer |
| Political party | People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (from 1966) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 daughters and 1 son |
| Alma mater | University of Amsterdam (Bachelor of Law) |
| Occupation | Politician ·Financial adviser ·Management consultant ·Corporate director ·Nonprofit director ·Teacher ·Critic ·Political pundit ·Lobbyist ·Activist |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Netherlands |
| Branch/service | Royal Netherlands Air Force |
| Years of service | 1965–1967 (Conscription) 1967–1973 (Reserve) |
| Rank |  Lieutenant |
| Unit | Air Operations Control Station Nieuw-Milligen |
| Battles/wars | Cold War |
Henri Frans "Hans"Dijkstal (28 February 1943 – 9 May 2010) was a Dutch politician and financial adviser,[1] who served as leader of thePeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD)
Dijkstal was born inPort Said,Egypt, where his father and grandfather worked inshipping. He was able to speak fluentArabic before moving to the Netherlands at age five. Dijkstal applied at theUniversity of Amsterdam in March 1961majoring inLaw and obtaining aBachelor of Laws degree in June 1964. Dijkstal wasconscripted in theRoyal Netherlands Air Force serving as aLieutenant and was stationed at theAir Operations Control Station Nieuw-Milligen as anair traffic controller from April 1965 until May 1967. Dijkstal worked as a financial adviser, management consultant and civics teacher inWassenaar from August 1967 until November 1982. Dijkstal served on theMunicipal Council of Wassenaar from May 1974 until April 1986 and served as analderman in Wassenaar from March 1978 until July 1983.
Dijkstal became a member of theHouse of Representatives afterWim van Eekelen was appointed asState Secretary for Foreign Affairs in theLubbers I cabinet after theelection of 1982, serving from 11 November 1982 until 3 June 1986. Dijkstal returned to the House of Representatives afterEd Nijpels was appointed asMinister of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment in theLubbers II cabinet after theelection of 1986, taking office on 30 July 1986 serving as afrontbencher chairing the parliamentary committee for Petitions and the Citizen Initiatives andspokesperson for minorities and welfare. After theelection of 1994 Dijkstal was appointed asDeputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands andMinister of the Interior in theKok I cabinet, taking office on 22 August 1994. After theelection of 1998 Dijkstal returned to the House of Representatives, taking office on 19 May 1998.
Following thecabinet formation of 1998 Dijkstal per his own request asked not to be considered for a cabinet post in the newcabinet, he was seen by the party's leadership as the "favorite son" to succeedFrits Bolkenstein asLeader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy. In July 1998, Bolkestein announced he was stepping down, and the party leadership approached Dijkstal to succeed him. Dijkstal accepted and became the Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy and parliamentary leader in the House of Representatives on 30 July 1998.
For theelection of 2002 Dijkstal served aslead candidate. Dijkstal andLabour LeaderAd Melkert were the front runners to become the nextPrime Minister, but the unexpected arrival ofPim Fortuyn ofLivable Netherlands (LN) and later thePim Fortuyn List (LPF), turned the polls. Fortuyn blamed the problems in the country on thePurple cabinets (in which both Dijkstal and Melkert served as ministers). Fortuyn depicted Dijkstal and Melkert as twobureaucrats who did not understand the feelings and problems among the population. After a heated campaign a mere days before the election, Fortuyn wasassassinated inHilversum. The VVD suffered a big loss, losing 14 seats and now had 24 seats in the House of Representatives. Dijkstal accepted responsibility for the defeat, and announced his resignation as leader on 16 May 2002. He continued to serve in the House of Representatives as abackbencher until his resignation on 1 September 2002.
When his former party started taking a heavy stance onallochtonen (immigrants and their children) he teamed up with former politicians from a wide range of other parties in protest, to strive for a more tolerant society, under the nameEen Land Een Samenleving ("One Country One Society").[2][3]
Dijkstal retired from national politics and became active in the private and public sectors and occupied numerous seats as a corporate director and nonprofit director on several boards of directors and supervisory boards (Institute for Multiparty Democracy,International Institute of Social History,Naturalis Biodiversity Center,Public Pension Funds APB and theAnne Frank Foundation) and served on several state commissions and councils on behalf of the government (Council for Public Administration,Kadaster and theNetherlands Film Fund) and as an advocate, lobbyist and activist for social justice and democracy.
On 29 July 1966 he married Anneke Dijkstal and became the father of two daughters.[4]
He was a fan and admirer ofStar Trek.[5]
Dijkstal continued to comment on political affairs until his death frombone cancer at the age of 67.[6]
| Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Officer of theOrder of Orange-Nassau | Netherlands | 30 October 1998 |
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy 1998–2002 | Succeeded by |
| Parliamentary leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy in theHouse of Representatives 1998–2002 | ||
| Preceded by | Lead candidate of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy 2002 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands 1994–1998 Served alongside:Hans van Mierlo | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of the Interior 1994–1998 | Succeeded by |
| Non-profit organization positions | ||
| Preceded by Unknown | Chairman of the Netherlands Film Fund 2003–2007 | Succeeded by Unknown |
| Preceded by Unknown | Chairman of the Naturalis Biodiversity Center 2004–2010 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
