Ruud Lubbers | |
|---|---|
 Lubbers in 1986 | |
| Prime Minister of the Netherlands | |
| In office 4 November 1982 – 22 August 1994 | |
| Monarch | Beatrix |
| Deputy | Gijs van Aardenne(1982–1986) Rudolf de Korte(1986–1989) Wim Kok(1989–1994) |
| Preceded by | Dries van Agt |
| Succeeded by | Wim Kok |
| United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees | |
| In office 1 January 2001 – 20 February 2005 | |
| Secretary-General | Kofi Annan |
| Preceded by | Sadako Ogata |
| Succeeded by | António Guterres |
| Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal | |
| In office 25 October 1982 – 29 January 1994 | |
| Preceded by | Dries van Agt |
| Succeeded by | Elco Brinkman |
| Parliamentary leader in theHouse of Representatives | |
| In office 14 September 1989 – 7 November 1989 | |
| Preceded by | Bert de Vries |
| Succeeded by | Elco Brinkman |
| In office 3 June 1986 – 14 July 1986 | |
| Preceded by | Bert de Vries |
| Succeeded by | Bert de Vries |
| In office 24 August 1981 – 4 November 1982 | |
| Preceded by | Dries van Agt |
| Succeeded by | Bert de Vries |
| In office 7 November 1978 – 10 June 1981 | |
| Preceded by | Willem Aantjes |
| Succeeded by | Dries van Agt |
| Member of theHouse of Representatives | |
| In office 14 September 1989 – 7 November 1989 | |
| In office 3 June 1986 – 14 July 1986 | |
| In office 22 December 1977 – 4 November 1982 | |
| In office 8 June 1977 – 8 September 1977 | |
| Minister of Economic Affairs | |
| In office 11 May 1973 – 19 December 1977 | |
| Prime Minister | Joop den Uyl |
| Preceded by | Harrie Langman |
| Succeeded by | Gijs van Aardenne |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Rudolphus Franciscus Marie Lubbers (1939-05-07)7 May 1939 Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| Died | 14 February 2018(2018-02-14) (aged 78) Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| Political party | Christian Democratic Appeal (from 1980) |
| Other political affiliations | Catholic People's Party (1964–1980) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | Rotterdam School of Economics (BEc,M.Econ) |
| Occupation |
|
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Netherlands |
| Branch/service |  Royal Netherlands Air Force |
| Years of service | 1962–1963 (Conscription) 1963–1969 (Reserve) |
| Rank |  Second lieutenant |
| Battles/wars | Cold War |
Rudolphus Franciscus Marie "Ruud"Lubbers (Dutch pronunciation:[rytˈlʏbərs]ⓘ; 7 May 1939 – 14 February 2018) was a Dutch politician, diplomat and businessman who served asprime minister of the Netherlands from 1982 to 1994, and asUnited Nations High Commissioner for Refugees from 2001 to 2005.[1] He was a member of theCatholic People's Party (KVP), which later merged to become theChristian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party.
Lubbers studied Economics at theErasmus School of Economics obtaining aMaster of Science degree and worked as a corporate director for the manufacturing company Hollandia inRotterdam from April 1963 until May 1973 and as trade association executive for theChristian Employers' Association (NCW) from January 1965 until May 1973. After theelection of 1972 Lubbers was appointed asMinister of Economic Affairs in theDen Uyl cabinet taking office on 11 May 1973. Lubbers was elected as aMember of the House of Representatives after theelection of 1977 serving from 8 June 1977 until 8 September 1977. Following thecabinet formation of 1977 Lubbers was asked to becomeMinister of Housing and Spatial Planning in the new cabinet but declined and returned as a Member of the House of Representatives on 22 December 1977, serving as afrontbencher and spokesperson forEconomic Affairs. Following the resignation ofparliamentary leaderWillem Aantjes Lubbers was selected as his successor taking office on 7 November 1978.
Shortly after theelection of 1982 incumbent prime minister andCDA leaderDries van Agt unexpectedly announced he was stepping down and Lubbers was unanimously selected as his successor as Leader and thede facto next prime minister. Followingcabinet formation of 1982 Lubbers formed thefirst Lubbers cabinet and became prime minister taking office on 4 November 1982. For theelection of 1986 Lubbers served aslead candidate and after acabinet formation formed thesecond Lubbers cabinet and continued as prime minister for a second term. For theelection of 1989 Lubbers again served as lead candidate and following another successfulcabinet formation formed thethird Lubbers cabinet and continued as prime minister for a third term. In October 1993 Lubbers announced he was stepping down as Leader, and that he would not stand at theelection of 1994 or serve another term as prime minister. He left office at the installation of thefirst Kok cabinet on 22 August 1994.
Lubbers semi-retired from active politics and became active in thepublic sector as a non-profit director and served on several state commissions and councils on behalf of the government, he also served as a distinguished visiting professor ofinternational relations andglobalization at theTilburg University and theJohn F. Kennedy School of Government of theHarvard University inCambridge, Massachusetts from February 1995 until December 2000. In November 2000 Lubbers was nominated as the nextUnited Nations High Commissioner for Refugees serving from 1 January 2001 until 20 February 2005. Following his retirement Lubbers continued to be active in the public sector and worked as an advocate, lobbyist and activist for humanitarian,conservation,environmentalism,sustainable development andclimate change issues. He was subject to some scrutiny, such as asexual harassment scandal in 2004 which led to his resignation from the United Nations.
Lubbers was known for his abilities as ateam leader andconsensus builder. During his premiership, his cabinets were responsible for major reforms tosocial security, stimulatingprivatization andsustainable development, revitalizing theeconomy following therecession in the 1980s and reducing thedeficit. Lubbers was granted the honorary title ofMinister of State on 31 January 1995 and continued to comment on political affairs as a statesman until his death at the age of 78. At 43 years, he is the youngest prime minister of the Netherlands. He was the longest-serving prime minister with 11 years, 291 days untilMark Rutte overtook this record on 2 August 2022. He is consistentlyranked both by scholars and the public as one of the best prime ministers after World War II.[2][3]
Rudolphus Franciscus Marie Lubbers was born on 7 May 1939 inRotterdam in theProvince ofSouth Holland. He studied economics at theErasmus University Rotterdam and was a student of the firstNobel Prize in Economics laureateJan Tinbergen. As suggested by the title of his 1962 thesis – "The influence of differing productivity trends in various countries on the current account of the balance of payments" – his main interest was in monetary affairs. He originally planned an academic career but was compelled by family circumstances to join the management of Lubbers' Construction Workshops and Machinery Fabricators Hollandia B.V.
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From 11 May 1973 to 19 December 1977, Ruud Lubbers was Minister of Economic Affairs in theDen Uyl cabinet and a member of the Catholic People's Party (KVP). He was an effective if sometimes somewhat bad-tempered minister. He chose to return to Parliament on the formation of the Van Agt government in 1977, becoming senior deputy parliamentary leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), the alliance between the KVP and the other two main Christian parties. His career got an unexpected boost when the leader of the parliamentary faction of the CDA,Willem Aantjes, had to resign in 1978 because of accusations that he had served in theGermanic-SS during theSecond World War. Lubbers succeeded him and suddenly found himself in a powerful political position.
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In 1982, after the general election won by Prime MinisterDries van Agt, a similar thing happened when Van Agt suddenly announced he would not serve for a third term. Lubbers took over the post. He was the youngest prime minister in Dutch history; he had turned 43 only six months earlier. Major aspects of his time in office included extensive cutbacks in public spending, the launch of far-reachingderegulation andprivatisation programs, and a massive demonstration inThe Hague (1983) against the planned installation in the Netherlands of nuclear-armed U.S.cruise missiles (which was cancelled after all due to arms reduction talks between the US and the Soviet Union).
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After leaving office in 1994, Lubbers was put forward as a candidate for the head ofNATO, but the U.S. vetoed his appointment. He was on the advisory board of theOfficial Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF), where he was regularly involved in meetings regarding the financial and monetary system.
Lubbers was regarded by many during his time in office as an ideological heir toMargaret Thatcher. One of his campaign slogans was: "Meer markt, minder overheid" (more market, less government).
In the follow-up of theEarth Summit in 1992, Lubbers engaged with theEarth Charter Initiative in cooperation withMikhail Gorbachev andMaurice Strong. TheEarth Charter document was launched in thePeace Palace in The Hague in June 2000. Lubbers was an active member of the International Earth Charter Commission and reached out, especially to youth in the Netherlands, with the message of the Earth Charter for a sustainable and peaceful world.
From 1995 to 2000, he taught Globalization Studies atTilburg University in the Netherlands and at theJohn F. Kennedy School of Government atHarvard University in the United States. He was also vice-chairman of theIndependent World Commission on the Oceans and chair of Globus, the Institute for Globalization and Development based inTilburg.
At the end of the year 2000, Lubbers was appointed by theSecretary-General of the United NationsKofi Annan to succeedSadako Ogata as UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
From 1 January 2001, Lubbers headed the UNHCR, which comprised over 5,000 employees who work across the globe, and which was concerned with an estimated 21 million refugees and internally displaced in over 120 countries worldwide. During his tenure, the number of refugees worldwide decreased by almost 22%, from 21.8 million in 2001 to close to 17.1 million at the beginning of 2004.[4]
Lubbers also favoured a generous refugee policy for the Netherlands, and he was critical of the Foreign Citizens Law (Vreemdelingenwet). He also stabilised the UNHCR's financial situation and greatly increased the financial means for the sheltering of refugees.[citation needed]
He annually donated some $300,000 to the refugee agency since he assumed his post in 2001, thereby covering his own $167,000 annual salary and travel expenses.[5]
In May 2004, Lubbers was accused by Cynthia Brzak, an American UNHCR employee, ofsexual harassment following a meeting in his office that was attended by two other UNHCR staff members. The complaint was reported in the media,[6] prompting Lubbers to inform UNHCR staff about the accusation. On this occasion, he denied any wrongdoing and rejected the allegation against him.[7] On 2 June 2004, theUnited Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), which was tasked with investigating the accusation, sent its report to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.[8][9] In its public annual report to the UN Secretary-General (presented to theUN General Assembly), the OIOS reported concerning the case that it had "submitted a report to the Secretary-General supporting the allegations and recommended that appropriate actions be taken accordingly."[10]
Lubbers responded to the OIOS report in a letter setting out to (a) deny acts of sexual harassment or abuse took place; (b) establish that such evidence of the alleged misconduct as is said to exist is insufficient and flawed; and (c) conclude that the report itself would appear to be based on an irregular statutory basis and also flawed by errors of law and reasoning."[11]
Lubbers askedMax van der Stoel, formerHigh Commissioner on National Minorities, to comment on the confidential report.[12] He concluded that "the OIOS report is deficient in objectivity and impartiality." He added, "that the only two other persons in the room did not provide evidence confirming the version given by the complainant." Furthermore, he accused UN officials of leaking information to the press and recommended that an investigation of the leaks be undertaken.[13]
The Secretary-General reviewed the report and the responses of the High Commissioner and the senior manager to the report, and decided that the complaint could not be substantiated by the evidence and therefore closed the matter."[14] He is also reported to have consulted withStephen Schwebel, an American judge and former President of theInternational Court of Justice.[15] The Secretary-General failed to order an investigation of the deliberate leaking by OIOS itself to the media as recommended by Max van der Stoel.
In February 2005, the case was in the news again when the British daily newspaperThe Independent obtained a copy of the OIOS report and, accompanied by an article byKate Holt, published its contents.[16]
Lubbers met with the Secretary-General on 18 February 2005, and resigned as High Commissioner on Sunday, 20 February 2005, stating to the press: "For more than four years I gave all my energy to UNHCR. To be frank, despite all my loyalty, insult has now been added to injury and therefore I resign as High Commissioner."[17][18] The Secretary-General's office issued a statement the same day which stated that the High Commissioner's resignation was in the best interests of the UNHCR.[19] In his letter of resignation, Lubbers stated that his resignation constituted no expression of guilt, but that he had become the victim of smearing, adding that he had resigned "in the interest of the organisation".[20] In October 2005, Annan reiterated that he had come to the conclusion that "the evidence did not support the accusation" but that, because of ongoing media-pressure, Lubbers' resignation was in the best interests of the UNHCR.[21]
During a farewell meeting for Lubbers as High Commissioner for Refugees, he received from Acting High CommissionerWendy Chamberlin the first annual UNHCR Achievement Award for exceptional services to UNHCR and for the world's refugees.[22]
In a formal statement, Netherlands Prime MinisterJan Peter Balkenende called the departure of Lubbers "bitter", since the complaint against him had been dismissed as unsustainable.[23]
Three years prior to the controversy over the sexual harassment case, Lubbers was criticised for his handling of the UNHCR/SC-UK 2002 which uncovered the widespread sexual exploitation of refugee children by aid workers and peacekeepers in three West African countries (Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone). The study team which had encountered these findings unexpectedly whilst conducting a broader assessment documented 67 allegations implicating 40 aid agencies and several peacekeeping battalions, often involving humanitarian workers and peacekeepers exchanging meagre aid supplies for sex with children.[24][25]Lubbers' response was to deny these findings, discredit the authors and excuse these behaviours; for example in a CNN interview on 8 May 2002, Lubbers was heard to deny the problem in the face of CNN's own research which confirmed the problem existed and was taken to task by the interviewer for dismissing these exploitative relationshipsinter alia as 'romances'.[26] The UN General Assembly passed resolution A/RES/57/306, 'Investigation into sexual exploitation of refugees by aid workers in West Africa' in May 2003, requiring the UN to take action at the highest level to tackle such abuses.[27] This led to the UN Secretary-General's Bulletin, 'Special measures for protection from sexual exploitation and sexual abuse' in October 2003,[28] and an endorsement of the Inter-agency Standing Committee's working group on sexual abuse and exploitation which had already been set up a year earlier in June 2002 in response to the report.[29]
After the fall of theSecond Balkenende cabinet, Lubbers became theinformateur for theformation of thedemissionary interimThird Balkenende cabinet.[30]
For the2010 Dutch cabinet formation, after coalition meetings betweenPeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy,Labour Party,Democrats 66, andGreenLeft failed to form a newPurple government, Lubbers was asked again to become Informateur to seek possibilities for a new coalition.[31]
On 10 October 1962, Lubbers marriedRia Hoogeweegen [nl] (1940–2024)[32][33][34][35] and had two sons and one daughter, Paul, Bart and Heleen.
Lubbers died in Rotterdam on 14 February 2018, at the age of 78.[36][37] Among the world leaders who offered condolences were formerPresident of the Soviet UnionMikhail Gorbachev,[38]Prime Minister of Russia and formerPresident of RussiaDmitry Medvedev,[39]Chancellor of GermanyAngela Merkel,[40]Secretary-General of the United Nations and formerPrime Minister of Portugal andUnited Nations High Commissioner for RefugeesAntónio Guterres,[41]United Nations High Commissioner for RefugeesFilippo Grandi[42] andPresident of the European Commission and formerPrime Minister of LuxembourgJean-Claude Juncker.[43] His ceremonial funeral was held in Rotterdam on 20 February 2018 and was attended by Prime MinisterMark Rutte and all living formerPrime MinistersDries van Agt,Wim Kok andJan Peter Balkenende and other high-profile (former) politicians. This was also the last public appearance of his successor as Prime Minister Wim Kok, who himself died eight months later at the age of 80.[44][45][46]
In 2024 it was revealed Lubbers died viaeuthanasia after having been diagnosed withvascular dementia some years prior.[47]
| Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Knight Grand Cross of theOrder of the Netherlands Lion | Netherlands | 8 October 1994 | Elevated from Knight (11 April 1978) |
| Ribbon bar | Award | Country | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Honorary citizen ofMaastricht | Netherlands | 1994 | |
| Four Freedoms Award (Special Presentation) | United States / Netherlands | 3 April 1995 | |
| Van Oldenbarneveltpenning ofRotterdam | Netherlands | 2003 |
| University | Field | City / Country | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro | Political science and Economics | Vila Real, Portugal | 1989 |
| Georgetown University | Law | Washington, D.C., United States | 1993 |
| Hankuk University of Foreign Studies | Political science | Seoul,South-Korea | 1993 |
| Grand Valley State University | Political science | Allendale,Michigan, United States | 1994 |
| Radboud University Nijmegen | Economics | Nijmegen, Netherlands | 6 September 2004 |
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Leader of theChristian Democratic Appeal in theHouse of Representatives 1978–1981 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Leader of theChristian Democratic Appeal in theHouse of Representatives 1981–1982 | Succeeded by |
| Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal 1982–1994 | Succeeded by | |
| Preceded by | Leader of theChristian Democratic Appeal in theHouse of Representatives 1986 | Succeeded by |
| Leader of theChristian Democratic Appeal in theHouse of Representatives 1989 | Succeeded by | |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Minister of Economic Affairs 1973–1977 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Prime Minister of the Netherlands Minister of General Affairs 1982–1994 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister for Netherlands Antilles and Aruba Affairs Acting 1989 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister for Netherlands Antilles and Aruba Affairs 1994 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 2001–2005 | Succeeded by |
| Non-profit organization positions | ||
| Preceded by | President of theWorld Wide Fund for Nature 1999–2001 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chairman of theEnergy Research Centre of the Netherlands 2005–2012 | Succeeded by |
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