 | |
| Formation | 1982; 43 years ago (1982) |
|---|---|
| Founded at | Hoogeveen, Netherlands |
| Dissolved | 27 June 2012; 13 years ago (2012-06-27) |
| Purpose | Toadvocate the acceptance ofpedophilia and legalization of sexual relationships between adults and children |
| Leader | Ad van den Berg |
| Website | Official website at theWayback Machine (archived 10 March 2011) |
Vereniging Martijn (Dutch pronunciation:[vəˈreːnəɣɪŋmɑrˈtɛin]; "Martijn Association"; stylized asMARTIJN) was a Dutch association thatadvocated the societal acceptance of pedophilia and legalization of sexual relationships between adults and children.[1]
The organization began in 1984. It claimed to fight for "the social and societal acceptance of child-adult relationships", emphasising what they called the "consent of both child and adult" and the "freedom for the child to withdraw from the relationship". It claimed to be in favour of "objective, scientifically verifiable truth and against political terror and discrimination."[2]
From 1986 until 2006, the group publishedOK Magazine, available only through the mail and not in shops, featuring essays, letters, interviews and photographs of scantily clad or naked children, mostly boys.[1]
MARTIJN was expelled from theInternational Lesbian and Gay Association in 1994. The group was seen as "widely reviled" though Dutch prosecutors initially formed the view that it could not be prosecuted.[3]
In 2003, Vereniging MARTIJN faced opposition by theActiecomité Stop MARTIJN (Action Committee Stop MARTIJN), which organized demonstrations against them. Formed and led byMichiel Smit of theNew Right, Florens van der Kooi of theNNP, as well as Inge Bleecke ofMoeders tegen Pedofilie (Mothers against Pedophilia),[4] the committee was labelled as extreme right by their opponents.[5]
The organization was in the news in October 2007 when it was learned that photographs ofPrincess Catharina-Amalia, the three year-old daughter ofWillem-Alexander, Prince of Orange and his wifePrincess Maxima, were on display on the website's forum. The Prince went to court to request a €50,000 fine and the removal of the photos from the website.[6] The court agreed that the photos must be removed, and imposed a fine of €5,000 to be paid every time photos of children of the royal family are placed on the site again. The organisation had to pay €1,235 in costs.[7][8][9]
The home of the organization's president, Ad van den Berg, was raided by police in October 2010; downloads of illegal material had been traced back to Van den Berg's internet connection. It was announced in March 2011 that large quantities ofchild pornography were found among the confiscated material, and even more material, including computers, was confiscated when Van den Berg was arrested on 29 March.[10] In October 2018 he was convicted of possession of child pornography, and sentenced to three years imprisonment.
Suspects in theAmsterdamsex case, an investigation into the abuse of tens of children in Amsterdam kindergartens, were members of MARTIJN.[11]
On 20 May 2011, Herman Spronck, the head of the Dutch arm of theSalesian Catholic order, confirmed toRTL Nieuws that a priest under him had been on the board of MARTIJN until the Van den Berg raids. He added, "Of course we reject this and distance ourselves from this personal initiative." RTL obtained interviews both with Spronck and the priest (73-year-old "Father Van B.") in which the two defended adult-child sex as not always damaging.[12] The priest concerned had prior convictions forchild sexual abuse.[13] The provincial for the Salesians, Jos Claes, opened disciplinary procedures against Spronck.[14]
On 18 June 2011, theMinistry of Security and Justice announced that the association's activities were not illegal. Crimes committed by its members could not be attributed to the association and as such the organisation could not be prosecuted, banned or disbanded.[15]
On 27 June 2012, a Dutch court inAssen ruled that the group was illegal and ordered the group to cease activities and disband immediately. The judge stated that the group's actions and statements regarding sexual contact between adults and children were in conflict with the accepted norms and values of Dutch society. In his statement, the judge emphasised the overriding need to protect children.[16] However, in April 2013, a higher court overturned this decision, upholding the Martijn club's right tofreedom of association.[17] On 18 April 2014, theSupreme Court overturned the acquittal and reinstated the trial judge's order.[18] In 2015, an appeal by the association to theEuropean Court for Human Rights (ECHR) was rejected.[19]
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