Who said which words in the Council of Ministers and was that racist? These questions lead to a cabinet crisis in The Hague after the resignation of NSC State Secretary Nora Achahbar. Only the minutes of the Council of Ministers can provide clarity, but they are secret for 20 years. Without it, it remains a matter of guessing the truth, writes Victor Pak.
Things had to change for a while for State Secretary Nora Achahbar (42) after the cabinet meeting on Monday, November 10. There, the Schoof cabinet spoke about the riots in Amsterdam after the Ajax-Maccabi Tel Aviv match. After the match, Jewish supporters of the Israeli club were hunted in the capital.
The conversation went off the rails and colleagues from the cabinet team reportedly made fierce, even racist statements. Also including her direct colleague at the Ministry of Finance, Eelco Heinen (VVD).
According to various media reports, he would have spoken about anti-Semitism in society that cannot simply be squeezed out of a pimple. It is also said that hatred of Jews is part of the DNA of some population groups.
Nora Achabar resigned
For Achahbar it is reason to leave. However, the big question for society is whether cabinet members actually made racist statements. That is why D66 leader Rob Jetten asked for the minutes to be made public. A huge step, which PvdA-GroenLinks leader Frans Timmermans and Esther Ouwehand of the Party for the Animals support.
The minutes of the Council of Ministers are secret and are only published 20 years after the date. Anyone who leaks can be investigated by the National Criminal Investigation Department and threatened with prosecution.
Early disclosure of secrets from the Council of Ministers is rare. In exceptional cases, a parliamentary committee of inquiry, the highest investigative tool of the House of Representatives, is sometimes given access to minutes or a special committee of inquiry, such as the one into the war in Iraq and the massacre in Srebrenica.
Omtzigt ‘to raise awareness’
In addition, minutes of a 2019 cabinet meeting were revealed on a one-off basis in 2021. This happened after a leak of the minutes to RTL News. They report that then CDA MP Pieter Omtzigt had been discussed. The revealed minutes confirmed that news. The Council of Ministers discussed ‘raising awareness’ of Omtzigt.
Then Prime Minister Mark Rutte (VVD) called the disclosure a unique event that would probably be a one-off. Rob Jetten thinks differently with his call to reveal the minutes of the Council of Ministers for the second time in three years.
Confidentiality is a great asset for ministers
Jetten is right that it is the only possibility to really get to grips with what happened on Monday, November 10. But it also sets a dangerous precedent. The long-term secrecy of the minutes ensures the confidentiality of the discussions conducted by the ministerial team. This means that ministers in the Council of Ministers are free to express their opinions.
Jetten relies on Article 68 of the Constitution. This describes the obligation for ministers and state secretaries to provide information to the House of Representatives if they request it. That information only needs to be shared if it does not harm the interests of the state.
Thom de Graaf warned of Rutte’s precedent
In 2021, the Council of Ministers led by Rutte himself decided to make the minutes public. Under the guise of restoring confidence in the cabinet. Thom de Graaf, vice-chairman of the Council of State and member of D66, then warned against a precedent that Rutte created. This has become true with the opposition’s appeal to reveal the minutes.
Ultimately, it remains to be seen whether a parliamentary majority will support Jetten. NSC, of all people, can help the opposition with this, but that party must first decide the fate of the cabinet.
