The Dutch Political Reformed Party (SGP) and Passive Female Suffrage: A Comparison of Three High Court Judgments From the Viewpoint of Democratic Theory

• Author: Jaco van den Brink, Hans-Martien ten Napel
• Position: Lawyer at Bouwman Van Dommelen Advocaten (P.O. Box 90, 3370 AB Hardinxveld-Giessendam, The Netherlands)/Associate Professor of Constitutional and Administrative Law at Leiden University in the Netherlands, where he is also Research Fellow of the Leiden Law School
• Pages: 29-41

e Dutch Political Reformed Party (SGP) and Passive Female

Surage: A Comparison of ree High Court Judgments From

the Viewpoint of Democratic eory

Jaco van den Brink and Hans-Martien ten Napel

Merkourios 2013 – Volume 29/Issue 77, Article, pp. 29-41.

URN:NBN:NL:UI:10-1-112871

ISSN: 0927-460X

URL: www.merkourios.org

Publisher: Igitur Publishing

Copyright: this work has been licensed by the Creative Commons Attribution License (3.0)

Keywords

Party regulation, freedom of association, freedom of religion, gender equality, passive female surage, democratic theory,

European Court of Human Rights

Abstract

Traditionally, in the Netherlands the idea was that political parties were essentially private associations in whose internal

aairs the state ought not to interfere. However, the case of the Staatkundig Gereformeerde Partij (Political Reformed Party,

hereafter, SGP) has led to a political and public debate on whether this view can be maintained. is article examines the

case of the SGP, particularly from the viewpoint of democratic theory. It eventually concludes that party regulation does

not need to remain a taboo topic forever, even in the Netherlands, although with the SGP having recently changed its own

constitution it may take a while until further provisions will be introduced. Care should be taken, however, that it does not

lead to unnecessary infringements on the constitutional freedoms of minorities such as the SGP and its followers. After all,

what is the point in pursuing non-discriminatory policies that are themselves discriminatory?

Author Aliations

Jaco van den Brink (LLM, MA) is a lawyer at Bouwman Van Dommelen Advocaten (P.O. Box 90, 3370 AB Hardinxveld-

Giessendam, e Netherlands); Dr Hans-Martien ten Napel is an Associate Professor of Constitutional and Administrative

Law at Leiden University in the Netherlands, where he is also Research Fellow of the Leiden Law School (P.O. Box 9520,

2300 RA Leiden).

Article

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Merkourios - Gender in European and International Law - Vol. 29/77