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

Traditionally, in the Netherlands the idea was that political parties were essentially private associations in whose internal affairs 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. This 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 recent... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Jaco van den Brink
Hans-Martien ten Napel
Dokumenttyp: Artikel
Erscheinungsdatum: 2013
Reihe/Periodikum: Utrecht Journal of International and European Law, Vol 29, Iss 77, Pp 29-41 (2013)
Verlag/Hrsg.: Ubiquity Press
Schlagwörter: Party regulation / freedom of association / freedom of religion / gender equality / passive female suffrage / democratic theory / European Court of Human Rights / Law / K / Law of Europe / KJ-KKZ
Sprache: Englisch
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-27021411
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : https://doi.org/10.5334/ujiel.bu

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