Ministers, Shell admit failings over Groningen gas fields

DutchNews, February 24, 2023 

This cafe in Zeerijp has been shored up for years. Photo: Graham Dockery

Mines minister Hans Vijlbrief has described the findings of the parliamentary inquiry set up to look into problems caused by the exploitation of a massive gas field under Groningen as ‘extremely serious’. ‘

If you read the facts one after another, it takes your breath away,’ he told reporters after the report’s presentation. ‘I feel shame more than anything else, and that means we have to do something.’ 

The highly damning report said that the state and oil firms had a ‘debt of honour’ to the people of Groningen, whose interests were continually subordinated to that of earning money. 

More than 1,600 quakes of up to 3.6 on the Richter scale have hit the province since 1986, damaging tens of thousands of homes, but it took until 2018 for the government to start winding down gas production. 

Prime minister Mark Rutte said in a short statement that ‘what began at the end of the 1950s as something wonderful ended up in a nightmare for the people of Groningen. ‘Hopefully we can do something to win back their trust,’ he said. ‘The report does justice to the Groningers and the cabinet must do that too.’ 

The cabinet will issue a formal reaction at a later date. 

Oil companies 

Shell and ExxonMobil, who jointly own the gas exploration company NAM, have described the report as an ‘important milestone’ which needs to be studied closely. 

Both were criticised in the report alongside the government for failing to take the concerns of locals seriously and for putting profit above people. ‘

The people of Groningen carried a great deal of the disadvantages of the gas extraction but only a few of the benefits,’ Shell Nederland president Marjan van Loon said in a reaction. 

The companies involved in gas extraction, including Shell, did not listen to the people of Groningen properly when they expressed their concerns about the damage to their homes and the safety risks, she said. ‘As a company, we have important lessons to learn.’

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"Recalibration of Free Choice"– Mar 3, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) - (Subjects: (Old) Souls, Midpoint on 21-12-2012, Shift of Human Consciousness, Black & White vs. Color, 1 - Spirituality (Religions) shifting, Loose a Pope “soon”, 2 - Humans will change react to drama, 3 - Civilizations/Population on Earth, 4 - Alternate energy sources (Geothermal, Tidal (Paddle wheels), Wind), 5 – Financials Institutes/concepts will change (Integrity – Ethical) , 6 - News/Media/TV to change, 7 – Big Pharmaceutical company will collapse “soon”, (Keep people sick), (Integrity – Ethical) 8 – Wars will be over on Earth, Global Unity, … etc.) - (Text version)

“… 4 - Energy (again)

The natural resources of the planet are finite and will not support the continuation of what you've been doing. We've been saying this for a decade. Watch for increased science and increased funding for alternate ways of creating electricity (finally). Watch for the very companies who have the most to lose being the ones who fund it. It is the beginning of a full realization that a change of thinking is at hand. You can take things from Gaia that are energy, instead of physical resources. We speak yet; again about geothermal, about tidal, about wind. Again, we plead with you not to over-engineer this. For one of the things that Human Beings do in a technological age is to over-engineer simple things. Look at nuclear - the most over-engineered and expensive steam engine in existence!

Your current ideas of capturing energy from tidal and wave motion don't have to be technical marvels. Think paddle wheel on a pier with waves, which will create energy in both directions [waves coming and going] tied to a generator that can power dozens of neighborhoods, not full cities. Think simple and decentralize the idea of utilities. The same goes for wind and geothermal. Think of utilities for groups of homes in a cluster. You won't have a grid failure if there is no grid. This is the way of the future, and you'll be more inclined to have it sooner than later if you do this, and it won't cost as much…

Water

We've told you that one of the greatest natural resources of the planet, which is going to shift and change and be mysterious to you, is fresh water. It's going to be the next gold, dear ones. So, we have also given you some hints and examples and again we plead: Even before the potentials of running out of it, learn how to desalinate water in real time without heat. It's there, it's doable, and some already have it in the lab. This will create inexpensive fresh water for the planet. 

There is a change of attitude that is starting to occur. Slowly you're starting to see it and the only thing getting in the way of it are those companies with the big money who currently have the old system. That's starting to change as well. For the big money always wants to invest in what it knows is coming next, but it wants to create what is coming next within the framework of what it has "on the shelf." What is on the shelf is oil, coal, dams, and non-renewable resource usage. It hasn't changed much in the last 100 years, has it? Now you will see a change of free choice. You're going to see decisions made in the boardrooms that would have curled the toes of those two generations ago. Now "the worst thing they could do" might become "the best thing they could do." That, dear ones, is a change of free choice concept. When the thinkers of tomorrow see options that were never options before, that is a shift. That was number four.”

“Afraid of Love” + “What’s Wrong Today”, Laguna Hills, California, US(2), Dec 9, 2018 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll)

• Stagnation of the current US Politics: Compassioned (US) leaders will arise in the future
• Shortage of fresh/drinking water: Invention to make salt from salt water magnetic and remove it with water desalination process in high volumes
• Pollution on Earth: 1 - Stop killing the environment! / 2 - The rise of temperature on Earth is “temporary” and is part of the "regular" Watercycle.
• Replacement of current fossil energy source: Use of magnetics based (small/big) engines to produces electricity / free energy
• Plastic pollution in the oceans: Invention to remove the plastics gradually from the oceans

Dutch firms are still doing business in Russia, Yale database shows

DutchNews, February 24, 2023 

The Heineken brand is no longer sold in Russia. Photo: Depositphotos.com

A number of Dutch companies are continuing to do business in Russia alongside Heineken, which was slammed earlier this week for launching new products on the Russian market.

 Lighting company Signify, coffee company JDE Peets, banking group ING and Philips are among the companies which are ‘buying time’ in Russia, according to a database of 1,200 companies compiled by researchers at Yale University. 

The Yale database includes 50 Dutch firms and none are classified as ‘digging in’, which means carrying on business as normal. 

The database is based on company statements and news coverage. Heineken is listed as one of 18 Dutch firms to withdraw completely, despite a report by Follow the Money earlier this week that the company is still operating in Russia. 

Heineken says its Russian unit is up for sale and says the introduction of new beers is something ‘our local colleagues have done to keep the company going and to ensure their livelihoods are not at risk.

’ ‘We will not profit from any sale or transfer of ownership. We aim to reach an agreement in the first half of 2023,’ according to the company’s 2022 annual report. 

Questions 

Representatives from ING, Philips and JDE Peet’s (Douwe Egberts) appeared earlier this month before a committee of MPs to explain why they were still operating in Russia, despite the sanctions. 

ING’s operations there mainly consist of company loans and the bank is trying to recover the money, chairman Steven van Rijswijk told MPs. ‘If we don’t then it is a gift to the Russian client,’ he said. 

Philips spokesman Jan-Willem Scheijgrond told MPs that the company only supplies hospital equipment to Russian hospitals, and that the situation has been discussed with the Ukrainian authorities. ‘

They don’t like it but they understand it. It is a humanitarian issue,’ he said. ‘They said, “go ahead but don’t make any money on it”. We don’t. We make a loss.’ 

On Wednesday, national statistics agency CBS said Dutch exports to Russia had fallen by 38% since Moscow invaded Ukraine a year ago.

Femke Bol sets new world record in the 400 metres indoors

DutchNews, February 19, 2023

Femke Bol after the race. Photo: Olaf Kraak

Dutch 400 metre runner Femke Bol caused a sensation at the Dutch indoor athletics championships in Apeldoorn on Sunday by setting a new world record of 49.26 seconds. 

Bol smashed the 41-year-old record held by Jarmila Kratochvílová from the then-Czechoslovakia by three tenths of a second. She had first dipped under the 50 second mark earlier in Metz last weekend. 

Bol, who described the race as ‘almost perfect’,  now heads for the European championships in Istanbul next month as top favourite for the title. The 22-year-old took the European title in Poland in 2021 and won a bronze for the 400 metres hurdles at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

WORLD RECORD!😱😍

Femke Bol vliegt naar een nieuw wereldrecord op de 400 meter. 49.26 seconden. Buitenaards. 👑#NKindoor pic.twitter.com/RfRZn0IrgD

— Atletiekunie (@Atletiekunie) February 19, 2023

Massive fundraiser for earthquake victims brings in €89 million

DutchNews, February 16, 2023 

Culture minister Gunay Uslu and singer Karsu Donmez as the
total is announced. Photo: Remko de Waal ANP

Wednesday’s television and radio charity marathon for the victims of the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria had raised almost €89 million by the end of broadcasting, the organisers said. 

‘It is overwhelming how much money has been given from across the country,’ said Michiel Servaes, the chairman of the Giro555 fund raising initiative, which represents 11 aid groups.

‘So many people have rung the panel to make donations, donated online and organised events,’ he said. Nine of the groups behind Giro555 are active in the relief effort and the money will be divided between them. 

The massive quakes hit the region 10 days ago and the death toll has since mounted to more than 41,000. 

On Wednesday, Dutch rescue teams pulled four people alive from under the rubble.

Vermeer shines at 'once in history' Amsterdam show

Yahoo – AFP, Danny Kemp, February 7, 2023 

The Dutch master Johannes Vermeer himself never got the chance to see so many of his paintings in the same place. 

Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum has brought together 28 of Vermeer's luminous masterpieces from around the world, in the largest-ever exhibition of the 17th century artist's works. 

Curators hope the blockbuster show, featuring some three-quarters of his modest output of around 35 paintings, will also shed light on the enigmatic creator of "Girl with a Pearl Earring" and "The Milkmaid". 

"Never in history have 28 paintings by Vermeer been gathered," Rijksmuseum General Director Taco Dibbits told AFP at a preview. 

"He didn't even see that many together himself." 

Famed for their use of light and colour and their tranquil yet haunting indoor scenes, Vermeer's paintings practically shine from the walls of the dimmed galleries at the Rijksmuseum. 

The works have been brought from museums and collections around the world, including Washington, New York, Tokyo, London, Paris, Dublin. 

"It's a very happy reunion," said Dibbits. 

Interest is so intense that the Rijksmuseum has already sold 200,000 tickets for the exhibition, which opens on Friday until June 4, the most ever for one of its shows. 

'Wonderful' 

Part of the appeal is the mystery surrounding the man often called the  "Sphinx of Delft". 

Vermeer (1632-1675) was born into a family of Calvinist traders but converted to Catholicism after marrying a wealthy woman with whom he had 11 children. 

But there are very few records of his life, and compared to Dutch "Golden Age" artists such as Rembrandt his work languished in obscurity, until a reappraisal in the 19th century. 

Vermeer rose to megastar status with the publication of the novel "Girl with a Pearl Earring" by US author Tracy Chevalier, based on the painting that has been loaned for the exhibition by the Mauritshuis in The Hague. 

The book also spawned a 2003 Hollywood movie starring Scarlett Johansson and Colin Firth. 

"Wonderful, it's wonderful," Chevalier told AFP after viewing the exhibition. 

"I'm so glad people are going to see these paintings together and build a picture for themselves of what Vermeer was," said the author. 

Most of Vermeer's works focus on women, often caught in the midst of acts like writing a letter or playing a musical instrument, and Chevalier said he was "just presenting women in the best possible light, literally and figuratively". 

Her favourite in the exhibition -- apart from "Girl with a Pearl Earring", of course -- was "The Lacemaker", a tiny work of exquisite beauty loaned by The Louvre in Paris, she said. 

'Time stands still' 

Highlights also include three works from the Frick Collection in New York, the newly restored "Girl Reading a Letter at the Window" from Dresden, and "Woman Holding a Balance" from the National Gallery in Washington DC. 

For the curators, who say it is a "once in history" exhibition, Vermeer's appeal is also about his creation of quiet worlds so realistic that the viewer feels they could lose themself inside. 

"We live in a world today where it's so hectic," said Dibbits. 

"He had more than 10 children, there was a war going on outside in Europe, yet still he creates these ideal spaces where time stands still." 

The exhibition has however felt the pressures of the real, modern world, with the authenticity of one of its works -- "Girl with a Flute" -- being called into question by the gallery that loaned it. 

The National Gallery of Art in Washington said last year it was likely painted by a "studio associate of Vermeer" but the Rijksmuseum says it thinks it's authentic. 

"It's very important to have these discussions," said Dibbits. 

The magic of the master is still bewitching for staff at the Rijksmuseum. 

"For me personally Vermeer is one of the greatest artists in the world," said Gregor Weber, the Rijksmuseum's fine arts department head and author of a recent book showing Vermeer was influenced by a pinhole camera that was first introduced to him by Jesuit priests. 

"To have three quarters of his oeuvre together here in Amsterdam under one roof is the crown of my work."

Dutch To Ban Unhealthy Designer Pets

Barrons – AFP, Charlotte VAN OUWERKERK, January 20, 2023 

The Netherlands wants to ban the ownership of pets such as flat-faced dogs
.(Frank Rumpenhorst)

The Netherlands wants to ban pets such as flat-faced dogs and cats with folded ears, which look sweet but suffer "miserable" health problems, the government said on Friday. 

Dutch Agriculture Minister Piet Adema said he would seek to outlaw the ownership of the designer breeds and to ban photos of them in advertising or on social media. 

"We make life miserable for innocent animals, purely because we think they are 'beautiful' and 'cute'," Adema said in a statement.

 "That is why today we are taking a big step towards a Netherlands where no pet has to suffer from his or her appearance." 

Despite sought-after looks that have made them a favourite with celebrities and a fixture among social media influencers, such pets suffer from a range of health conditions. 

The Dutch minister said that owners often "have the best of intentions but are often unaware of the dark side of their pets' appearance".

 "This subject touches me as a minister but also as a human," added Adema. 

The government would now work out a full list of affected breeds, he said, adding that it could take some time. 

But the public broadcaster NOS said squish-faced pugs could be among those banned. 

The Netherlands banned the breeding of pets that are affected by their appearance in 2014, but some animals were still being traded illegally or bought from abroad. 

The proposed new rules are designed to close a loophole so that it will also be illegal to own them. 

In 2019, the Dutch government updated the rules to specifically apply to dogs whose snout is less than half the length of their skull. 

"Dogs with snouts that are too short are constantly out of breath, making them gasp throughout their life," Adema said in a letter to parliament setting out the proposal. 

"Dogs that have a deviant skull shape may suffer from a permanent headache. 

"Cats with folding ears have deviated cartilage which can cause them a lot of pain." 

Short-snouted dogs are constantly out of breath, the Dutch agriculture minister
said. (Mladen ANTONOV)

The fold-eared felines would definitely qualify for a ban, as was already the case in the Flanders region of neighbouring Belgium, the agriculture ministry said. 

"There is scientific evidence for these cats that they always suffer because they are a have a cartilage defect caused by a specific gene," it said in briefing notes accompanying the proposal. 

The government had asked for advice from experts in veterinary genetics at the University of Utrecht in the central Netherlands, it added. 

Any ban would come in after a transition period. People who currently own one of the pets would be allowed to keep them until the animal dies. 

Recent studies have found that pugs and other dogs bred to have short noses, such as French and English bulldogs, are more prone to health problems, particularly with breathing.

Prince Harry praises Dutch monarchy for ‘leading by example’

DutchNews, January 11, 2023 

Photo: Mischa Schoemaker MMP ANP

Britain’s prince Harry, who is at the centre of a media storm following the publication of his autobiography Spare, has praised the Dutch and Norwegian royal families for their efforts to combat prejudice. 

The prince, who has accused the British royals and the press for not accepting his mixed-race wife Megan, said in an interview on broadcaster ABC that the Dutch and Norwegian monarchs are a good example to the rest. 

‘I genuinely believe the best thing for the monarchy is to modernise, especially because of their role in the commonwealth,’ he said. 

‘In the last couple of months, the king of the Netherlands and the king of Norway have led by example, and I congratulate them for that, enormously, and I don’t think they have been given enough credit for what they have done. But it is huge, and more of that is needed.’ 

In his Christmas message to the nation, king Willem-Alexander referred specifically to the apologies given by the government earlier in the month for the Netherlands’ role in slavery.

 The statement is the start of long journey in which the pain of the past has been recognised, he said. 

‘Over the past year, my wife and I have spoken to people of all ages about this topic, including descendants of people who lived in slavery several generations ago,’ the king said. ‘We will remain involved in this coming commemorative year.’ 

The king will, for example, be present at Keti Koti, the annual celebration marking the end of slavery in the Netherlands, in July. This year’s event marks 150 years since slavery was actually abolished. 

The king has also commissioned research into the colonialartifacts held in the royal collection to make sure none of it was stolen or taken by force.

Three sentenced to life for flight MH17 downing

Yahoo – AFP, Danny KEMP, November 17, 2022 

A Dutch court on Thursday sentenced three men to life imprisonment over the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014, in the early stages of a war that eight years later would put the world on edge. 

Russians Igor Girkin and Sergei Dubinsky and Ukrainian Leonid Kharchenko were found guilty in absentia of murdering all 298 people on board and of bringing down the Boeing 777 with a Russian-supplied missile. A fourth man was acquitted. 

Moscow slammed the "scandalous" verdict as politically motivated, while Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky -- battling a full-scale Russian invasion after years of low-level fighting in the east -- praised it as "important". 

Relatives of MH17 victims blinked away tears as the verdicts were read out in a courtroom packed with families who had travelled from around the world for the end of the two-and-a-half-year trial. 

"The court calls the proven charges so severe that it holds that only the highest possible prison sentence would be appropriate," head judge Hendrik Steenhuis said.

 "Imposing these sentences cannot take away the pain and suffering, but there's hope that today clarity has been provided about who is to blame." 

But none of the suspects was at the high-security court on the outskirts of Schiphol Airport, where the doomed plane took off, after Russia refused to extradite them. 

'Justice has spoken'

The trial represents the end of a long search for justice for the victims of the disaster, who came from 10 countries, including 196 Dutch, 43 Malaysians and 38 Australians. 

"Justice has spoken. We wanted justice to be done and that happened, in a very well-balanced verdict," Piet Ploeg, chairman of the MH17 foundation, who lost his brother, sister-in-law and nephew, told AFP. 

"The role of Russia has been very clearly confirmed by the court." 

Flight MH17 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was cruising at 33,000 feet (10,000 metres) over war-torn eastern Ukraine when a BUK missile exploded near the cockpit on July 17, 2014, tearing the plane apart. 

The crash triggered global outrage and sanctions against Moscow, with Ukraine's famed sunflower fields littered with bodies and wreckage. Some victims, including children, were still strapped into their seats. 

Judges found Girkin, Dubinsky and Kharchenko could all be held responsible for the transport of the missile from a military base in Russia and deploying it to the launch site -- even if they did not pull the trigger. 

There was not enough evidence to show the involvement of Oleg Pulatov, the only suspect to have legal representation during the trial, they said. 

All the suspects were members of the Donetsk People's Republic, an armed group fighting Ukraine's government that judges ruled was directly controlled by Russia. 

'Ample evidence'

Girkin, 51, a former Russian spy who became the so-called defence minister of the DPR, was in regular contact with Moscow, particularly over the return of the missile after the tragedy, the court ruled.  

Kharchenko, 50, who allegedly led a separatist unit, received direct orders from Dubinsky, 60, who has also been tied to Russian intelligence, to escort the missile to the final launch site, the court ruled. 

The defendants had apparently intended to shoot down a Ukrainian military plane rather than a civilian jet but that did not affect their guilt, the judges said. 

Russia's continued denials that it controlled the DPR meanwhile meant the defendants could not claim immunity from prosecution as formal combatants, they added. 

The court ruled there was "ample evidence" to show the plane was brought down by the missile, and ruled out "alternative scenarios" suggested by the defence, including that it was shot down by a Ukrainian fighter jet. 

The BUK missile had been identified as coming from the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade from Kursk in Russia, prosecutors said. 

'Unprecedented pressure'

Moscow has denied all involvement in the crash, and on Thursday it accused the Dutch court of giving its verdict under "unprecedented pressure" from politicians and the media. 

The Russian foreign ministry said the trial could go down history as "one of the most scandalous in the history of legal proceedings with its extensive list of oddities, inconsistencies and dubious arguments of the prosecution". 

Ukraine's Zelensky said on Twitter that "holding the instigators to account is crucial too because a sense of impunity leads to new crimes". 

The United States welcomed the verdict as "an important moment in ongoing efforts to deliver justice for the 298 individuals who lost their lives". 

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said the convictions were "not the end", while NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg they were an "important day for justice and accountability".

Hungarian FA suspends Dutch coach after his protest about racism

DutchNews, October 26, 2022 

Ricardo Moniz while still coach of Excelsior. Photo: Jan den Breejen ANP 

The Hungarian football association has suspended Dutch coach Ricardo Moniz after he was given a red card for trying to take his team off the pitch when monkey noises were directed at some of his players. 

Moniz, who coaches Zalaegerszegi TE, reacted furiously to the second incident in four days and the refusal by match officials to take action. 

The incident happened on Sunday during the game between Zalaegerszegi TE and Honvéd.

The club’s director Attila Dragóner said both players and the club supported Moniz’ action. ‘We will continue to maintain there is no place for racism on the football pitch,’ he is quoted by Dutch media as saying. 

Moniz said he would protest about the punishment. ‘I won’t accept it and I will take it to Uefa. I have had enough,’ he said. 

Moniz was coach at Dutch club Excelsior in 2019 when striker Ahmad Mendes Moreira was targeted by racist taunting by Den Bosch fans. That incident was the first time a professional match in the Netherlands was stopped because of racism.

Annemiek van Vleuten adds world road race crown to 2022 titles

DutchNews, September 24, 2022 

Annemiek van Vleuten waves before receiving her gold medal. Photo: Rick Rycroft AP

Cyclist Annemiek van Vleuten has won the world road race title in Wollongong in Australia, despite having fractured an elbow three days previously. 

Van Vleuten, who is 39 and retiring at the end of the 2023 season, surprised the pack by launching a solo effort with some 600 metres to go, in what commentators say is the greatest win of her career. 

Earlier this summer the 2019 world champion and reigning Olympic world time trial winner won the Italian, French and Spanish tours. 

‘Maybe this is my best victory,’ she said afterwards. ‘I am still speechless, I still can’t believe it, she said after the race. ‘I was waiting for them to get back at me, but they did not move.’

Solemn Dutch royals attend funeral for Britain’s queen Elizabeth

DutchNews, September 19, 2022 

Princess Beatrix (L), king Willem-Alexander and queen Maxima leave after
the service. Photo: Ben Stansall / POOL / AFP

Dutch king Willem-Alexander, queen Maxima and princess Beatrix had front row seats at the funeral ceremony held for British queen Elizabeth at Westminster Abbey in London on Monday. 

The Dutch royals were among a host of kings, queens, presidents and prime ministers to attend the event, ten days after Elizabeth died at the age of 96. 

Oranjes op prominente plek bij uitvaart Queen https://t.co/G7wk0Jj5wg pic.twitter.com/tod7c0wIOx

— RTL Nieuws (@RTLnieuws) September 19, 2022

Royalty expert Pieter Klein Beernink told the Telegraaf that the Dutch family had been given such a prominent position in front of the flag-draped coffin because of the close ties between the two families. 

Princess Beatrix, the former Dutch queen who abdicated in favour of her son in 2013 at the age of 75, would often cross the channel incognito to have lunch or dinner with Elizabeth, Klein Beernink said. 

A black mourning pennant was hoisted above the Noordeinde palace in The Hague as a mark of respect for the British queen, who visited the Netherlands several times during her 70-year reign. 

Vandaag vindt de uitvaart van Koningin Elizabeth II plaats. Op Paleis Noordeinde is de rouwwimpel gehesen. De Koning, Koningin Máxima en Prinses Beatrix zijn bij de uitvaartplechtigheid aanwezig. pic.twitter.com/rvnULpWKwa

— Koninklijk Huis (@koninklijkhuis) September 19, 2022

The Dutch royals will also attend a much smaller ceremony at Windsor Castle later on Monday, broadcaster NOS said. 

Embassy 

The British embassy in The Hague and the consulate were both closed on Monday, which was a bank holiday in Britain, but dozens of well-wishers have left flowers outside the building.

Photo: Dutch News

Over 2,000 people, including prime minister Mark Rutte, signed the condolence book at the embassy and there are also books available for signing at Anglican churches dotted throughout the country. 

The book at the Anglican church on the Kinderhuissingel in Haarlem, for example, will be open for a few more weeks. 

Monday’s ceremony has dominated the Dutch as well as the British media, with live blogs on most news websites and coverage from the funeral procession and ceremony on television.

Annemiek van Vleuten wins first Tour de France Femmes

DutchNews, August 1, 2022

Annemiek van Vleuten celebrates her overall leader yellow jersey at
the end of final stage. Photo: Jeff Pachoud / AFP

Dutch rider Annemiek van Vleuten has won the first edition of a new stage cycling race, the Tour de France Femmes. 

Van Vleuten took the title by almost four minutes, despite having health problems in the early stages and changing her bike several times. With a price of €250,000, it is the richest race in women’s cycling. 

Van Vleuten, 39, won the final stage by 30 seconds over the Netherlands’ Demi Vollering, who also finished the race second overall. Polish rider Katarzyna Niewiadoma was third. 

Race review 

Van Vleuten also has three Giro d’Italia Internazionale Femminile titles, Olympic gold in the time trial and two world championship golds in the same discipline on her name. 

‘I’m super proud to be the first winner of the Tour de France for women, of this new version,’ Van Vleuten said after her victory. ‘I hope it’s a big start and we can build this into an even bigger event. It’s a milestone to win the first one of, hopefully, many more.’ 

The eight day event is organized by the Amaury Sport Organisation which also runs the Tour de France and is part of the UCI women’s world tour. 

Dutch uncover Russian spy, trying to work for the International Criminal Court

DutchNews, June 16, 2022 

Photo: Depositphotos.com

The Dutch security service AIVD has uncovered a Russian national who was posing as a Brazilian to get work at the International Criminal Court in The Hague. 

The man had already been accepted as an intern when he was arrested at Schiphol airport in May, AIVD chief Erik Akerboom said. 

It is rare that an intelligence officer of ‘such calibre’ is arrested, Akerboom said. The man, named by the AIVD as Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov, worked for the Russian intelligence service GRU. 

‘This type of intelligence officer is better known as an illegal: someone who has received very long and extensive training,’ the AIVD said in a statement. 

‘Illegals are difficult for intelligence agencies to identify because they use an alias. In this way they can often operate under the radar for a long time and continue to carry out intelligence activities. By posing as foreigners, illegals can access information that is inaccessible to a Russian person.’ 

Information

If Cherkasov had succeeded in working for the ICC, he would have had access to a lot of information and people who would be ‘extremely interesting to GRU,’ Akerboom said. 

He may also have been able to influence ICC cases. The court is currently investigating possible war crimes by Russian soldiers in Ukraine. 

The man, who was using the name Viktor Muller Ferreira, was sent straight back to Brazil as an undesirable alien. A heavily edited copy of his cover story was attached to the AIVD news release. The Netherlands has expelled more than 20 people suspected of spying in recent years.

Humpback whale filmed jumping near the Zeeland coast

DutchNews, May 23, 2022 

A still from the video

A humpback whale has been filmed swimming and jumping off the Zeeland coast by two fishermen in a rubber boat. 

The whale was around three kilometres off the cost of Westkapelle in calm sea when Lourens Janisse and a friend first heard it releasing air. 

‘We got closer to take a look and it also came nearer to us,’ Janisse told local broadcaster Omroep Zeeland. The whale leapt out of the water several times, giving Janisse and his friend plenty of time to film it. 

Sea mammal specialist Jaap van der Hiele told the broadcaster that the whale appeared to be healthy.

‘Humpback whales are discovering the North Sea,’ he said. ‘A few years ago we had one close to Vlissingen and once in the Oosterschelde estuary. They can easily swim in shallow water so this whale is not in any danger.’ 

Visser Lourens spot een bultrug voor Westkapelle: 'Zomaar in mijn achtertuin. Geweldig!' https://t.co/YtZcxO5YkK

— Omroep Zeeland (@omroepzeeland) May 23, 2022

According to marine protection group SOS Dolfijn, humpbacked whales have been visiting the Dutch coast since the beginning of this century.

Related Article:

Another humpback whale spotted near the Dutch coast (20 December 2012)

Priest and journalist who defied the Nazis is first Dutch saint for 15 years

DutchNews, May 16, 2022 

Titus Brandsma in the 1920. Photo: GaHetNa/Wikipedia

A Dutch priest and journalist who was killed by the Nazis for refusing to distribute anti-Semitic propaganda during the German occupation has been canonised by the pope.

Titus Brandsma is the first new Dutch saint for 15 years, following the canonisation of Limburg priest Karel Houben in 2007. 

Pope Francis proclaimed him a saint on Sunday at a symposium organised by the Dutch embassy and the International Association of Journalists Accredited to the Vatican. 

The Vatican said the Carmelite priest and theologian had been killed ‘in hatred of the faith’ in Dachau concentration camp in 1942, aged 61. 

Born in Bolsward, Friesland, in 1881, Brandsma was one of the founders of the Radboud University in Nijmegen, where he taught philosophy, in the 1920s.

‘Everyday love’ 

During the war he spoke out against the Nazi occupiers and anti-Semitism in Germany and refused to carry adverts for the NSB, the Dutch national-socialist party, in Catholic newspapers.

Some 500 Dutch Catholics attended the ceremony in Rome, where Pope Francis said Brandsma’s sainthood was the outcome not of ‘heroic episodes, but a great amount of everyday love.’ 

The Vatican ascribed a miracle to Brandsma, one of the conditions for sainthood, after an American priest who was suffering from terminal cancer claimed to have been cured when the priest appeared to him and instructed him to pray for healing.