Political party in Netherlands
The
Democratic Socialists '70
(
Dutch
:
Democratisch Socialisten '70
, DS'70) was a
social-democratic
[9]
political party in the Netherlands
.
History
[
edit
]
DS'70 was founded on 4 April 1970 as the result of a split from the
Labour Party
(PvdA). In June 1970,
Frans Goedhart
and Wybrand Schuitemaker, two members of the
House of Representatives
, left the PvdA and became members of DS'70 because of the
anti-American
position the PvdA had taken in the
Vietnam War
. They had previously been frustrated by its cooperation with other
left-wing
parties such as the
Pacifist Socialist Party
and its left-wing fiscal policy. In its declaration of principles (
Beginselverklaring
), DS'70 argued that whilst the
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy
(VVD) lacked the comprehension of the necessity of social and economic reforms, the PvdA had acquired "anarchist" and unrealistic
pacifist
aspirations.
[10]
In the
1971 general election
, the party won eight seats in parliament. After the elections, the party cooperated in the
first Biesheuvel cabinet
, together with the VVD,
Anti Revolutionary Party
(ARP),
Christian Historical Union
(CHU) and
Catholic People's Party
(KVP). The party supplied two ministers and two junior ministers, among them the party leader,
Willem Drees jr
, who became minister of
Transport and Water Works
. In 1972, the cabinet fell because of the opposition of DS'70 to the proposed budget. DS'70 ministers refused to accept budget cuts in their own departments. In the
1972 election
, the party lost two seats, and it was confined to opposition to the PvdA-headed
Den Uyl cabinet
.
Shortly after its foundation, two factions developed within DS'70, namely the social-democratic faction led by Jan van Stuijvenberg and the
anti-communist
faction led by
Frans Goedhart
. In 1975 this division led to a conflict. The party leader Willem Drees Jr. was seen as conservatively social-democratic, lacking a willingness to reform and the ability to oppose the Den Uyl cabinet fiercely. However, Drees won the conflict, and a group of prominent members left the party. In the
1977 general election
the party was left with only one seat which it lost at the
1981 general election
. In 1983, the party was officially dissolved.
Ideology
[
edit
]
DS'70 saw itself as a
social-democratic
party. Its founders thought that the mainstream Dutch social-democratic party PvdA was becoming too radical in its economic and international policy and that the
New Left
was having too great an impact on the PvdA. DS'70 was a fiercely anti-communist party.
The party was
economically liberal
, supporting a
balanced budget
. It also supported strong economic growth. One of its main issues was battling
inflation
, therefore the party wanted to restrict
government spending
and implement the principle of profit for many government services.
The DS'70 was critical towards immigration; the party wanted to restrict the migration of Dutch citizens from
Suriname
. However, DS'70 was progressive on other issues: The party did support a modern
natural environmental
policy with strong
public transport
and restrained automobile use. It thought that economic growth and sustainability were compatible.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the party became more socially conservative, emphasizing family values and civic society. However, the party still saw itself as a social-democratic party focusing on solidarity and community solutions.
Linked organisations
[
edit
]
DS'70 lacked the links with other societal organisations that many Dutch parties had. The party magazine was called
Political Bulletin of DS'70
, and since 1978
Buitenhof
(Outer Court, in contrast with the Inner Court, the nickname of the buildings of the Dutch parliament and government). Its youth organisation was the Social Democratic Youth Active.
Important figures
[
edit
]
Willem Drees Jr.
was party leader between 1971 and 1977. He was minister of Transport and Water Works and
lijsttrekker
(top candidate) in the 1971, 1972 and 1977 elections. Drees lost the last two elections and was criticized for his alleged solistic behaviour and lack of charisma. He was the son of former
Prime Minister
Willem Drees
. His father left the PvdA during the 1970s, but he did not join his son's party. At the beginning of the 1980s, the famous Dutch chess player
Max Euwe
featured as a DS'70
lijstduwer
in the elections for the
House of Representatives
.
Electorate
[
edit
]
The party was supported by former
PvdA
,
VVD
and
Democrats 66
voters and undecided voters. The party was mainly supported by middle-class voters (e.g. civil servants). Unlike other left-wing parties, the DS'70 scored particularly well in more prosperous municipalities. In 1972, the party scored its best result in
Rozendaal
(10.5%), where the DS'70 was almost bigger than the PvdA. In municipalities such as Wassenaar, De Bilt and Naarden the party also performed above average.
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
Vingerling en Schouten, p. 270 e.v.
- ^
Vingerling en Schouten, p. 275 e.v. Door DS'70 werd de synthese tussen "socialisme" en "liberalisme" omschreven met de term "sociale democratie." Hier moet echter worden opgemerkt dat er binnen DS'70 meer aandacht was voor de gemeenschap en het dienende karakter van het individu binnen het collectief dan gebruikelijk is binnen het sociaalliberalisme.
- ^
Andeweg, R.
and G. Irwin
Politics and Governance in the Netherlands
, Basingstoke (Palgrave) p.49
- ^
Vingerling en Schouten, pp. 274-275 e.v.
- ^
G. Voerman:
Een geval van politieke schizofrenie. Het gespleten gedachtegoed van DS'70
in:
Jaarboek Documentatiecentrum Nederlandse Politieke Partijen 1990
, uitgegeven in 1991, pp. 100 e.v. Vgl. met name de uitspraken van vicevoorzitter J.H. Gootjes op p. 102 (noten 36, 37)
- ^
H. Vingerling en C.C. Schouten:
Democratisch Socialisten '70. Nevenstroom in de sociaal-democratie"
(proefschrift), 2003, p. 269, pp. 450-451. In het betoog van de auteurs in de voorafgaande twaalf bladzijden is dat DS'70 links van de
VVD
staat en rechts van de
PvdA
, maar dat de partij in de latere jaren steeds verder naar rechts opschoof.
- ^
Josep M. Colomer
(24 July 2008).
Comparative European Politics
. Taylor & Francis. p. 221f.
ISBN
978-0-203-94609-1
. Retrieved
13 July
2013
.
- ^
Score 4.0/10 in 2003 Chapel Hill expert survey, see Hooghe et al. (2003)
Chapel Hill Survey
Archived
2008-07-25 at the
Wayback Machine
- ^
Peter Starke; Alexandra Kaasch; Franca Van Hooren (7 May 2013).
The Welfare State as Crisis Manager: Explaining the Diversity of Policy Responses to Economic Crisis
. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 193?.
ISBN
978-1-137-31484-0
.
- ^
"Documentatiecentrum Nederlandse Politieke Partijen (DNPP) | werken aan de grenzen van het weten"
(PDF)
.
|
---|
Current
| With seats in parliament
| |
---|
Without seats in parliament
| |
---|
|
---|
Defunct
| With seats in parliament
| |
---|
Without seats in parliament
| |
---|
|
---|