In terms of LGBTQIA+ community rights, the Netherlands is no longer a global leader. The annual Rainbow Europe Index published by the human rights group Ilga Europe placed the Netherlands at number thirteen this year.
Ilga Europe ranks nations based on their laws and policies protecting LGBTQIA+ individuals. The Netherlands earned 56 points out of a possible 100. Malta scored 92 to take first place.
According to NU.nl, three of the four coalition parties committed to improving emancipation for individuals of all gender and sexual orientations and identities last year when they signed the Dutch Rainbow Ballot Box Agreement. ChristenUnie was the lone absentee.
Some of the Rainbow Europe Index’s recommendations are included in the agreement, including the prohibition of gay conversion therapy, the establishment of a legal definition of multiple parenthood, an end to the exclusion of LGTBQIA+ students from schools, the elimination of unnecessary intersex treatment, and the ability to change one’s passport gender to X without going through the legal system.
But Astrid Oosenburg of the interest group COC Nederland told the newspaper that the implementation of the deal is proceeding slowly. Even if just some of the promises are kept, we will still rise. But in recent years, we have stagnated and have fallen behind other nations that have enacted new legislation.
Combating racist violence is a key area where the Netherlands can improve. Minister of Justice and Security Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius and the COC recently spoke about this. She stated that she supports the promises made in the Rainbow Ballot Box Agreement, but Oosenbrug claimed that she was unable to clarify these commitments. The Cabinet is sympathetic, but occasionally it seems as though the accords are no longer obvious.
According to NU.nl, the Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science, which is principally in charge of the emancipation policy, it is not progressing too slowly. The Cabinet is currently exerting significant effort to clarify the points. They have high goals and can be complicated. A spokeswoman said that they couldn’t be achieved overnight. The necessary attention, coordination with Ministries, social organizations, and eventually political coordination are put into the elaboration. It requires time.
In the fall, the Cabinet will present to parliament the Emancipation Memorandum, which goes into greater depth on the goals of the Dutch emancipation program.
