Although some prominent members of the Labour Party (PvdA) have resigned their membership due to dissatisfaction with the call for an arms embargo on Israel, Ad Melkert remains a member. “The fight is not over yet,” he says.
Former Speaker of the House of Representatives Gerdi Verbeet, former MP Lutz Jacobi, and former alderman in Barendrecht Reshma Roopram resigned their membership in recent days. Melkert views these developments “with pain” and would like “the party leadership to experience that pain as well,” he tells NU.nl.
There is discontent with the course that GroenLinks-PvdA is taking with regard to Israel. At the joint congress of GroenLinks and PvdA in Nieuwegein, a large majority on Saturday supported the arms embargo.
“I have great aversion to what Benjamin Netanyahu (the Israeli prime minister, ed.) is doing. But you shouldn’t forget that Israel is threatened from many sides. You don’t feel that at all in that discussion,” says Melkert. “The PvdA always stood side by side with the people in Israel.”
The disappointed PvdA members are largely the same people who have been opposing the merger plans with GroenLinks for months. The Israel stance in this case marks a cultural difference between the two parties, Melkert believes.
Melkert is not planning to quit despite everything. As long as the PvdA exists, he will try as a member “to influence the course.” He remains combative. “There must always be a social-democratic party, and there will always be a social-democratic party.”
‘Disappointed that our conversation was taken away’
Last week, GroenLinks-PvdA MP Kati Piri submitted a motion for a total, temporary arms embargo against Israel. This also applies to the missile shield that protects Israeli citizens from missiles from, for example, Iran.
Piri believes that that shield is being used by Netanyahu “no longer purely defensively, but as part of the attack strategy.” According to her, this justifies the total arms embargo.
There was no support for this in the House, but at the joint congress the members did support it. Although that was accompanied by chaos and disappointment.
Melkert and Verbeet wanted to discuss the issue at the PvdA congress. Although the members have decided that a new party should be formed, the PvdA still formally exists until that moment. But that proposal was voted down. Verbeet protested in vain and left disappointed.
“I am very disappointed that we were denied the opportunity there to have a conversation about the support for the people in Israel,” Melkert says about the joint congress. “I expected a dignified discussion. But that proved impossible jointly with GroenLinks.”
‘Motion Piri reinforces my sense of insecurity’
Melkert refers to the booing of some of those present when some party motions on the Israel stance were adopted. Rob Oudkerk, former MP and former alderman in Amsterdam, spoke out strongly against the arms embargo in recent days.
Due to the change of course, he, as a “Jewish boy from a red family,” has begun to doubt whether he still wants to remain a member of the PvdA after 65 years, he said at the congress. “The Piri motion reinforces my sense of insecurity.”
Oudkerk, like everyone else, was given thirty seconds to say his piece. That was not enough for his entire story. When he was given thirty seconds extra, he was booed by some of those present.
Verbeet was visibly affected by this. She believes that the party leadership should have intervened.