Prof. Dr. Wouter Veenendaal, extraordinary professor of Kingdom Relations and associate professor of comparative political science at Leiden University, delivered his inaugural lecture yesterday, Monday. Veenendaal gave this inaugural address as the holder of the chair Democratic Representation in the Kingdom. This chair was established last year by the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations (BZK).
Research Agenda
During his inaugural lecture titled On Equal Footing?, Veenendaal elaborated on the various components of his research agenda as the chair holder. Veenendaal has set two goals for the chair: securing and expanding research into the Kingdom and Kingdom Relations, and promoting collaboration in research and education with universities and scholars in the Caribbean islands. To realize the latter goal, Veenendaal is currently recruiting three local research assistants in Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten. They will work with him in the coming years as a kingdom-wide research team.
4 Research Lines
During his inaugural lecture, Veenendaal explained the 4 research lines of his chair that he hopes to set out in the coming years. These are: politics and democracy in the Caribbean islands within the Kingdom itself; democratic representation of the Caribbean islands in the Kingdom; the perception of Kingdom relations in European Netherlands; and comparative research on other non-sovereign areas.
Opinion Research
During his lecture, Veenendaal also announced the first results of an opinion survey he conducted in the lead-up to his inaugural lecture among European Dutch citizens. The survey was conducted among the renowned LISS panel of Tilburg University. Approximately 2,700 people participated in this survey and answered various knowledge and opinion questions about the Kingdom. This is the first time an opinion survey of this scale has been conducted in the Netherlands regarding the Kingdom.
More Positive Image
The results of the opinion survey show that European Dutch citizens know little about the Kingdom and Kingdom Relations. Less than a quarter claim to be familiar with it. However, they have a more positive view of the Kingdom Relations than is often thought. For example, a majority believes that residents of the islands should be able to move freely to the Netherlands and that the Netherlands has a moral obligation to care for the islands. The largest group also believes that the Netherlands should financially support the islands and that residents of the Caribbean Netherlands should have the same social provisions as in European Netherlands.
Much Ceremony
Formally, the inaugural lecture served for Veenendaal as the acceptance of his position as newly appointed extraordinary professor. An inaugural lecture is an important event with much ceremony. As usual, the lecture was attended by other professors, all dressed in gowns.
Advisory Committee
The advisory committee for the chair, also known as the curatorium, consists of chairperson Marja Spierenburg, professor of anthropology of sustainable development and livelihoods at Leiden University, Gert Oostindie, emeritus professor of colonial and post-colonial history at Leiden University, Tom Louwerse, associate professor of political science and research director of the Institute of Political Science at Leiden University, and Saskia de Reuver, Director of Kingdom Relations Countries at the Ministry of BZK.
Knowledge Development
De Reuver congratulated Veenendaal on behalf of the Directorate-General for Kingdom Relations at the Ministry of BZK. The chair that Wouter Veenendaal holds is very important for knowledge development in and about the Kingdom. It is nice to see that Wouter takes on this task with so much enthusiasm and professionalism.