Dutch news in brief, 3 March 2005

Princess wins custody of Paco

A court has denied Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn access to Paco, his pet dog. The animal will stay with his estranged wife, Princess Margarita, a niece of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. De Roy van Zuydewijn had taken the case to court, saying he had not seen the dog since last year and he missed Paco very much. The court decided that since the Princess paid for the dog, she owned it and could decide who had the right to visit it, RTL Nieuws reported.

Heavy sentences don’t deter

Seventy-three percent of prisoners in the Netherlands re-offend when released from prison, according to figures Dutch Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner presented at a conference about recidivism on Thursday. Donner said the figures were disturbing, as they seemed to indicate sentences — even heavy ones — do not deter criminals from re-offending.

Boys admit damaging graves

Two boys, aged seven, have admitted damaging graves in Nijmegen. After being caught holding a vase in the graveyard, they later confessed to their family that they had damaged 13 graves in a cemetery designated as a monument. The children dropped the vase when confronted by a worker at the graveyard.

Commando debate on Tuesday

The Dutch Parliament is to debate the government’s decision to send commandos to Afghanistan on Tuesday. Last month, the government announced it wanted to send 165 commandos and other personnel to Afghanistan to fight alongside US soldiers in secret operations against terrorists holed up along the Pakistan border. The mission does not require the approval of MPs.

Subject: Dutch news