Dutch news in brief – 3 March - Expatica Netherlands

Minister gets tough on female circumcision

Parents who allow their daughters to undergo circumcision in a foreign country could soon face prosecution in the Netherlands, Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner said. Female circumcision — which involves the removal of a girl’s clitoris and sometimes her labia — is banned in the Netherlands, but Donner wants to prevent parents having it performed in a foreign country where it is not banned. He is prepared to make an exception to legislation preventing the prosecution of acts carried out legally in another country. Female circumcision is a tradition in several countries, including Sudan and Somalia. The Cabinet has rejected a plan proposed by Somali-born Liberal VVD MP Ayaan Hirsi Ali to conduct an annual medical examination on all underage girls from countries where female circumcision is common.

Schiphol to get body scanner in drugs fight

In the battle against bolletjesslikkers – passengers who swallow drugs to slip past custom controls – an x-ray body scanner will be installed at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam. Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner also said a similar body scanner at the Curacao airport in the Netherlands Antilles will remain in place. Customs officials have been conducting 100 percent drugs checks on flights from the Netherlands Antilles and Suriname since December.

Brinkhorst urges longer working hours

Dutch nationals should work longer hours and the retirement age of 65 should be raised, according to Economic Affairs Minister Laurens Jan Brinkhorst. He said working longer would stimulate the economy and he claimed that the Netherlands was not ambitious enough in that regard.

Dutchman named new Tiscali chief

Dutchman Ruud Huisman has been named CEO of Tiscali, Europe’s third largest internet provider. Huisman was a former boss of Tiscali’s Benelux and Scandinavian operations for two years. He will replace Tiscali co-founder Renato Soru who will become executive chairman of the company’s supervisory board. The new appointment will be proposed at the general meeting of shareholders in April.

Sleeping marines lodge appeals

The two marines who were sentenced in Arnhem Court to a two-week suspended sentence and a 60-hour community service on Monday have lodged appeals. They fell asleep while on guard duty in Iraq last August.

Subject: Dutch news