The Integration Crisis in the Netherlands: the Causes and the New Policy Measures

Abstract

The Netherlands has been known as the most open and tolerant European country where immigrants belonging to different ethnic groups, religious confession and sexual orientation could find a safe haven. However, over the past years, this image has been shattered. This chapter combines theory, practice and policy in order to reveal the reasons, nature and dynamics of the integration ‘crisis’ in the Netherlands, which is closely tied to the ‘immigration’ issue. The study, firstly, retrieves the factors from political psychology, institutional political science and the micro-theory of securitization and tests them against the case-study – the Netherlands. While showing that each and every one of them are relevant, it claims that no complete understanding of the Dutch ‘crisis’ can be achieved unless the factors are combined. Secondly, it zooms out the newly devised/revised Dutch policy measures per public domain and assesses them by stipulating on their implications and trends. It suggests that if the Dutch government does not adopt an integrated approach the intended positive actions might become replete with negative consequences. Lastly, the chapter provides policy advice, which could be transferable to other European countries experiencing a similar integration ‘crisis’