Assassination of Pim Fortuyn, May 6, 2002, by Lori B
From MemoryArchive
Who: Anonymous What: Pim Fortuyn assassinated When: May 6, 2002 Where: Netherlands
In early May of 2002, the country of Netherlands was suffering from quite a shock. For the first time in Dutch history, there had been an assassination of a political figure, namely Pim Fortuyn. Pim Fortuyn was, at the time, a leader in the election race for Prime Minister. He was running on a platform of limited immigration and the possible expulsion of already present illegal immigrants (primarily from Turkey). This platform, although popular, also faced staunch opposition.
On May 6, 2002, Pim Fortuyn was assassinated, shot down on the way to his car. The Dutch citizenry was quite literally in frenzy. Politicians and news were engrossed with the assassination; there were vigils, protests, and general astonished outrage. I, as an American exchange student, was also stunned. I, however, was far less up in arms about the assassination, and far more amazed by the national reaction. The Dutch simply could not believe that such a murder had occurred. Of course, being from the United States, I found the event not quite every-day, but certainly commonplace. I felt bad for the guy (even though he was quite hateful and reprehensible on the whole), I felt bad for his family, but I did not interpret the event as much more.
Many Dutch individuals honestly saw the event as not just a catastrophe, but as the beginnings of an all-encompassing societal decline. A few months later, Pim Fortuyn’s party won the position of Prime Minister (this I found strange—a deceased individual was elected Prime Minister). Since then, there truly has been an arguable decline in Dutch politics and national harmony. Nevertheless, I, for one, believe this to be the fault of the vengeful party of Pim Fortuyn, and not an indicator of permeating decline. I must admit, I am not sure how those Dutch who viewed it as this great signifier interpret the situation now. All I can say is that it was inarguably an extremely significant event in recent Dutch history, which a very many people will never forget.
