A new report warned the Dutch government to be vigilant about the Chinese communist regime’s influence in the Netherlands through educational and cultural infiltration.
The investigative report, which was released at the end of March, was authored by Professor Frank Pieke at the Asia Center of Leiden University in the Netherlands. The report was funded by the Dutch government’s Chinese Knowledge Network.
The report said, “The basis for influencing the Chinese Dutch has been laid out and that there is potential for interference.” Pieke urged the Dutch government to be vigilant and proactive in preventing the Chinese regime from adversely affecting the Chinese expat community in the Netherlands.
The report analyzed Beijing’s direct ties with eight local Dutch-Chinese organizations and six major Chinese-language media outlets in the Netherlands.
After the Dutch parliament passed a non-binding motion at the end of February to condemn the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s genocide against Uyghurs in Xinjiang, the Dutch Chinese-language media Shunhe published a joint statement with 55 Chinese expat associations on March 8, lambasting the Dutch parliament for passing the motion. The statement parroted the same message that the Chinese Embassy in the Netherlands released earlier in response to the motion.
Screenshot of a joint statement of 55 Chinese expat associations in the Netherlands, criticizing the Dutch parliament for passing a motion to condemn Beijing's genocide of Uyghurs in Xinjiang. Screenshot via The Epoch Times
A similar statement was issued by the China Council for the Promotion of Peaceful National Reunification in the Netherlands, which is another Chinese expat organization in the country.
In order to counter the CCP’s promotion of its socialist and communist ideologies through local Chinese-language media, the report said the Dutch government should establish Chinese-language media services for the Dutch-Chinese communities.
The report addressed issues related to Chinese-language instruction in schools and proposed that the content should meet the requirements and needs of the Dutch people, and not give in to China’s demands.
Meanwhile, the University of Groningen in the Netherlands has also announced that it will not renew its contract with the Confucius Institute due to concerns over its ties with the Chinese regime. Confucius Institutes are operated under the Chinese government agency Hanban, under its Ministry of Education. It promotes the communist ideology and the CCP’s agenda, including censoring topics the regime deems sensitive such as the persecution of Falun Gong adherents and Uyghurs.
The report also said that the dialogue between the Dutch government and representatives of the Chinese communities in the Netherlands is essential in countering the Chinese regime’s influence over the expat communities, as it “will promote integration, participation, diversity and openness as well as sending a signal to China itself.”
Alex Wu
Author
Alex Wu is a U.S.-based writer for The Epoch Times focusing on Chinese society, Chinese culture, human rights, and international relations.
