Queen Beatrix' speech on tolerance

On Christmas day, every year, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands gives her Christmas speech. Since our prime minister can be held accountable for every word our Queen speaks in public, she is limited in speaking her personal opinion. Because of the recent elections in which Geert Wilders' party won one sixth of the Parliamentary seats and now allows our minority government of liberals and christen-democrats, through his party’s support, to govern, his party had given early indication that they would weigh every word of the Queen to see if she would challenge Wilders' party in any way (as they had accused her of in previous years).

The Queen's speech spoke about tolerance, understanding, and looking for what keeps us together instead of what drives us apart and as I looked through it I found multiple lines that I could imagine Wilders' party having issues with.

Later that week I read an Op-Ed in which the author observed that most of the opponents of Wilders’ party were describing his voters with the same one-liners they accused these voters of using in relation to Islam and immigration. While opponents argue that people voting for Wilders are simply very angry people and shirk the debate, those opponents themselves are doing exactly the same thing by saying that all what Wilders' voters stand for is anger and that no discussion with them is possible. The author argued for better listening to and understanding of Wilders' voters in an effort to cross the divide.

Apart from my country, the US, Belgium, the EU and others, show similar growing divisions of us against them. Thinking back to the Queen's speech, I realized that the Queen does not pick sides.  If I thought all those lines about tolerance were aimed at Wilders' voters, I should think again. They were as much aimed at me as at everyone else who opposes Wilders’ ideas and politics (or any other issue for that matter). The Queen asked everyone to listen better to others, to treat others the same way they want to be treated, to try to understand and work together towards a community in which we respect differences (including differences about immigration and Islam).

“Divergent views are part of an open society. We cannot deny the differences, but we should see them as a starting point for social dialogue. It is not necessary to persuade each other in order to live together. THAT is the basis of mutual respect.”

Only then will we be able, in the Queen's words, "to overcome fear and suspicion" and live as one people. 

I want to take this to heart this year. Let 2011 be a year in which we rediscover what it means to be tolerant.

Rose