Dries van Agt

Andreas Antonius Maria "Dries" van Agt (; 2 February 1931 – 5 February 2024) was a Dutch politician, jurist and diplomat who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 19 December 1977 until 4 November 1982. He was a prominent leader of the Catholic People's Party (KVP) and later of its successor party, the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA).

Van Agt was known for his abilities as a skilled debater and negotiator. During his premiership, his cabinets were responsible for several major public sector and civil service reforms and further reducing the deficit following the recession in the 1980s. Van Agt continued to comment on political affairs as a statesman until he suffered a major stroke in May 2019 that forced him to undergo rehabilitation. He held the distinction as the eldest living and earliest-serving former prime minister following the death of Piet de Jong in July 2016, until his death by assisted suicide in February 2024.

Early life Van Agt was born and grew up in Geldrop. He was the son of textile manufacturer Frans van Agt (1899–1974) and Anna Frencken (1902–1978), and was the eldest of five children. He was a great-great-grandson of Godefridus Marcelis Frencken, who served as mayor of Asten from 1843 to 1904.

Education He attended gymnasium-A at the Augustinianum in Eindhoven from 1943 to 1949, where his future fellow minister Hans Gruijters was a classmate of his. He subsequently studied law at the Catholic University of Nijmegen. He graduated cum laude with his master of laws in June 1955, specialising in private law.

For the first two years of his studies, Van Agt was not active within the N.S.V. Carolus Magnus (N.S.C.) following a 'terrible' hazing. In the academic year 1951–1952, Van Agt was the first abactis to serve on the board of the senate of the N.S.C., under the leadership of the later KVP chairman and minister Fons van der Stee as preses. His fellow student Eugenie Krekelberg was second abactis, to whom Van Agt became engaged as early as 1951. In the academic year 1952–1953, he was himself preses of the senate. As preses, he reformed the hazing practices of the association and opened a 'meeting centre' for boys and girls.

Legal and academic career (1955–1971) Due to varicose veins, Van Agt avoided military service. From 1956 to 1958 he worked as a lawyer in Eindhoven. He then worked until 1963 at the Directorate of Legal and Business Organisational Affairs of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Supply, and until 1968 at the public law legislation department of the Ministry of Justice. After a brief period as a research associate, he was professor of criminal law and criminal procedure law at the Catholic University of Nijmegen from 1968 to 1971. Upon his departure, he was known according to de Gelderlander as a capable, tolerant and progressive jurist.

Political career

Minister and deputy prime minister

Van Agt entered politics as a member of the Catholic People's Party, which merged with the other two major Christian democratic parties in 1980 to form the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA). From 1968 to 1971, Van Agt was Professor of Criminal Law at the Catholic University of Nijmegen. From 1971 to 1973, he served as Minister of Justice in the first and second Biesheuvel cabinets. He caused outrage when he tried to pardon the last three Nazi war criminals still in Dutch prisons (known as the Breda Four) in 1972. From 1973 to 1977, he served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice in the Den Uyl cabinet.

Van Agt also spoke against the Council of State in Egypt for continuous delay in granting the Center for Arab-West Understanding (CAWU) the NGO status. He met with prominent figures in Egypt to persuade them to do so. The Egyptian Council of State, after van Agt's visit to Cairo in 2006, ruled on 18 February 2007 that the center should be recognized as an NGO under Egyptian law, ending its three-year struggle to obtain this status. Egypt is known for its reluctance in granting NGO status to discourage political participation. Cornelis Hulsman, a Dutch sociologist, the editor-in-chief of Arab-West Report, and the head of CAWU, stated that van Agt's effort significantly impacted the realization of their goals, which usually requires a lengthy amount of time and scrutiny in its political purposes.

For some years, Van Agt took an outspoken stance regarding the Middle East, resulting in a fierce criticism of the policies undertaken by the government of Israel with regard to the Palestinians. When in office, Van Agt had been a staunch supporter of Israel, but after he stepped down in 1982, he changed his mind. According to his own words an important turning point was a visit at the late nineties at Bethlehem University on the Israeli-occupied West Bank. He accused Israel of "state terrorism" and turning the Palestinian Authority territories into "bantustans".

In 2009, Van Agt founded The Rights Forum, a non-profit organization aimed at promoting a “just and sustainable Dutch and European policy regarding the Palestine/Israel issue”. In September 2016, in reference to the visit of Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu to the Netherlands, Van Agt argued that the ongoing Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories and the building of settlements there constituted a war crime under the Rome Statute and suggested that Netanyahu should have been sent to the International Criminal Court.

Personal life and death

Van Agt was known for his use of archaic language and complicated phrasing, as well as for his love for cycling. He married Eugenie Krekelberg in 1958, and they had three children According to family, the couple died holding hands. Van Agt had previously suffered a debilitating brain hemorrhage while giving a speech in 2019.

Decorations Honours

Awards + Ribbon bar Award Country Date Honorary citizen of Geldrop Netherlands 1988 Honorary citizen of Lille France 1998 Honorary citizen of North Brabant Netherlands 2002 Cannabis Culture Award of the Hash, Marihuana & Hemp Museum Netherlands 12 November 2009

Honorary degrees + University Field Country Date Radboud University Nijmegen Law Netherlands Ritsumeikan University Political science Japan Kwansei Gakuin University Political science Japan Hansung University Law South Korea University of South Carolina Political science United States