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The telecommunications system in the Netherlands is highly advanced, with extensive fibre-optic and mobile networks. Per capita cell phone usage in the Netherlands is comparable to that of most western European countries (though considerably less pervasive than in Scandinavia); per capita personal computer use is high by western European standards. | The telecommunications system in the Netherlands is highly advanced, with extensive fibre-optic and mobile networks. Per capita cell phone usage in the Netherlands is comparable to that of most western European countries (though considerably less pervasive than in Scandinavia); per capita personal computer use is high by western European standards. | ||
==Government and | ==Government and Politics of Netherlands== | ||
The Netherlands was a republic from 1581 to 1806 and a kingdom between 1806 and 1810 (it was part of France between 1810 and 1813). It then became a constitutional monarchy until 1815. It has been a parliamentary democracy since 1848. The head of state is the monarch (at present King Willem-Alexander). The monarch currently has a mainly ceremonial function but the constitution allows for the exertion of real power, should the responsible ministers subordinate themselves; an open conflict between them and the monarch—whose signature is needed for any law or warrant to come into effect—would lead to a constitutional crisis. | |||
Since the nineteenth century, Dutch governments have consisted of coalitions with no single political party being large enough to get the majority vote. Formally, the monarch appoints the members of the government. In practice, once the results of parliamentary elections are known a coalition government is formed (in a process of negotiations that has taken up to seven months), after which the government formed in this way is officially appointed by the monarch. The head of the government is the prime minister (in Dutch Minister President or Premier, a primus inter pares) who is usually also the leader of the largest party in the coalition. | |||
The parliament consists of two houses. The bicameral States General (Staten Generaal) consists of the first chamber or Eerste Kamer (75 seats; members indirectly elected by the country's 12 provincial councils for four-year terms) and the second chamber or Tweede Kamer (150 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms). | |||
Political scientists consider the Netherlands to be a classic example of a consociational state, traditionally explained since the early Middle Ages by the necessity for different social groups to cooperate in order to fight the sea. This system of reaching an agreement despite differences is called the Polder Model in Dutch. The Dutch have a 'friendly' reputation in other countries, to the point that bearers of a Dutch passport often have relatively little difficulty getting into other countries for visits or even for emigration purposes. | |||
The Netherlands has seen a political upheaval in the early years of the twenty-first century, most clearly illustrated by the quick rise and fall of the right wing anti-immigration political party Lijst Pim Fortuyn. Pim Fortuyn, its founder, gained massive support with his populist views. Just before the election of 2002 he was murdered by an environmentalist activist, the first political murder in the country in about four hundred years. The elections, which sent the Netherlands into a period of political chaos, were concluded with Peter Balkenede becoming prime minister in July 2002. | |||
'''Administrative divisions''' | |||
The Netherlands is divided into twelve administrative regions, called provinces, each under a governor, who is called Commissaris van de Koningin (Commissioner of the Queen), except for the province Limburg, where the commissioner is called Gouverneur (governor), underlining the more "non-Dutch" mentality. | |||
The country is also subdivided in water districts, governed by a water board (waterschap or hoogheemraadschap), each having authority in matters concerning water management. The creation of water boards actually pre-dates that of the nation itself, the first appearing in 1196. Dutch water boards are one of the oldest democratic entities in the world today. | |||
==Culture Life of Netherlands== | ==Culture Life of Netherlands== | ||
==History of Netherlands== | ==History of Netherlands== | ||