HILVERSUM, 13/03/01 - The criticism of Crown Prince Willem-Alexander in the Dutch media is continuing. His attempt in New York last week to defend his possible future father-in-law Jorge Zorreguieta aroused particular objections.

Former International Law Professor P. de Waard said last weekend that Willem-Alexander had disqualified himself from succeeding to the throne. Former senior Christian democrat (CDA) politician G. Brokx stated that "the Prince should know by this time that he cannot allow himself spontaneity of this sort". The former state secretary and former Mayor of Tilburg also criticized the information stop announced by Prime Minister Wim Kok. "Everyone is talking about it, not just the media, but ordinary people as well. "

Willem-Alexander reacted in New York to publications stating that his girlfriend Maxima's father had played an active role during the military regime in the late seventies and early eighties in Argentina. Zorreguieta was first state secretary and later minister of agriculture at that time. Between 15,000 and 30,000 Argentineans were murdered by the military during this period.

Professor De Waard maintained that Willem-Alexander was not suited to the throne. "If a candidate to succeed to the throne does not realize that he can cause so much disquiet, he needs to be called to heel. " De Waard claimed that Willem-Alexander's blunder in New York was not an isolated incident. "On the basis of other considerations, such as his enthusiasm in his dealings with Samaranch in the IOC, I already had doubts about whether this was appropriate for someone who expects to become King. "

The General Secretary to the Dutch Council of Churches, the reverend Ineke Bakker, wants Jorge Zorreguieta to give a full and clear picture of his past. Bakker, who lived and worked in Latin America for eleven years, would consider it a good thing if Zorreguieta were to give some of his land to the small farmers as a sign of reconciliation. She also stressed it was the task of the churches to make the Dutch feelings about Zorreguieta clear. His presence at a marriage between his daughter and Willem-Alexander, if this takes place, would be "exceptionally painful" for some sections of the churches, Bakker emphasized.