Psst:

In case you hadn't realised I've moved.

Go to I am not a Tourist

Vote for a Kidney Transplant?

BNN, a Dutch TV station, is planning a new reality show, De Groote Donor Show, where a terminally ill woman, known as Lisa, will chose a recipient for her kidney from three donors.

The format of the programme is that Lisa will make her choice based on the contestants' history, profile and conversation with their family and friends. It's not stated whether she'll be meeting the potential recipients.

Strictly speaking there isn't a 'vote' as stated in the BBC article, but viewers will also be able send SMS reflecting their opinion. I suppose on the basis that at points during the show the compere will indicate that x% prefer candidate A.

There's been quite an outcry over this in the Netherlands, and in countries where it's been reported. If you read through the comments on the BBC site there's a sharp divide between on opinion - with most being against.

Much of the discussion is about how they are making entertainment out of a disease for commercial gain. Which ignores that the show is being made

• to commemorate the life of the founder of the production company Bart de Graaff who died while waiting for a kidney transplant
• with the stated aim of raising awareness of the lamentable rate of organ donation in the Netherlands
• with public funding, if I understand correctly the production company is at least partly state funded
  

But really what is the ethical question here?

1. the donor is terminally ill so is risking nothing
   
2. under Dutch law if you donate an organ while you're alive you can chose the recipient
3. the three potential recipients have a better chance on this show of getting a kidney in the short term than if they did nothing but stay on the list - ie: a 1/3 chance of getting their new kidney this year.
4. all recipients have been checked by drs as suitable candidates and remain under medical supervision
5. the unsuccessful participants are no worse off than when they started - they remain on the waiting list
6. the donor gets to do something useful
7. the whole controversial show gets the discussion about donating going and raises awareness (this is already happening)
8. there is a real chance that donation rates go up and lives will be saved.

The only doubt I really have is the impact on the two unsuccessful candidates. They will inevitably be incredibly disappointed and I don't think I want to see that.

I'm hoping the show is made with some sensitivity, showing the truth about the issue of organ donation, I'm hoping that the awareness raised leads to some changes in the process to become a donor here. I'm hoping more people sign up to be a donor.

I don't mind if there's some humour in it, or if there's a cynical edge, but I really hope it's not the circus the naysayers are portraying it as.

[disclaimer: I am registered as a donor, so that on my death any organs that are useful can be used by someone else. I don't think I would donate a kidney while I was still alive except perhaps to a close family member]

Amnesty

The government have agreed on the amnesty for refugee claimants & illegal migrants to get residency in the Netherlands. The amnesty applies to those who arrived prior to 2001 and is good news for more than 20,000 people.

However deportations of those who arrived more recently and who have exhausted the refugee application system will now resume, and the city councils will co-operate by not providing emergency housing for people in that group.

Possibly related, I have seen a lot of "workers wanted" advertisements up in restaurants and shops around town, I know the economy is growing but it seems to be every second window. I've heard on the grapevine that employers hiring illegal migrants could now face a fine of up to 8,000 euro per illegal worker. I'm not sure if it's a new rule, or is now being implemented more seriously.

I Hope Ajax Lose

First a disclaimer: I am not a football fan, not of any team. But I did take a small local pride in Ajax's successes.

Ajax (pronounced Eye-ax) is the local football team, and they seem to be fairly successful. I know this because every time they win a championship a group of their fans tear up Leidseplein in the centre of Amsterdam. They riot, they cause thousands of euros worth of damage to public property and local business.

Last Monday Ajax got to celebrate winning another championship, around 10,000 supporters gathered on Museumplein (10 minutes walk from Leidseplein) to applaud their team. I passed by Museumplein on my way to an evening class, and there were lots of police, but it seemed in order. Leidseplein was relatively empty - I think there were more police than people.

After my class I passed through Leidseplein again, by then the rioting was over and 51 people had been arrested. In the process they'd broken shop windows through the Spiegelkwartier and caused thousands of euros of damage.

Local business owners are calling for an after-party to be properly organised in the Arena (the team's home ground) which is well away from the city, and the mayor Job Cohen has stated that the fans have reached the limit.

Apparently on Tuesday flowers were given to all the shop keepers in the area of the rioting by the Ajax management but it's not enough.

I'm sick of it, and I hope Ajax lose.

Geert Wilders Gets a Wake-Up Call

MP Geert Wilders had a 3 hour "tutorial" with the National Coordinator for Anti-terrorism Tjibbe Joustra. He was shown documentary evidence of the reaction his comments have caused in Arab nations.

Mr. Wilders famously said that "Muslims should tear out and discard half the Koran if they want to live in the Netherlands", and this was the strongest trigger for many Arab nations who went on to threaten reaction including trade bans with the Netherlands and recall of ambassadors.

"Fortunately none of that happened, but you do get a fright when you see all of that," Wilders said.

In this country he has a right to state his opinion, and however much I disagree with him I have to uphold that right. The constitution also protects religious expression so there is no question that Muslims here may use the full version of the Koran and practise their faith freely.

However I really hope that he understands that he represents the Netherlands by virtue of his position. I hope he learns to frame his opinions with more thought.

Corporate Blogging

Dilbert has a comment to make about corporate blogging.

There are a lot of companies out there trying to figure out how to make money from the blogging concept, or social media, or "Web 2.0" for managers who've picked up the jargon. Few are doing it successfully, and the fatal flaw is often the choice of writer. Either the writer doesn't have anything to say, or the blog is written by a team posing as the company executive. The reader picks up on the corporate tone, and it's no longer a blog, it's a column.

It comes down to "don't fake it". Or in corporate speak "use an authentic voice"

Immigrant Amnesty

There are around 26,000 immigrants in the Netherlands who arrived under the old alien act, who were destined for deportation under the former government.

Many of these migrants had been in the Netherlands for years, spoke Dutch, had Dutch partners and children, and very often had jobs or businesses here. I know TV shows the most extreme cases but one man (originally from China) was profiled as having run the only Chinese restaurant in a small town here for more than a decade, he was married to a Chinese-Dutch woman, and they had two sons. He spoke perfect, although accented Dutch.

I'm not pro-illegal immigration, and what he did initially was wrong. But in deciding how to solve the situation you must look at the whole situation, and you must ask "what would deporting him solve?"

Thankfully it seems that the current government is taking a much more pragmatic approach, and has announced to EU members that there will be an amnesty - details are still being worked out.

I'm already pleased that they've announced this step, and I look forward to seeing the details.