Interview with Minister Ollongren canceled due to security warning

The conversation with outgoing Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren scheduled to take place today at five o'clock has been canceled by the organizers of the debate platform Room for Discussion. The decision follows a warning from the Amsterdam triangle (chief public prosecutor, police chief, and mayor) in consultation with the Executive Board.

The reason for the warning is that “unrest and disorder are conceivable, given recent times,” a spokesperson for Mayor Femke Halsema announced. Room for Discussion says it takes this advice seriously but is also “very sorry.” “We deeply regret that this interview cannot go ahead as planned, as stimulating dialogue on broader social issues is at the core of our mission,” the organization writes in a press statement.

Not the first time

Initially, this conversation with Ollongren was scheduled as early as May 13th. It could not take place at that time due to an announced walk-out which later resulted in an occupation of REC-ABC. This is not the first time an announced conversation at Room for Discussion has been canceled or moved. Last week the conversation with Mayor Femke Halsema could not take place on location either because of a security warning. On the initiative of Halsema herself, it was then moved to the Stopera.

At the end of March, the Room for Discussion session with Rob Bauer also had to be moved. Protesters refused to stop chanting slogans, making a conversation with the NATO military chief in the open hall of REC-E impossible.

Last year, Jeroen van der Veer, former president and CEO of Shell, refused to come to UvA for a conversation with Room for Discussion following threatening messages on Instagram from activists. Those pictures showed him with a black bar in front of his eyes under the text “Wanted. Climate Criminal.”