A proposal to criminalize illegal stay unexpectedly passed in the Dutch House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer) due to the absence of several Members of Parliament (MPs) and subsequent difficulties in pairing. The situation has sparked controversy and accusations among different political parties.

Normally, absent MPs are paired with someone from the opposing side who is also absent or abstains from voting as a matter of parliamentary courtesy. This ensures that the vote reflects the actual political power dynamics in the House. However, this system faltered on Tuesday, with three absentees unable to find pairs within the proponents’ camp, allowing Geert Wilders to claim victory.

Christine Teunissen of the Party for the Animals was one of the absentees. She attended the commemoration of the slavery past in Amsterdam and stated that she couldn’t return in time via public transport. Teunissen expressed her frustration, calling it a “huge bummer” that the criminalization of illegal stay now has an undeserved majority.

Teunissen blamed the proponents, stating that her attempts to find a pair failed because the House was unwilling to postpone the votes by two hours. She criticized the parties that couldn’t respect the national commemoration of the slavery past.

Even if Teunissen had been present, the proposal likely would have passed. A member of the NSC was absent due to a death in the family and was paired with an absent MP from GroenLinks-PvdA, both parties opposed to the criminalization. This pairing proved ineffective.

The NSC pointed blame towards “the left,” accusing them of having too many MPs absent due to Ketikoti celebrations. This reportedly made it impossible to find pairs for all absentees. Another proposal to remove priority status for status holders in social housing also passed with a similar majority of 72 against 69 votes.