GPV - Ideology and Issues

Ideology and Issues

In its first years the GPV did not have a separate election manifesto or manifesto of principles. Instead it claimed to base its policy directly on the bible. In 1967 the first manifesto of principles was published, in which the party again stressed that the Bible was the basis of their policy. The party saw the Netherlands as a Protestant nation, which should be defended.

In practice this meant that the GPV took the following stances:

• The GPV was against European Integration, because they distrusted the Catholic nature of the project;
• The party was in favour of a strong defense;
• The GPV was staunchly monarchist because they saw the Dutch Monarchy as a God given institution;
• Originally the party wanted the government to decrease its influence on society, allowing for private initiative and civil society to take over some of its functions, during the 1980s the party wanted to retain the welfare state and paid attention to the environment;
• The GPV defended the system of special schools, which allowed for schools to be founded on liberated reformed principles;
• The party favoured the independence of South Maluku and Irian Jaya, and supported Apartheid in South Africa;
• As an orthodox Christian party the party was against the Dutch policy on soft drugs, same-sex marriage, prostitution, abortion and euthanasia