Ahmed Aboutaleb, the new Mayor of Rotterdam
EU-Digest focus on Ahmed Aboutaleb, the new Mayor of Rotterdam
A European Obama? - Ahmed Aboutaleb chosen as Rotterdam's new Mayor
A Moroccan-born Dutch politician who told immigrants to either integrate or take the next plane home, will become the first immigrant to lead Rotterdam, one of the Netherlands' major cities and Europe's number one container Port. On Jan. 1, Ahmed Aboutaleb will take the reins of Rotterdam, a city and subburbian region of some 1 million people, when incumbent Ivo Opstelten retires. Mr.Aboutaleb was born August 29, 1961 in Beni Sidel, Morocco, and is the son of an Imam. After growing up in his small Moroccan village, he moved to the Netherlands in 1976. He studied electrical engineering and telecommunications, and worked as a reporter for Veronica, NOS-radio and RTL Nieuws. Later, he also worked at the public relations department of the Dutch Health Ministry. In 1988, Ahmed Aboutaleb became the director of the Forum organization, which was directly related to multiculturalism in Dutch society. Ahmed Aboutaleb, who is a Muslim strongly advocates the separation of church and state (secularism).
In 1988, Aboutaleb became the director of the Forum organization, which was directly related to multiculturalism in Dutch society. The government approved Aboutaleb's appointment Friday after the municipality voted overwhelmingly for him. Ahmed Aboutaleb, 47, is presently deputy minister for social affairs in Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende's government along with another foreign born deputy minister, Nebahat Albayrak, of Turkish descent. Before taking the ministerial job in 2007, he made his reputation as an alderman in Amsterdam, where he pushed migrants to integrate or leave.
Aboutaleb was propelled to prominence when he went to a mosque in Amsterdam the day after Van Gogh's murder and told the worshipers to either integrate or take the next plane home.
Rotterdam was the power base of populist anti-immigration politician Pim Fortuyn, who was murdered by an animal rights activist in 2002. Ruud Lubbers, a former prime minister, said Mr. Aboutaleb is an excellent choice who should be able to keep anti-immigrant sentiment under control in the city. Nearly 36 percent of Rotterdam's population is classed as "non-western immigrant" by the Dutch national statistics office. The immigrants are mainly families and descendants of Turkish and Moroccan guest workers.
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