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Why did Holland fund megaship named after prominent Nazi?
By Cnaan Liphshiz, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Israel News, Nazi, Holland 

The Dutch government will in the coming days be required to explain why it has funded the construction of a ship named after prominent Nazi industrialist and Waffen-SS officer Pieter Schelte.

"Funding this ship was a mistake which is offensive to many people," Dutch legislator Sharon Gesthuizen, who recently filed a parliamentary query on the subject, told Haaretz on Friday. Gesthuizen has also called for the ship's name to be changed.

Gesthuizen's query concerns an 800,000 euro subsidy which the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs allocated in 2001 for the construction of the Pieter Schelte, a mega vessel which will become the world's largest ship after its launching after or during 2010.
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The decision to name the ship after the late Nazi industrialist was made by the man's son, Edward Heerema, who is the president of the offshore giant which is building the megaship, Allseas.

A spokesperson for ministry told one local Dutch paper that funding was approved because "no alarm bells" had gone off during review. In accordance with Dutch law, the ministry is expected to provide a more detailed answer within the next two weeks.

"This is an unbelievable situation, where a fanatic Nazi is honored by having one of the world's largest ships named after him," investigative journalist Ton Biesemaat, who exposed the affair, said.

He added he found the affair "characteristic of the passivity and moral decline in Dutch society," and of a "desire to forget" inconvenient truths about Dutch collaboration with the Nazis in WWII.

Both Biesemaat, who is writing a book about Heerema's business empire, and Gesthuizen said they were surprised at how little attention the matter received in Dutch media.

Meanwhile, as the Peter Schelte was being constructed, the Israeli government commissioned Heerema's firm to participate in the Al Arish-Ashkelon pipeline installation project which was completed last year.



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    Fallen hero
    Relatives mourn Maj. Roey Rosner, 27, killed Wednesday by Gaza militants.
    On the northern front
    Hezbollah denies responsibility for two rockets fired at Israel from Lebanon.
      1.   Shameful, the son should have been more sensitive to victims feel 16:25  |  Moise 01/11/08
      2.   Look at percentages 17:13  |  Jackie 01/11/08
      3.   SS Ship 17:33  |  Darrell 01/11/08
      4.   Tom Biesemaat is a failed journalist and a grudgy small man 18:13  |  Mark B. 01/11/08
      5.   Indeed 20:40  |  Colin Wright 01/11/08
      6.   Let me remind readers 20:52  |  Yonatan 01/11/08
      7.   big ships 21:35  |  DHL 01/11/08
      8.   Launching? 22:47  |  Axel 01/11/08
      9.   Storm in a teacup 22:52  |  Axel 01/11/08
      10.   # 1 colin 23:07  |  Axel 01/11/08
      11.   Let me remind readers as well 23:15  |  Pieter 01/11/08
      12.   Here we go... 23:34  |  curious george 01/11/08
      13.   iS THE SONS EMPIRE BUILTON DEAD JEWS ASSETS 00:31  |  Bernard Ross 02/11/08
      14.   #2 Yonatan 00:35  |  Howard 02/11/08
      15.   #4 Bernard Ross 00:59  |  Howard 02/11/08
      16.   #6 Curious George 02:08  |  Howard 02/11/08
      17.   shipping 03:19  |  Harry 02/11/08
      18.   So? Don`t Israeli submarines carry torpedos? 04:12  |  Ian Robertson 02/11/08
      19.   Stupid mistake 04:15  |  David G 02/11/08
      20.   finally a step toward healing... 09:44  |  samos 02/11/08
      21.   Let me remind readers that 10:52  |  Benjamina 02/11/08
      22.   CURIOUS GEORGE Who is forcing you to read this article ? 11:49  |  PETER SM 02/11/08
      23.   The Dutch Government should make good 12:03  |  Ron Manilovich 02/11/08
      24.   One of the many instances where the "golder rule" applies 12:05  |  Natallie Durson 02/11/08
      25.   NATALIE when can we expect Arab sensitivity over 9/11? 12:51  |  PETER SM 02/11/08
      26.   # 25 petersm 15:35  |  Axel 02/11/08
      27.   to Howard 16:28  |  curious george 02/11/08
      28.   why allow this racist Durson to post 17:49  |  anton orde 02/11/08
      29.   Curious George#12 The Holocaust is a fact of history 20:29  |  Alan 02/11/08
      30.   I Would Suspect... 20:36  |  Yosemite 02/11/08
      31.   Holland 15:12  |  Filou 03/11/08
      32.   Holland-2 15:24  |  Filou 03/11/08
      33.   Holland is lost beyond hope 18:34  |  Alicia 03/11/08
      34.   What do we really know about... 12:08  |  Scott G 04/11/08
      35.   the name of a nazi on a dutch ship 20:02  |  eddy 04/11/08
      36.   HOW UN-DUTCH 18:42  |  TAZ 05/11/08
      37.   who cares about a name? 11:20  |  Jan 06/11/08
      38.   Ship / Torpedoes 13:08  |  Adrian 10/01/09
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