DOUBLE DUTCH:THE TWO FACES OF DUTCH FOREIGN AID

Erin Sielaff and Kristen Skillman

INAF 339

Research Question

• Does the Netherlands distribute more foreign aid to countries with better human rights records?

Yes…

…but only for some kinds of human rights

Human Rights, Foreign Aid, and the Netherlands• Case Study: Indonesia, early 1990s

• The Netherlands’ stated top human rights priorities:

1. Protection of human rights defenders

2. Women’s rights

3. LGTB rights

The Debate

• Some scholars find a positive correlation between empowerment rights and Dutch Aid:• Neumayer (2003), Alesina and Dollar (2000), Stokke

(2006), Baer (2010)

• Others find a negative correlation between integrity rights and Dutch Aid:• Neumayer (2003), Baer (2002), Hoebink (1999)

• No existing quantitative study exclusively examining the Netherlands

Hypotheses

• H1: The Netherlands gives more foreign aid to countries with better human rights records.

• H2: The Netherlands gives more foreign aid to countries with better empowerment rights records.

Methodology

Data• CIRI Human Rights

Dataset• Dutch ODA Data

Robustness Checks• Country Fixed-Effects• Year Fixed-Effects

Controls• Democracy• GDP per capita• Population• Oil• Communism• Trade• Former Colony• Ethnic Fractionalization• Religious

Fractionalization

The Effect of Empowerment Rights on Log of Dutch Aid

The Effect of Integrity Rights on Log of Dutch Aid

Conclusion

• Physical Integrity Rights vs. Empowerment Rights:

Dutch use limited aid-euros to support rights that get less attention on the international stage

• Small Donors can be strategic actors

CIRI Component Variables

Significant• Extrajudicial Killings• Torture• Freedom of Speech • Freedom of Religion• Freedom of Domestic

Movement• Freedom of Foreign

Movement• Freedom of Association• Electoral Self Determination• Worker’s Rights

Insignificant• Disappearances• Political Prisoners• Women’s Economic

Freedoms• Women’s Political

Freedoms• Independent Judiciary