Dear people,

Glad you're all here. Today, as Acting Chairman, I have something to say to you. In general, I'm not a fan of New Year's speeches, they are usually too long and have nothing startling. But now that I get the chance, I'm going to go wild!

We look back on an interesting year. Many activities we organized were successful. I mention, for example, the successful political debates in the Haaglanden region prior to the municipal elections and the pink ballot box agreements concluded in various municipalities.

There were also major manifestations: the Pridewalk was particularly successful, which attracted more participants than ever and with which we cheerfully but insistently draw attention to the emancipation struggle of the LGBTI+ movement. I am not going to present an entire annual report now and I will summarize it: COC Haaglanden was very visible in 2018 and bijna always in a positive way! By the way, if you still want to read the 2017 annual report: request it at info@cochaaglanden.nl or check out the website!

Every New Year's speech of each association will show how much you owe to the volunteers who are active. And that also applies to our association. More than a hundred volunteers are sometimes involved in a series of activities on a daily basis: celebrations and parties, the daily care around the café, the information activities at schools, these are just a few of the many activities. I would also like to mention our social workers, who as professionals stand for good specialized assistance to people who need it.

That's why it was so nice and very right that on December 7 of last year one of our volunteers was chosen as Hague Hero. It concerns Paul Kisner in the education and youth category.

And let's not forget that Susan de Boer received a Pink Pearl from Mayor Krikke of The Hague on International Women's Day, for her great commitment to the LGBTI community.

And I also mention Sandra Khouw, also known as DJ Miss T, who was proclaimed Miss Gay Holland in April of 2018.

Congratulations again to all of you!

At the end of 2018, a whole new working group was set up with the name Philautia, a working group that focuses in particular on students from The Hague. Philautia??

Philautia is the Greek concept of 'accepting yourself.' The idea is that love for others only begins when you fully accept and love yourself.
As Aristotle is said to have said, “All love for others is an extension of the love one has for oneself.” The word begins with 'Philia', the Greek word for love.

We think that this group is a real reinforcement of the range of activities that COC Haaglanden presents.

Ok, enough navel-gazing…

Because it has not escaped anyone's attention that in the last few weeks there has been another open attack (I am talking of course about the Nashville Declaration) on values ​​and norms in this country that we assume, perhaps too easily, in our safe Western European part land by the sea would no longer be threatened. The opposite turns out to be true. Now you can dismiss this movement as irrelevant, as Bert Wagendorp wrote in the Volkskrant on Tuesday:

“It seems unwise to leave issues of sexuality to people who draw on the made-up desert fiction of two thousand years or more ago. Letting them boil in their own juice with all the delusions and ignore them seems to me the best option.

But I think that we, the people concerned, us can cannot afford luxury. Not in our own society and not when we look at the world around us. Then you see that there are countries where the clock is turned back or where the clock has stood still for years. And with that, the right to exist of an LGBTI emancipation movement has once again been 100% proven.

COC Haaglanden as part of COC Netherlands, together with all other associations in the country, will continue to stand firm for our rights. Fortunately, there are many ways to express this, the activities that we develop throughout the year are an example of this. And everyone who is active contributes in a way that is appropriate. Ultimately, it's about making ourselves redundant, but we're a long way from that. We can't sit back!

We look forward to 2019 with great confidence. With a partially new board that does everything it can to keep the organization running as well as possible, and a large enthusiastic group of active people in the association. In 2019 we will also have bumps, encounter setbacks and have to fight. But great moments of conviviality, solidarity and results are also ahead of us. And sometimes they coincide too!

Therefore: I would like to toast with you to a fantastic 2019!

Delivered by Paul van der Kraan, acting chairman, during the New Year's reception of COC Haaglanden on January 12, 2019.