Minister confirms Kanye West won’t be banned from Netherlands despite growing pressure
Minister of Asylum and Migration, Bart Van den Brink, has confirmed Kanye West won’t be banned from the Netherlands.
West is due to perform two shows at the GelreDome in Arnhem on June 6th and June 8th, which are still set to go ahead despite growing pressure for the Netherlands to follow the UK’s lead and ban him from the country.
Van den Brink has stated (via RTL) that a ban would only be put on place “if there are grounds in accordance with regulations to substantiate that a foreign national poses a threat to public order or national security”.
The politician continued, “As soon as I have that information, I will proceed accordingly. Based on what is currently known to me, I have no indication that an entry ban may apply in this case.”
His insistence that the two shows will go ahead comes after the Central Jewish Council called upon the government to intervene amid West’s history of antisemitism, including declaring himself to be a Nazi, releasing a song called ‘Heil Hitler’ and selling swastika t-shirts in 2025.
Chanan Hertzberger, chairman of the Central Jewish Council, began by stating that in the Netherlands, “our synagogues and schools are being attacked, our children go to school under the protection of the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee”.
Hertzberger continued, “And in that same Netherlands, an artist is welcomed with open arms who calls himself a Nazi, glorifies Hitler, and has released a song titled ‘Heil Hitler’.”
READ MORE: Wireless Festival gambled everything on a man who released a song called ‘Heil Hitler’
The statement then called for the government to take action, adding, “The United Kingdom and Australia have drawn a line. We call upon GelreDome and the Dutch government to set the same standard.”
West was due to headline Wireless Festival in the United Kingdom. However, after the decision to book the rapper was condemned by the Prime Minister Keir Starmer, sponsors such as Pepsi, Rockstar Energy, PayPal and Diageo withdrew from the event.
Wireless’ director Melvin Benn then issued a statement, calling West’s “abhorrent” but urged the public for “forgiveness”. Meanwhile, the artist now known as Ye promised to meet members of the Jewish community while in London and claimed his aim was to “present a show of change, bringing unity, peace and love through my music”.
Then, on April 7th, West’s visa was withdrawn, prohibiting him from entering the UK. As a result, Wireless has been cancelled for 2026.
In addition to his visit to the Netherlands this summer, West’s European tour includes stops in Spain, France and Portugal.
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