Paul Scheffer
Paul Scheffer (b. 1954) is a philosopher and professor of urban studies at the University of Amsterdam. An ex-correspondent in Paris and Warsaw, he writes regular op-ed pieces for the Dutch press. One of them, published in the NRC Handelsblad in 2005 on the failure of the Dutch multicultural society, has stirred up no end of controversy.
Updated: 15 April 2010
Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, has yet to distance himself from the anti-immigrant web site recently launched by the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) headed by Geert Wilders. This silence reveals the country's political divisions and a lack of vision on immigration issues, argues philosopher Paul Scheffer. 
European leaders have used the threat of war to justify policies undertaken to save the euro. But this argument no longer works, argues Dutch philosopher Paul Scheffer. The hearts and minds of Europeans must be won with valid arguments. 
The EU needs to do more to protect people against the upsurge of populism. Otherwise the current “second globalisation” will culminate in a crisis of massive proportions, prophesies Dutch philosopher Paul Scheffer.