Princess Margarita & Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn, News 1 (February 2003-February 2008)

[Jacqueline]

• The Dutch government has been criticized by parliament over its handling of the princess Margarita scandal. The princess accuses Queen Beatrix of ordering her husband to be investigated by the intelligence service. The government until recently denied that there had been such an investigation. But a series of new revelations has left Prime Minister Jan-Peter Balkenende with egg on his face.

What started off as a royal family quarrel has developed into a full-blown political crisis. The scandal broke last month following damning accusations from the Queen's niece, Princess Margarita. In a series of magazine articles, the princess accused the royal family of systematically trying to undermine her marriage to Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn. The couple said their phones calls had been tapped, their mail opened, and a company set up by Mr de Roy van Zuydewijn deliberately undermined.

Following dismissive statements from both the government and the royal family, the princess stepped up her allegations, appearing on television to accuse Queen Beatrix of "abuse of power", and claim she and her husband had been bugged and investigated by security agents. "The queen must apologise to us publicly," Roy van Zuydewijn told the German magazine Stern: "We will not be satisfied with less."

Queen requested inquiry
Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende first tried to play down the matter, but had to acknowledge only a few days later that the security service had indeed investigated Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn "on matters relating to his integrity". The surveillance, he added, was carried out at the request of the queen's office and the ministers concerned had not been warned. Mr Balkenende has since withdrawn the queen's power to request this kind of enquiry without prior agreement with the prime minister.

The justice and interior ministers apologised to Princess Margarita last week, admitting that their respective ministries had initially denied the existence of the investigation. Parliament tasted blood and called for a special debate about "Margarita-gate".

The scandal is embarrassing and damaging to both the government and the royal family, says royalty watcher Jan Kikkert.

"It's the role the government failed not play. This is a highly complex legal matter and when even the Prime Minister found them hard to understand fully, how can you expect the public to understand? So, the general public is responding to the trifles of the whole affair: they see the prime minister first deny that the princess and her husband have ever been bugged and then offer his apologies for the incident two days later. The only thing the man in the street picks up from this whole business is that there has been a letter of excuse, which means you're guilty.".....royalty watcher Jan Kikkert interviewed by Newsline´s Perro de Jong, 2´57

Weak performance
Under the Dutch system, the prime minister bears political responsibility for the actions of the sovereign. But the government at the time didn't know about the investigation into the princess. Clearly, Mr Balkenende had some explaining to do on Wednesday. His weak performance in the debate may have dented his prestige, says Mr Kikkert.

"Both the Dutch Prime Minister and the Royal Family are damaged by this affair. First of all, Mr Balkenende didn't know the legal implications and the Justice Minister had to give him clues. This was a very weak performance and at a certain moment the speaker of Parliament intervened and suggested it would be better if the Justice Minister take over and give the answers himself. "

Damaged they may be, both Prime Minister Balkenende and the Dutch monarchy are expected to weather the storm.

"As yet, there's no surge of republican feeling and the monarchy is still deeply rooted in the hearts of the Dutch population."

Article From: Radio Netherlands

[Jacqueline]

Sex, spies, smears and vendettas: a royal family tears itself apart

By Stephen Castle in The Hague and Leyla Linton

12 March 2003

The Dutch royal family is used to deference and polite respect. But last night, it was under fire in an unprecedented dispute that has been nicknamed "Margarita-gate" and compared to the crisis that tore apart the House of Windsor.

For weeks, Princess Margarita, the alienated niece of Queen Beatrix, has been tormenting the "bicycling monarchy" of the Netherlands by giving the media a series of juicy insights into life behind the palace facade.

But yesterday, the disgruntled royal niece took decisive action by filing a criminal complaint against the nation's secret service and its former prime minister Wim Kok.

Princess Margarita accused Mr Kok of perjury in a letter he wrote denying that her husband, Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn, had been investigated by the intelligence agencies.

The princess claims that the investigation was at the behest of the Queen who opposed the marriage to Mr Van Zuydewijn.

The respected former trade unionist Mr Kok said he was "amazed" at the princess's allegations which he described as groundless. But the shock waves were spreading through the small Dutch elite.

Princess Margarita's claim is the latest and most serious in a series of lurid allegations which have dented the homely image of Dutch royalty, even leading to speculation that Queen Beatrix might abdicate sooner rather than later.

All this is so shocking to the Netherlands because the Dutch have always viewed their constitutional monarchy with respect, and scandalous stories about the low-profile Dutch royal family had been rare in a largely deferential press.

Until Princess Margarita. She is the daughter of Beatrix's sister, Princess Irene, who was forced to renounce the throne after marrying a Spanish aristocrat. But her relationships with her family were poisoned by a row over her choice of partner. Infuriated by repeated snubs, the princess has gone on the offensive with devastating effect.

She and her husband, who now live in France, allege that a sustained slander campaign was orchestrated by the monarch and the court and has ruined their livelihoods.

Mr Van Zuydenwijn claims to have lost millions of pounds in contracts. The couple say companies who were on the brink of signing contracts with Fincentives, his business specialising in personnel options, mysteriously pulled out at the last minute after pressure from the Royal Family.

Palace insiders say Mr Van Zuydewijn is a "dodgy" character who said he was a baron. His wing of the family has never been titled, according to a genealogical expert quoted in a Dutch newspaper.

Margarita went against the will of her parents when she married Mr Van Zuydewijn in France in September 2001.

Neither the Queen nor Margarita's father attended the wedding and there were few other family members present. The princess has complained that her husband is ignored by the royal family and its aides. "They bump into him as though he is invisible and some ladies-in-waiting refuse to shake his hand," she told one publication.

Just months after her marriage the princess appealed to Mr Kok to ask the Queen to intervene and force the royal family to accept her choice of husband, but he said he could not become involved. Under the Dutch constitution, the prime minister bears responsibility for the royal family and speaks for them.

Now Margarita has taken her revenge for her years in the cold, by publicly levelling accusations of adultery against some members of the royal family. The accusations include a claim that her father, Carelhugo de Bourbon Parme, allegedly had an illegitimate son by his Dominican housekeeper.

"He has double moral standards. He disagrees with my husband but he himself has a son by his former Dominican housekeeper, my dark-skinned, half-brother Zavier."

The Princess has also accused Prince Bernhard, 91, the father of Beatrix, of having a long-time affair with his secretary, Cocky Gilles, while his wife, Queen Juliana, who abdicated in 1980 was on the throne.

Princess Margarita portrays her aunt as a tyrant who had decreed that Mr Van Zuydenwijn was an unsuitable choice for marriage.

Mr Van Zuydewijn has related how he was subjected to "psychological terror" around the royal dinner table during an interrogation on his business background. He says that the Queen ordered him to be removed from the group photo at a royal wedding. He has accused Beatrix of having a lot to drink on her birthday and falling asleep in a chair.

In a high-profile television interview, the princess told Nova TV: "I think it is important that people know who these people are, who, as it is said 'may rule the country'. They abuse their position and that is not right."

Last month, the House of Orange limited itself to a brief statement saying the family did "not recognise itself in the picture painted by the articles. Out of love for Princess Margarita, the family is limiting itself to this reaction".

While such a row might have seemed bad enough the latest claims are worse because they transform the saga from one about unhappy families into a political crisis.

Last week the Dutch premier, Jan Peter Balkenende, admitted that Mr Van Zuydewijn had been screened during Mr Kok's government, as part of routine security measures, but denied wrongdoing. He said the government was concerned about the "methods" chosen by the princess and her husband and said the wire-tapping accusations were "too crazy for words". He added: "I find this affair painful for the Queen and her family, and I sincerely hope it will stop."

Yesterday's complaint does not mention Queen Beatrix, who enjoys immunity from prosecution as the head of state.

A security check might have seemed logical but the problem was that the minister responsible for the security services at the time does not appear to have been told. While Queen Beatrix may have had the constitutional right to initiate such an investigation, her actions do not, with hindsight, hold up well to public scrutiny.

Princess Margarita's lawyers are demanding an apology and a financial settlement from the Queen. The complaint also alleges that the secret service broke its rules by leaking Mr Van Zuydewijn's tax and social security records.

Mr Balkenende has written a letter to the Dutch parliament assuring it that procedures have now been tightened.

In Mr Balkenende's letter to parliament he explains that the security investigation in 2000 into Mr Van Zuydewijn's past was legitimate because he was marrying into the royal family. But the BVD security services should have informed the ministers.

Mr Balkenende says he has made agreements with the national security service that from now on, not only the minister, but also the Prime Minister himself would be informed about any important investigation. The BVD started the inquest against Margarita's then fiancé, because it had "serious questions about his integrity", according to the official account.

When certain issues still went unanswered, Felix Rhodius, head of the Queen's cabinet, suggested Margarita's father and brother should be informed. The BVD also went on to inform Prince Bernard, Margarita's grandfather, about the case. Mr Balkenende says there were enough grounds for an investigation and it was "reasonable" that some members of the royal family were involved.

He also said he found no evidence that the couple had been bugged as the couple have claimed.

Whether Margarita will manage to wreak the havoc that Diana, Princess of Wales, inflicted on the British Royal Family remains to be seen. Some royal commentators in the Netherlands argue that Margarita's attempts to "do a Diana" have backfired. Queen Beatrix enjoys enormous popular affection among the Dutch. She is still mourning the loss of Prince Claus, her German-born husband whose death last October prompted much popular outpouring of grief.

But the political classes of The Hague are beginning to get nervous. It would not be that surprising, officials are starting to suggest, if the Queen stepped down, say, around her 70th birthday. And, as we know in Britain, there are few people as dangerous as a princess scorned.

Article From: Independent.co.uk

[Jacqueline]

Princess Margarita and her husband Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn leaving the Dutch parliament, in The Hague, Netherlands Wednesday, March 12, 2003, after a debate held on the methods used by the Dutch secret service to investigate Zuydewijn. A fight between Dutch Queen Beatrix and her niece went to the parliament Wednesday, as politicians asked why top officials were not informed when the queen ordered the secret service to investigate her future nephew-in-law.

Photo From: Yahoo News

[Jacqueline]

Princess Margarita and her husband Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn leave the Dutch parliament, in The Hague, Netherlands, Wednesday, March 12, 2003.

Photo From: Yahoo News

[thissal]

Thanks so much for the pictures and articles. Maybe Queen Beatrix was right to be paranoid about what Princess Margarita and her husband might do.

I still don't understand what the big deal is about? Both Charles and Diana were bugged and seemed to accept it as part of the deal.

Then her husband said he was subject to "psychological terror" by the royal family interrogating him about his business and financial dealings before he married Margarita. Families typically do something like that before their children marry. It's called being protective. Maybe he was really terrorized by what they might discover? :o

[Jacqueline]

Your'e very welcome Thissal. :)

I don't know what this is all about other than the idea that perhaps Princess Margarita's ego couldn't take anymore bruising perhaps. It just seems to be a common occurence, especially in royal families, IMO. I am sure that everyone who marries into most royal families has some kind of investigating done about them especially if they are someone who is not well-known and who seems to be a bit strange. Margarita's husband seems to fit the "strange" profile at times IMO.

I would definitely think that most parents would want their children to marry someone who is financially stable or at least someone who is employed. I wouldn't call that being intrusive. I agree that most parents regardless of who they are look out for the well-being of their children. I think that if he lost business dealings after their marriage due to outside pressures, then that would be going a bit too far and would be unwarranted, but there is really nothing wrong with anyone asking about his business interests. If all of his business interests were legal and honest then there should not have been any problems.

[Jacqueline]

PM, Irene to testify in royal row

14 March 2003

AMSTERDAM — The Dutch Royal crisis continued unabated on Friday with the news the Prime Minister and half the Royal Family are to be called to testify in the ever-increasing number of legal actions emerging from Margarita-gate.

Lawyer Peter Nicolai said his clients, Princess Margarita and her husband Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn, would call Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende first in witness hearings about the background check the national security service AIVD carried out into Edwin's past.

Princess Margarita, a niece of Queen Beatrix, and Edwin plan a EUR 35 million law suit against the Royal Family for allegedly running a smear campaign against Edwin.

They are also lodging a criminal complaint against former Prime Minister Wim Kok, two other ex-ministers and the AIVD for allegedly lying and violating the couple's privacy.

Speaking on television programme Barend en Van Dorp on Thursday night, Nicolai did concede his client will apologise to the head of the national information service RVD, Eef Brouwers, for suggesting he used a tiny microphone disguised as a screw to tape a meeting with her.

Nicolai said while he was not saying the meeting was not bugged, other agencies and not Brouwers would have been responsible if this had happened. And he claimed to have evidence that confirms the couple were spied on by state agencies.

Rotterdam-based newspaper Algemeen Dagblad added to the royal headache when it reported on Friday morning that Margarita's mother and the Queen's sister, Princess Irene, would be called as a witness in the case against the Royal family.

Other potential witnesses, the paper said, would include Margarita's father, Carlos Hugo; her brothers, Carlos and Jaime, and her sister, Carolina.

The newspaper said it based its story on official correspondence between lawyers.

Article From: Expactica.com

[Etienne,DuchessofBurgundy]

Royal scandals go Dutch

01.03.2003


The House of Orange has turned crimson with rage over shocking revelations depicting popular Queen Beatrix as a manipulative supersnob who falls asleep at parties after two many glasses of wine and her father Prince Bernard, aged 90, as a serial philanderer who kept a mistress at the palace for decades.

The Dutch royal family has long been immune to the kind of embarrassing scandal that has so plagued its British counterpart. But, to make matters worse, the lid has been lifted, not by the so called "boulevard" press in the Netherlands, but by an insider - the Queen's niece and god-daughter, no less.

Now the feud between Princess Margarita and her Dutch husband, Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn, and the royal family is threatening to spill out into the courts.

The pair, now living in France, allege that a sustained slander campaign against them was orchestrated by the monarch and her court which has ruined their livelihoods.

De Roy van Zuydewijn, described as a business entrepreneur, claims to have lost millions of euros in contracts.

He and his wife say companies who were on the brink of signing contracts with his "Fincentives", a business specialising in personnel options, which he set up, mysteriously pulled out at the last minute. They claim the reason was pressure from the Dutch royal family.

According to palace insiders, de Roy van Zuydewijn was seen as a "bit of a dodgy character" who infuriated them for styling himself a baron and using the title in France. A genealogical expert told a Dutch newspaper with good royal contacts that his wing of the family had never been titled.

Now a well known law expert, Professor W. J. Slagter of the Erasmus University in Rotterdam, who also runs a successful legal business, has confirmed that a legal action was planned and the couple intended calling 35 witnesses to back up their claim of a long-running hate campaign. The Rotterdam legal firm of Mastenbroek were said to be preparing court papers in advance of a civil action.

For two weeks now a Dutch public, unaccustomed to any controversial publicity about its royalty, has been flocking to the news-stands to lap up further instalments of life inside the royal goldfish bowl in the current affairs magazine HP De Tijd.

Princess Margarita Bourbon-Parma, who is the eldest daughter of the Queen's younger sister, Irene, told how she was raised by a succession of nursemaids while her mother, the author of holistic books who regularly swims with dolphins and talks to trees, busied herself elsewhere.

She portrayed her aunt and godmother, the Queen, as a tyrant who had decreed that the man she subsequently married, de Roy van Zuydewijn, was unsuitable and should be deemed an untouchable.

When the couple married in France in 2001, few members of the Dutch royal family turned up. They claim that, whenever they attended family gatherings since then, they have been ignored, insulted and ostracised. De Roy van Zuydewijn told how he was subjected to "psychological terror" around the royal dinner table during an inquisition about his business background. At one royal wedding the Queen personally ordered de Roy van Zuydewijn to be removed from the group photograph while his outstretched hand was deliberately ignored by a lady-in-waiting when he attempted to shake her hand. At one party they had attended, on the Queen's birthday, the monarch was slumped in a chair asleep and she drank a lot of glasses of wine, de Roy van Zuydewijn told the Dutch magazine.

But more disturbing disclosures also emerged. The couple claimed that their home in Amsterdam was bugged and de Roy van Zuydewijn's mail intercepted by the intelligence service.

Margarita's father, Carlos Bourbon de Parma, who is divorced from her mother, ordered an investigation into de Roy van Zuydewijn's medical records to see if he was HIV positive and tried to obtain bank and social welfare records to damage him, they say.

Princess Margarita also alleges her grandfather, Prince Bernard, who banned them from his 90th birthday, kept his mistress, who was also his personnel assistant, at apartments in the palace for decades and made his grandchildren call her "aunt".

Queen Beatrix is said to be appalled at the intrusion into the House of Orange's closely guarded privacy and furious with her niece. The only official statement has been one stating that "out of love for Margarita the family does not wish to comment".

Dutch royal biographer Fred Lammers, who has written books on Queen Beatrix and Crown Prince Willem Alexander, told the Independent: "This is all a nightmare come true; for years the Queen prided herself on avoiding the type of thing which has so damaged the British monarchy. Now it seems the skeletons are being rattled and, if anything, what's emerging here is even more damaging."

A TV documentary series screening in Holland will focus on the power wielded by the Queen's father, Prince Bernard, while his wife, Juliana, was on the throne. Several prominent interviewees have confirmed in the programme that he fathered a number of illegitimate children, according to the newspaper De Telegraaf.

- INDEPENDENT

[Etienne,DuchessofBurgundy]

Bitter princess turns on Dutch royal family PM steps in to avert £23m suit against queen

Andrew Osborn
Thursday March 6, 2003
The Guardian

The Dutch prime minister was forced yesterday to intervene in a row engulfing the country's normally staid royal family after the queen's embittered niece appeared on television and threatened to sue her aunt for tens of millions of pounds in damages for defamation.
Princess Margarita, 31, went on TV on Tuesday night to accuse 65-year-old Queen Beatrix of abuse of power and of maliciously and illegally undermining the reputation and business interests of her husband, Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn, allegedly because he is a commoner.

She reportedly wants £23m in damages from the queen, who Forbes magazine claims is worth £170m.

The princess's TV appearance capped weeks of humiliating and highly damaging allegations against the House of Orange-Nassau in magazines.

The most serious was that the queen and her advisers had mounted an illegal smear campaign against her and her husband in an attempt to break up their "unsuitable" marriage.

This, the princess claims, involved the royal family releasing confidential and embarrassing material to the press which was obtained by bugging her home and photocopying her husband's private papers.

The Christian Democrat prime minister, Jan-Peter Balkenende, stepped into the fray to defend the royal family. A move, said commentators, which signalled that the row had spun out of control and was threatening to damage the monarchy itself.

Mr Balkenende dismissed most of Margarita's claims. "The government is concerned about the methods the princess and her husband have chosen," he said, adding that the wire-tapping claims were "too crazy for words".

He also said government lawyers were considering legal action against the princess over her claim that the head of the government information service had bugged a private meeting aimed at ending the row.

But Mr Balkenende did concede that the Dutch secret service had accessed secret social services files on Margarita's husband, but this, he argued, was a routine practice for any prospective royal spouse.

But Princess Margarita is unlikely to be deterred.

She told the Nova TV programme: "I think it's important that people know who these people are, who, as it is said, 'may rule the country'.

"They abuse their position and that is not right."

To the delight of the gossip magazines the princess has also "revealed" a string of alleged royal indiscretions.

It is an "open secret," she claimed, that the queen's father, Prince Bernhard, had an affair with his secretary, Cocky Gilles, for 20 years while her own father Carelhugo de Bourbon Parme, she said, had sired an illegitimate son with his Dominican housekeeper.

Other embarrassments include claims that Crown Prince Willem Alexander thinks Voltaire is a village in France, that the queen ignored her eldest son for months in protest against his choice of bride (a commoner and the daughter of a former minister in the Argentine junta's "dirty war") and that the queen is overly fond of red wine.

Princess Margarita has also painted a picture of supreme arrogance describing how one of the queen's sons - Prince Johan Friso - waved to well-wishers with one hand while surreptitiously giving the finger with the other.

The princess's husband has often joined her attacks, claiming that he was subjected to "psychological terror" by the royals and was routinely snubbed.

A financial services company which he founded had repeatedly seen lucrative contracts cancelled at the last minute because, he says, the royals leaned on prospective business partners.

Princess Margarita, the eldest daughter of Beatrix's sister Irene, claims she is not motivated by revenge or money.

Her campaign, she says, is "about respect [and] the rehabilitation of my name and that of my husband".

[ravenprincess]

What ever happened to family business staying in the family?? What a mess, I'm looking forward to seeing how the royal family is going to fix this. Thanks for posting the article

[sky]

How are the queens sister children, prince(ss) and their father's arent royal.

Princess Margarita's father is a Prince of Bourbon-Parma. That's why she's a Princess.

:flower: HB

[The Watcher]

This is a old story, from around March.... It is not important anymore....

[Josefine]

what is the latest in this case

[The Watcher]

Dutch article, it is going about the Margarita and Edwin, here is a English summary:

Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn and Princess Margarita has a team of lawyers that work for them, because the case against the State and the Royal family. (See articles above why there is a case)

First some lawyers (mr. Nicolai etc.) worked for M en E, but than suddenly they refused to work any longer for Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn, but they didn't find it a problem to work for Princess Margarita. Margarita wanted that the lawyers work for her and Edwin, so they took a new team of lawyers (mrs. Bohler etc). Now this team do the same thing as the first team, they refused to work any longer for Edwin but they still want to work for Princess Margarita.

It seems that Edwin is uhmmm...quit impossible
If your own lawyers refuse to work any longer for you, well than you are....uhmmm..not a very friendly person. And it is the second time, that this happened



-----------------------------------------------------
Advocaten werken alleen nog voor Margarita


DEN HAAG - De advocaten van prinses Margarita en Edwin de Roy van Zuydewijn, B. Böhler en V. Koppe, werken alleen nog voor de prinses. Dat is donderdag gebleken tijdens de behandeling van het verzoek van het paar om een aantal getuigen te laten horen.


Het echtpaar wil die getuigen, onder wie prins Bernhard, oproepen om te kunnen beslissen, of het een procedure tegen de Staat en het Koninklijk Huis aanspant. De prinses en haar man voelen zich door haar familie geschaad. De rechtbank beslist 5 februari over het verzoek.

Böhler en Koppe zeiden donderdag in Den Haag in deze kwestie nog steeds voor beiden te spreken, maar het komt erop neer dat de samenwerking daarna voorbij is. De Roy van Zuydewijn zou nog wel verder willen procederen.

De advocaten weigerden na afloop elk commentaar. Eerder kwam een einde aan de samenwerking van De Roy van Zuydewijn met onder anderen advocaat mr. Peter Nicolaï. De prinses hield die advocaten toen nog even aan, maar niet lang erna ging het stel samen op zoek naar nieuwe: Böhler en Koppe.

Volgens dit tweetal maakt het einde aan de samenwerking met de man van Margarita niets uit voor de behandeling van het verzoek om getuigen te laten horen. Het was de advocaat van de tegenpartij, mr. G. Houtzagers namens de Staat, die ter zitting meldde dat Koppe en Böhler hem woensdag hadden laten weten "dat zij na de sluiting van deze behandeling niet langer zullen optreden voor de heer De Roy van Zuydewijn."

"Ongeacht wat daarvoor de reden is, en die reden gaat de Staat ook niet aan ", vraagt de landsadvocaat zich af wat de nieuwe situatie betekent voor het belang om bepaalde getuigen te laten horen.

Margarita en haar man willen behalve Margarita's opa prins Bernhard onder anderen ook haar vader, prins Carlos Hugo de Bourbon de Parme, en haar broer, prins Carlos de Bourbon de Parme, laten horen. Ook de directeur van het Kabinet der Koningin, Felix Rhodius, directeur-generaal Eef Brouwers van de Rijksvoorlichtingsdienst, Sybrand van Hulst van de Algemene Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst (AIVD) en Maartje van Weegen van NOS Actueel zouden naar de rechtbank moeten komen.

Rhodius gaf de toenmalige veiligheidsdienst BVD opdracht onderzoek naar De Roy van Zuydewijn te doen. Volgens Böhler en Koppe behelzen de resultaten privacygevoelige en ook onjuiste informatie, die vervolgens ongeoorloofd naar de opa, vader en broer van Margarita is doorgesluisd. Bevoegde ministers wisten van niets. De Staat heeft volgens de raadslieden bovendien onderzoek gedaan zonder dat er gegronde redenen waren. Volgens Koppe heeft het onderzoek naar Margarita's man ook "een interessant en duidelijk reliëf" gekregen na de zogenoemde Mabel-affaire. Werd de nu zo omstreden Mabel Wisse Smit, de verloofde van prins Johan Friso, "vrijwel direct tot de koningin toegelaten" en werd er slechts op de valreep nog wat onderzoek gedaan, De Roy van Zuydewijn werd kennelijk meteen gezien als iemand die mogelijk gevaar zou kunnen opleveren.

Verder hebben de belastinggegevens van De Roy van Zuydewijn een volgens de raadslieden wonderlijke weg afgelegd en fluisterde iemand tv-verslaggeefster Maartje van Weegen in, dat hij in financiële problemen verkeerde. Zij meldde dat tijdens het live-verslag van het huwelijk van prins Willem-Alexander in februari 2002. Bovendien zouden Margarita en Edwin "veelvuldig zijn afgeluisterd en geobserveerd, een en ander mede op verzoek van prins Bernhard."

Volgens de advocaat van de Staat moet het verzoek om getuigen te horen worden afgewezen, omdat alle relevante informatie bekend is en omdat bepaalde beschuldingen niet terecht zijn of "niet meer inhouden dan de verwijten op zich". Andere zaken zijn puur juridische vraagstukken. Getuigen zouden dus niets hebben toe te voegen en een verhoor zou neerkomen op veel "onnodige poespas".

De drie prinsen, die het echtpaar wil laten horen zullen zich zeker beroepen op "familiaal verschoningsrecht". Dat hoeft volgens de Hoge Raad nooit gemotiveerd te worden. Van Weegen zou zich op journalistiek verschoningsrecht kunnen beroepen.

[USCtrojan]

[FONT=Optima]Sometimes I wonder what goes through someones head when they go against their own family. This is a family (dispite her mother marrying her wierd father) that has most likely kept them under their wing since day one, wether or not it was agreed on Irene's wedding. In the long run Edwin (anyone have anymore about his self titleness?) most likely won't be there for her, and if she were at good odds with her family they would have...... I come to wonder if Edwin isn't the one fueling this whole situation?

What a mess!

If Beatrix didn't approve of commoners in the first place then she would have never have given either of her sons the time of day to become involved with one. She didn't seem to disapprove of Laurentien at all, I doubt she disapproved of the amazing Maxima (other than her fathers mess) heck she even gave Mabel a chance stating that she was fond and proud of her new future daughter in law!

[Alisa]

Both parties (Beatrix included&#33 have acted dishonorably imo.

[The Watcher]

Still is the big question what is true and what not? Do we have to believe everything the couple said? Now, a year later after this Margaritagate, the dutch people find Edwin and Margarita one big joke, the people think that Margarita and Edwin do it all only for the $$$$$$$$$$$

[Alisa]

The only people who benefitted were the newspapers.
Margarita and Edwin were fighting a losing battle from the begining...no one would've spoken out against Beatrix, and so the came out looking like fools.

[ilie85]

me personally and some other dutch people think that they only did it for the money and now they don't get any. The roumour (i don't know how to write it) is that they are going to divorce.