WOERDEN, The Netherlands—Dutch businessman and multimillionaire Hans Daniel Melchers has withdrawn from the Hans Melchers Fund he personally inaugurated in 2006. The split came about after discord with management concerning a controversy that dates back to 2007, but only came to his attention recently.
The fund provides financial aid to victims of slanderous media reports in initiating lawsuits and helps with finding specialized attorneys.
The main reason for the disagreement happened when Hans Melcher learned that the foundation had offered Folkert van de G, the killer of Dutch politician Pim Fortuyn, a guarantee for financial aid in funding a libel lawsuit against newspaper de Telegraaf in 2007. The newspaper, the largest in the Netherlands, had attributed another murder to Fortuyn’s killer without legal proof. The subsequent lawsuit declared that Folkert van de G was correct and the newspaper was obliged to pay financial compensation, which also covered the costs for the lawsuit.
In a reaction to the controversy, chairman of the foundation Hugo Arlman said on a Dutch Talk show, “There was no reason to diverge from our principle, everybody thinks it is perfectly just that everyone has the right for an attorney, in the same manner people have the right to protect their name ... even when that person is a legally convicted person.”
Hans Melchers stated that the fund was not meant for killers but for innocent people and claimed that he was not properly informed by management of the foundation.
The Origin of the Melchers Fund
As a wealthy businessman, Melchers has had a life in the spotlight, mostly against his will. On Sep. 12, 2005 his daughter, Claudia Melchers, was captured and a ransom of 600 pounds of cocaine was demanded by the kidnappers. In the aftermath Hans Melchers and his family underwent a torrent of negative publicity as he was groundlessly linked to drug dealing in media reports. Hans Melchers took legal action to clear his name, and in 2006 established the fund to assist others who suffered similar fates.
“Hans Melchers personally experienced how unfounded accusations can have a deep impact on one’s personal life. He is in the fortunate circumstances that that he has sufficient means to defend himself and initiate civil proceedings. For many people and organizations that have been damaged by the media this is not in their lot. They cannot, contrary to the media itself, afford specialized attorneys.”
In addition, “The foundation will participate in the public debate about the social and public responsibility of the media that fulfill an essential role in our democracy,” states the Melchers fund on their Web site.
In 2006 Hans Melchers donated one million euros (US$1.4 million) to the fund and appointed an independent management, among whom is the former Dutch Prime Minister Dries Van Agt.
