Members of the fundamentalist Protestant party SGP are being asked to vote on a proposal to end its long-standing opposition to women’s participation in politics, but party leaders are advising against the move.

The right-wing SGP believes the country should be governed “entirely on the basis of the ordinances of God as revealed in the Holy Scriptures”, and therefore holds that women should not play an active role in political life.

However, SGP member Lilian Janse, who has represented the party on the Vlissingen local council for more than 10 years, is now calling for an official change. She has now submitted a motion to end the ban, which will be discussed at the party congress on 24 May.

“I believe the Bible allows women to hold public office,” Janse told current affairs programme EenVandaag. “I carry out my work as an SGP member with dedication and joy, driven by Biblical conviction. But deep down, I do not feel supported by the SGP. I wish that were different.”

The party, which has three seats in the 150 seat lower house of parliament in the Netherlands, has been embroiled in a long legal battle about the role of women.

In 2013, following rulings by the Dutch supreme court and the European Court of Human Rights, the SGP agreed to drop its ban on including women on candidate lists. However, the party’s founding principles were not amended — a compromise seen at the time as politically strategic.

The party board now says it “does not consider it wise to reopen debate” on this arrangement, as called for by Janse, and is calling on members to reject the motion.

Instead, “the board wants to direct its full energy toward fulfilling the party’s mission of promoting the blessings of Biblical values and norms in the public domain”, officials said.

Janse’s motion proposes replacing the current wording with a new formulation that would allow women to decide for themselves whether a political role is appropriate, “with due regard for the place given to her by God”.

Divided opinion

Opinion among SGP supporters on the EenVandaag panel is divided, with 47% in favour of women standing for office and 39% opposed.

SGP MP Diederik van Dijk told the programme that men and women “complement” one another. “More women than men vote for the SGP,” he said. “So what problem exactly are we talking about?”