{"id":98080,"date":"2025-08-03T14:35:17","date_gmt":"2025-08-03T12:35:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/?p=98080"},"modified":"2025-08-03T14:35:20","modified_gmt":"2025-08-03T12:35:20","slug":"afgezette-bestuurders-zamelen-geld-in-voor-rechtszaak-tegen-kunstenbond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/en\/2025\/08\/afgezette-bestuurders-zamelen-geld-in-voor-rechtszaak-tegen-kunstenbond\/","title":{"rendered":"Deposed directors raise money for lawsuit against Arts Union"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reports appeared online this week that two Arts Union board members had allegedly been ousted (\"fired\"<\/em>, according to their own message<\/u><\/a>). As the reason, Ben van den Dungen, one of the disgraced directors gives an 'unexpected deficit' in the financial statements: \"The Kunstenbond - and with it the advocacy of musicians - is in a deep crisis, after it was revealed that the management greatly exceeded the budget without the explicit approval of the board and members' council. Instead of the budgeted operating deficit (sic) of \u20ac600,000, the association posted an operating deficit of over \u20ac1.1 million. Members' money.\"<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Van den Dungen, he, along with Ellister van der Molen, was appointed by the members' council 'dismissed'<\/em> because they \"asked questions\"<\/em> over the budget overrun. The members' council voted on their 'dismissal' in their absence, according to the complainants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>Unsanitary<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Van den Dungen and Van der Molen are challenging their impeachment and are a crowdfunding<\/u><\/a> launched. They want to raise 5,500 euros from interested parties to file a brief against the Arts Union.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So time to check with the Arts Union to find out what they think is going on. Manu van Kersbergen, who has been president of the Kunstenbond since January this year, denies that there is a crisis. According to Manu, the removal of the two former board members is the result of \"a democratic process<\/em>\" that \"according to all the by-laws and statutes for the Arts Union has passed.<\/em>\" The Council of Members, the highest decision-making body within the association (consisting of 13 members), decided by a majority that \"these two board members really cannot continue on this footing for much longer.\"<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the chairman, the ex-governors' claim that their waiver stemmed from critical questions about budget overruns is factually incorrect: \"The crux of the problem was that joint decision-making in a collegial board was no longer possible. This disturbed relationship had been going on for some time and had been discussed several times. It came to the fore again at the time when the two former board members did not want to take their managerial responsibility and were acting administratively unhygienically by deliberately not signing a draft annual account.\"<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>No critical questions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Such a draft financial statement is prepared by the chief financial officer and the auditor and then submitted to the board, which formally prepares the financial statements. The role of the board in that signing is, according to Van Kersbergen \"checking the accuracy of the information recorded in it\",<\/em> not questioning interim disclosures already discussed by that same board.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The chairman called incorrect the former board members' claim that they had not been informed about financial developments. During regular board meetings throughout 2024, he said, quarterly reports had already been presented, received and discussed by the full board, including Van den Dungen and Van der Molen. Even at the last 2024 meeting in which those figures became clear, in autumn 2024, the now deposed board members did not ask critical questions. This is also evident from minutes and recordings of those meetings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>Management thrown in front of bus<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After that, something apparently went wrong, according to Van Kersbergen: \"When I proposed a new meeting, they became unresponsive, cancelled meetings and opened a route and line of communication with the Council of Members on their own initiative.\"<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That Van den Dungen and Van der Molen sought contact with the members' council outside the board itself goes against the governance code, according to the chairman. The former board members expressed their distrust of the director in front of the entire members' council. According to Van Kersbergen, they thereby threw the board in front of the bus. \"This behaviour made the situation unsafe for the rest of the board, especially the new treasurer, who experienced the period as very unsafe. The misinformation and far-reaching recriminations caused an escalation.\"<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This contradicts the former board members' claim that it was precisely they who felt unsafe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>No money from members<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Remains: the question of whether that said budget overrun to \"Members' money\"<\/em> goes. According to the Arts Union, these are investments for the sake of a financially sustainable future: \"In November 2022, a strategy plan was unanimously approved by both the board and the Council of Members, including the relevant former board members. The plan opted for an investment route rather than austerity. It could be funded from large financial reserves, derived from an investment portfolio, not contributions. This plan explicitly recognised that it would lead to a larger operating deficit in the early years, with a neutral or positive budget after 2026. The 2024 deficit is therefore not an unexpected setback, but an anticipated and logical consequence of that joint choice.\"<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That the board members were not present at the meeting where the members' council decided on their removal is also not a deliberate action, according to Van Kersbergen: \"After the presentation of the draft annual accounts on 13 May 2025, at which their sudden opposition revealed itself, we scheduled two meetings for discussion and mediation. They chose not to appear there and by then had already opened their unilateral line with the members' council. Thereupon, the members' council itself tabled the motion, scheduled a meeting and voted on it.\"<\/em> With the familiar result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the time of writing this article, over 4900 of the requested 5500 euros for the summary proceedings had been raised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On behalf of the two departed board members, Ben van den Dungen responded to our request for a rebuttal: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reaction Ben van den Dungen and Ellister van der Molen<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\"About the 'resignation':<\/strong> We received an e-mail on 29 July from chairman Michael Klier titled \"Resignation from the board pronounced by members' council\", which literally said that the motion on our resignation had been passed by 7-6 vote.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn communication:<\/strong> The commitment to coordinate with us on communication to members was violated within 24 hours. Instead of the promised draft, we unilaterally received a final communication.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn the financial statements:<\/strong> The fact that the draft annual accounts have since been withdrawn and are being revised because the budget figures did not match the budget approved by the Members' Council makes the accusation of 'administratively unhygienic' action noteworthy. We asked for clarification and discussion from the beginning - it was withheld each time.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn quarterly reports:<\/strong> No quarterly report was presented to the board for the fourth quarter 2024. The financial figures were completely unexpected for us.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn the operating deficit:<\/strong> The deficit of over 1.1 million euros was not a planned or agreed deficit. The budget provided for about 600,000 euros - to exceed this magnitude, without discussion and approval, is in violation of those decisions.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn the dismissal initiative:<\/strong> The motion to our resignation did not arise spontaneously from the Members' Council, but was initiated by the chairman of the board on behalf of himself and three fellow board members via a June email.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn our absence:<\/strong> We already indicated in early June that we were unable to attend on 28 July due to long-planned professional commitments (tour of Baltics, studio recording France).\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAbout mediation:<\/strong> We have repeatedly requested joint discussion, possibly under independent guidance. Our fellow board members have refused these proposals each time.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"That there is a difference of opinion is not a problem. But the fact that this difference was never discussed in substance, that there was no room for discussion, and that it ended in a dismissal decision in our absence - that is what our concerns are about. For that reason, we are having this course of action legally reviewed.\"<\/em><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Deze week verschenen berichten online dat twee bestuursleden van de Kunstenbond zouden zijn afgezet (\u201contslagen\u201d, volgens hun eigen bericht). Als reden geeft Ben van den Dungen, een van de in ongenade gevallen bestuurders een \u2018onverwacht tekort\u2019 in de jaarrekening: \u201cDe Kunstenbond \u2013 en daarmee ook de belangenbehartiging van musici \u2013 verkeert in een diepe crisis, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":98081,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"activitypub_content_warning":"","activitypub_content_visibility":"","activitypub_max_image_attachments":3,"activitypub_interaction_policy_quote":"anyone","activitypub_status":"federated","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1,15614,11687],"tags":[15891,11690],"class_list":["post-98080","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nieuws","category-beleid","category-donatie-gevraagd","tag-code-cultural-governance","tag-kunstenbond"],"views":340,"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/MixCollage-03-Aug-2025-02-22-PM-6718-scaled.jpg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":61912,"url":"https:\/\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/en\/2019\/09\/de-keerzijde-van-fair-practice-kunstenbond-in-onmogelijke-spagaat-na-doorstart-utrechts-centrum-voor-de-kunsten\/","url_meta":{"origin":98080,"position":0},"title":"The flip side of Fair Practice: Kunstenbond in impossible split after 'relaunch' Utrecht Centre for the Arts.","author":"Wijbrand Schaap","date":"19 September 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"'Poignant to see how a lack of decisiveness, clarity and leadership - at both the Utrecht municipality and the management of the KLA - could lead to a split and even rupture among employees.' 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In de sectoren Toneel en Dans zijn veel medewerkers positief over hun werk. Dat blijkt uit het sectorbrede medewerkersonderzoek dat DUO Market Research in opdracht van de Kunstenbond en de NAPK dit najaar uitvoerde. Het onderzoek, een 0-meting onder 497 medewerkers en zzp\u2019ers, laat\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "beleid"","block_context":{"text":"beleid","link":"https:\/\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/en\/genre\/beleid\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"logo Nederladse associatie voor Podiumkunsten","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/napk.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/napk.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/napk.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/napk.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":61717,"url":"https:\/\/cultureelpersbureau.nl\/en\/2019\/08\/sociaal-fonds-podiumkunsten-blijkt-moneypit-vermogen-in-vijf-jaar-tijd-gehalveerd-en-het-einde-is-nog-niet-in-zicht\/","url_meta":{"origin":98080,"position":2},"title":"Social Fund Performing Arts turns out to be moneypit: assets halved in five years. 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