Wim Mateman

Willem Antoon (Wim) Mateman (Aalten, 07-05-1945 – Rijswijk, 08-06-2019) was a Dutch politician. On behalf of the CDA (Christian Democratic Appeal), he was a member of the House of Representatives of the States-General (Tweede Kamer) from 1979 to 1998. From 2003 to 2018, Mateman served as an alderman, municipal councillor, and head of the CDA parliamentary group in the municipality of Rijswijk.

Mateman trained as a teacher in civics and economics (MO-staatsinrichting and MO-staathuishoudkunde). He subsequently studied sociology at the Catholic University of Nijmegen. During his student years, he co-founded the Student Trade Union Movement (Studentenvakbeweging) in Nijmegen. Following his studies, Mateman became a teacher of economics, civics, and social studies at the Christian secondary school in Zutphen. From 1970 onwards, he was a member of the Provincial States of Gelderland and a member of the municipal council of Aalten on behalf of the Christian Historical Union (CHU). He also became an alderman in Aalten.

In the 1977 general election, Mateman stood as a candidate for the CDA but was not directly elected. Later that year, he was offered the opportunity to take a seat in the House, but he declined. Two years later, Mateman entered parliament after all via a mid-term vacancy. He was sworn in on 28 August 1979. In the House, his portfolio included trade policy, defence, and domestic governance.

Wim Mateman belonged to the conservative wing of the CDA. He was deeply disappointed when he had to leave the House because the new party leadership sought to refresh the parliamentary group. Consequently, Mateman did not stand for re-election in the 1998 general election.

In 2003, he became the Alderman for Finance and Land Affairs for the CDA in the South Holland municipality of Rijswijk. In May 2014, the CDA left the Rijswijk municipal executive, and he returned to the municipal council, where he became leader of the CDA parliamentary group. He retired from local politics in 2018.

Mateman was married and had two children. He was appointed a Knight in the Order of the Netherlands Lion in 1992 and a Knight in the Order of Orange-Nassau in 1998. In 1992, he was also named Pipe Smoker of the Year.