Dutch prince renounces throne

Prince Johan said the marriage would go ahead as planned

Dutch Prince Johan Friso has effectively renounced his right of succession to the throne, after the government refused to support his forthcoming marriage.

Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said he would not seek parliament's permission for the marriage because the couple had given misleading information about the bride's relationship with a dead gangster.

But Prince Johan - who is second in line to the throne - said his marriage to human rights activist Mabel Wisse Smit would go ahead regardless.

Under Dutch law, royals who aspire to the throne must receive permission from the government and parliament to marry as the cabinet will bear responsibility for their actions.

Ms Wisse Smit admitted earlier this year that she had vaguely known Klaas Bruinsma - whose organisation allegedly dealt in drugs and carried out contract killings - while she was a student.

Boat trips

Last week, however, one of Bruinsma's former bodyguards told Dutch TV that the two had had an affair.

The allegations led Ms Wisse Smit to confess to regular contact with Bruinsma, including several overnight trips in his boat, while continuing to deny any romantic relationship.

SUCCESSION TO THE DUTCH THRONE (SONS OF QUEEN BEATRIX) 1. Crown Prince Willem Alexander, Prince of Orange 2. Prince Johan Friso (claim now renounced) 3. Prince Constantijn

Mr Balkenende said the situation was a painful one for the government and the monarchy.

"The couple had provided information that was not complete and not correct, which has harmed the confidence (of the government)," he said at a press conference on Friday.

In his letter to Mr Balkenende, Prince Johan stuck to his position that there was not any romantic or business relationship between his fiancee and Bruinsma.

The affair, dubbed "Mabelgate", is the latest in a string of controversies that have plagued Dutch royal liaisons.

Crown Prince Willem Alexander, first in line to the throne to succeed Queen Beatrix, sparked a storm when he proposed to an Argentine whose father served in the military junta.

Queen Beatrix's own marriage to German-born Claus in the 1960s triggered riots.