Before holding this office, Van Heijningen was a foreign policy advisor to the SP whose areas of responsibility included European politics, and development cooperation.

Van Heijningen attended high school at the Stanislas College in Delft and from 1972 to 1979 studied sociology at the University of Amsterdam.

From 1984 to 1992 Van Heijningen lived in Nicaragua, where his then girlfriend – she is now his wife – worked as a general practitioner in the mountain village of Comalapa in the Department of Chontales.

Initially he was employed as a journalist and consultant, in addition to which he was a volunteer in education, took part in vaccination campaigns in settlements in the mountains and organised support for farmers’ cooperatives, which were being attacked by the Contras.

Following a disappointing result which saw him fail to be elected, Van Heijningen joined the SP’s parliamentary staff as an advisor on foreign policy.

Boudewijn Geels of the national newspaper HP/De Tijd, who carried out intensive research among Dutch citizens who have spent time in Nicaragua, came in the weekly edition of 12 September 2008 to the conclusion that there was no ‘smoking gun’.