A flamboyant populist and founder of a virulently anti-immigrant political
party, Geert Wilders sees himself as a champion of free speech in the
Netherlands. Others would disagree. Wilders, a member of the Dutch
parliament, is in court this week to face five counts of inciting hatred and
discrimination for describing Islam as a fascist religion and Moroccan
youths as violent and for calling for the banning of the Koran. The trial,
which resumed Wednesday, Feb. 3, after a two-week break, is seen as a test of
the limits of free speech and the famously tolerant country’s commitment to
protecting minority rights.
Wilders, a 46-year-old with bleached-blond, bouffant hair, made international
headlines in 2008 when he made a short film called Fitna, in which
verses from the Koran were displayed against a background of violent film
clips and images of Islamic radicals’ terrorism. Described as “offensively
anti-Islamic” by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the film led to
protests in the Muslim world and prompted Britain to ban Wilders from
entering the country. But it also brought Wilders more popularity at home.
His Party for Freedom finished second in last year’s European Parliament
elections, winning 17% of the Dutch vote. His party also holds nine seats in
the Dutch parliament.
Because of his extreme anti-Muslim views, Wilders is often compared to the
leaders of Europe’s other far-right parties, such as Nick Griffin of the
British National Party and Jean-Marie Le Pen of France’s National Front. But
he claims that his policies are
rooted in the Dutch tradition of tolerance: he says that Islam is a threat
to women’s rights, and he criticizes Muslims’ anti-gay rhetoric. Now under
24-hour surveillance because of the many death threats he’s received,
Wilders told TIME last year that Islam itself stirs hatred. “The Koran is
full of incitements to violence,” he said. “Islam wants to dominate every
part of life and society. It does not want to integrate or assimilate, but
to dominate. It should not be compared to other religions but with
totalitarian ideologies like communism or fascism.”
Muslims hardly dominate Dutch society. According to official figures,
Muslims account for only about 5% of the country’s 16.5 million people, and
immigration has trickled to a near halt in recent years. But even if Wilders
offers an extreme and distorted view of Muslims, it is a view that has
increasing resonance with voters, says Ian Buruma, author of a book about
the 2004 murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh by a Muslim radical,
Mohammed Bouyeri. “There is real anxiety over immigration and the Muslim
issue, globalization and economic uncertainty. That climate of insecurity
and resentment makes voters vulnerable to the kind of populist demagoguery
that Wilders is very good at.”
If prosecutors thought Wilders would wilt in the courtroom, they
underestimated his sense of theater. The politician is using the case
against him to put Islam on trial, vociferously defending his right to free
speech. He suffered a setback on Wednesday, however, when the Amsterdam
District Court rejected his demand that the Supreme Court hear the
case because he’s a member of parliament and then denied his request for 18
witnesses to testify on his behalf — including Bouyeri, who is serving a life
sentence for van Gogh’s murder. Wilders said in making his request that Bouyeri is
“living proof” that Islam inspires violence.
Another proposed witness rejected by the court was Ayatullah Ahmad Jannati,
a hard-line Iranian politician who chairs the Guardians Council, which
oversees legislation in the country and approves candidates for elections.
“The court is denying me a fair trial,” Wilders said afterward, adding that
he was “angry, disappointed, but ready to fight.”
If Wilders is convicted, he faces up to 16 months in prison. But he appears
to be relishing the proceedings thus far, likely hoping the trial will give
his party a boost ahead of next year’s national elections. Speaking to the
court last month, Wilders even quoted Thomas Jefferson, saying that eternal
vigilance is the price of liberty. “I believe in my heart and soul that
freedom in the Netherlands is being threatened,” he said. “It is not only
our right but our obligation as free people to speak out.”
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