Image

Mark Rutte and Geert Wilders (Picture: Wikimedia Commons/Russavia)
- Credit:
Mark Rutte and Geert Wilders (Picture: Wikimedia Commons/Russavia)
Monday, 5 September 2016 - 07:33
Dutch PM Rutte calls far right leader Wilders a societal threat
The PVV's election campaign is dangerous to the Dutch constitutional state as it goes against it on a number of points, Prime Minister Mark Rutte (VVD) said in the television program Zomergasten on Sunday, NU.nl reports.
The PVV's election campaign, published by party leader Geert Wilders almost two weeks ago, calls for all mosques and Islamic schools to be closed, radicalized Muslims to be arrested as a precaution and a complete stop to asylum in the Netherlands, among other things. According to Rutte, that is at odds with the Dutch constitutional state.
Rutte also said that he considers Wilders his biggest political opponent. But that Wilders incites fear and then turns his back on the responsibility of dealing with it. He referred to 2012, when the Netherlands was in crisis and Wilders walked away from the cabinet that depended on his tacit support. New elections had to be held after that.
The Prime Minister does not think it likely that the VVD and PVV will be coalition partners after the elections in March next year. "I do not see it happening".
Rutte also discussed the tensions currently brewing in the Turkish-Dutch community after a failed military coup in Turkey in July. His "primary feeling" is that the Turkish-Dutch causing trouble in the Netherlands should go back to Turkey and express their feelings their. According to him, the majority of Turkish-Dutch are well integrated. But there is a small minority, which Rutte called "Turks in the Netherlands", that stands with both feet outside society.