Tweede Kamer leaders held secret meeting about far-right Forum voor Democratie

Behind the scenes in The Hague, a large part of the Tweede Kamer is considering measures against the far-right wing populist party Forum voor Democratie (FvD). Last Tuesday, a number of party chairmen met for a secret consultation in order to put an end to the 'undermining democracy' and incitement by the FvD, De Telegraaf reports.

The meeting was an initiative of Volt leader Laurens Dassen. For him, the last straw was a video in which FvD MP Gideon van Meijeren expressed the hope that a mob would move on The Hague to bring down the government.

Faction leaders from both opposition and coalition parties were present at the meeting, but Volt was not willing to say who exactly was present. Not all parties were invited, and not everyone accepted the invitation, according to Hague sources. “What binds them is concern,” says Volt.

FvD leader Thierry Baudet denied that his party does not respect the democratic rule of law. Regarding the meeting, he argued that, "They just want to silence the opposition."

Also Dutch politician Geert Wilders, of the far-right nationalist PVV, calls the consultation underhanded and "totalitarian behavior of those fellow party chairmen,” adding that they want to “prohibit unwelcome opinions.”

The parties initially said nothing about what was discussed in the meeting, but Volt denies that it was held in secret. They said that these kinds of conversations are taking place more often.

The exact content and purpose of the conversation remained undisclosed, but a possible outcome could be that a number of experts are invited to the Tweede Kamer for a round table discussion.