Justice Minister calls threat against Wilders "revolting"

"We have a free democracy, this video is revolting", Minister Ferdinand Grapperhaus of Justice and Security said to NOS about a man threatening to kill PVV leader Geert Wilders in a video on Facebook. The 26-year-old man was arrested on Tuesday.

The Minister saw the video. He was at a working visit to the police in Apeldoorn when the video was reported. The Apeldoorn police analyzes posts on social media for threats, according to the broadcaster. "Police and judiciary are very alert, we are on top of this", Grapperhaus said. "I stand for personal safety. In a free democracy we do not allow people to seriously threaten other people. We will simply not allow it."

The threat was related to the PVV's plans to hold a cartoon competition about the Islam religious figure Mohammed.

Minister Stef Blok of Foreign Affairs called the threat terrible. "People can go to court if they disagree, but violence or threat of violence is completely unacceptable", he said. Blok consulted with his counterpart in Pakistan and explained that the cartoon contest is the initiative of a parliamentarian, and not of the Dutch government. The Pakistani government previously expressed their dissatisfaction with the planned competition.