Wilders’ election post spurs over 2,500 discrimination complaints
PVV leader Geert Wilders has sparked more than 2,500 discrimination complaints in just days over a controversial social media post, AD reports.
The post, shared earlier this week, shows a split image: on the left, a blonde woman labeled “PVV,” and on the right, an older woman wearing a headscarf, labeled “PvdA.” Wilders captioned it, “The choice is yours on 10/29,” referring to the upcoming October 29 elections.
Discriminatie.nl, the national anti-discrimination reporting center, confirmed the unprecedented flood of complaints, noting only one prior incident triggered more: the 2020 satirical song 'Prevention Is Better than Chinese' released during the COVID-19 pandemic, which generated around 4,000 reports.
“This number of reports is a clear signal from society,” a spokesperson said, calling the post “polarizing, stigmatizing, and discriminatory.” Many complainants say the post is deliberately aimed at portraying Muslims in a negative light. “The words we see in the reports include ‘tasteless,’ ‘hateful,’ and ‘racist,’” the spokesperson added. Several complainants compared Wilders’ imagery to Nazi propaganda targeting Jews during World War II.
Discriminatie.nl is still receiving reports and considering next steps. “We haven’t decided yet, but filing a formal complaint is one of the options,” the spokesperson said.
The current controversy recalls Wilders’ 2021 Supreme Court conviction for inciting hatred and violence against Moroccans, ending a seven-year legal process.
In March 2014, Wilders asked an audience at a café in The Hague whether they wanted “more or fewer Moroccans in this city and the Netherlands.” The crowd chanted “fewer, fewer, fewer,” to which Wilders responded, “Well then we will arrange that.”
“Group insult is prohibited under the Criminal Code,” the chair of the Supreme Court said in its ruling. “Even a politician must adhere to the basic principles of the rule of law and must not incite intolerance.” The court called Wilders’ statements “unnecessarily damaging,” even if made in a political debate context.
Wilders was found guilty in 2016 of insulting a group and inciting discrimination but was not punished, with the court stating the verdict itself was punishment enough. Both Wilders and the Public Prosecutor appealed, but the appeals court upheld the verdict without penalties.
Wilders has dismissed the case as a political witch hunt by the Ministry of Justice and Security, a claim courts have repeatedly rejected due to lack of evidence.
The Supreme Court ruling is final in the Netherlands, with no further domestic appeals possible. The only option to take the case further is to the European Court of Human Rights if a violation of rights is claimed.
