Geert Wilders

Restart for Dutch anti-Islam lawmaker's hate speech trial < Dutch news | Expatica The Netherlands:

"The hate speech trial of Dutch anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders will start afresh after judges trying him were ordered to step down Friday by a panel of their colleagues at the politician's request.

'The trial will start afresh,' Amsterdam district court spokeswoman Mercedes Grootscholten told AFP after a panel of oversight judges said Wilders' concerns of bias on the part of his trial judges were 'understandable'.

Judge GH Marcus, the president of a panel convened to consider Wilders' request for the judges' recusal, said their denial of his request to recall a witness 'appears to be in conflict with the applicable jurisprudence'.

'We find the applicant's fear that the court's decision points to a degree of bias, also in light of earlier incidents, understandable,' the judge said.

Wilders, 47, went on trial on October 4 for inciting hatred by calling Islam 'fascist' and likening the Koran to Hitler's 'Mein Kampf'.

There have been seven days of hearings so far. Judgement had been set for November 5."

Background:
New Dutch Government agrees to ban burqa, cut deficit.

Geert Wilders

American Thinker: Geert Wilders and the Rise of Islamic Correctness:

"At present, overwhelming Muslim majorities -- i.e., better than two-thirds (see the weighted average calculated here) of a well-conducted survey of the world's most significant and populous Arab and non-Arab Muslim countries -- want these immoderate outcomes: 'strict application' of Shari'a, Islamic Law, and a global Caliphate. Specifically, the World Public Opinion.org/ University of Maryland poll (released February 25, 2009) indicated the following about our putative Muslim ally nations of Egypt and Pakistan: 81% of the Muslims of 'moderate' Egypt, the largest Arab Muslim nation, desire a 'strict' application of Shari'a, Islamic Law; 76% of the Pakistan's Muslims -- one of the most important and sizable non-Arab Muslim populations -- also want this outcome. Furthermore, 70% of Egyptian Muslims and 69% of Pakistani Muslims desire the recreation of a 'single Islamic state or Caliphate.' Elsewhere, I have detailed the totalitarian impact of these fulfilled Islamic desires based upon their doctrinal and historical application, across space and time. 

And these concrete data validate eminent Western scholarly appraisals of Islamic despotism, or in modern parlance, totalitarianism. 

Most importantly, our uninformed chattering classes across the political spectrum need to know that their eminence grise on Islamic civilization, Professor Bernard Lewis, and outspoken Dutch Parliamentarian Geert Wilders have a shared understanding of totalitarian Islam. Ironically, Wilders has been demonized -- and is currently being prosecuted -- for expressing views identical to those the Western sage of Islam Lewis put forth in a 1954 essay.

A senior Afghan Taliban official has warned of an attack against the Netherlands if its new government implements the agenda of anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders, the Volkskrant daily reported Monday.

"If the Netherlands maintains or intensifies its anti-Islam policy, it is certain that the Netherlands will be the target of an attack by a jihadist group," Zabiullah Mujahed, a long-time Taliban spokesman, is quoted as having told the newspaper. 

"If he (Wilders) succeeds in manipulating the Dutch parliament to pass more anti-Islamic legislation ... there is no doubt that Muslims from other countries will take action to help their Muslim brothers and sisters," Mujahed said.

He added that the Taliban was "very careful in its relations with the Netherlands" because "it was the first country that decided to stop the occupation of our country"

Source (found)

Geert Wilders

Wilders is dangerous, Muslims tell court < Dutch news | Expatica The Netherlands

Mohammed Rabbae

Mohammed Rabbae was considered by Hirsi Ali as a "Muslim racist".


Background:

Dutch prosecutors are asking judges to acquit anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders of all charges of inciting hate and discrimination against Muslims.

The move by prosecutors signals their belief the case against Wilders is weak, but judges could still disagree and convict him. The trial continues next week.

Prosecutor Paul Velleman told the court Friday that most of Wilders' remarks -- which include comparing Islam with Naziism -- appear to target Islam as an ideology, not single out Muslims for abuse.

Prosecutors initially declined to press charges, but were ordered to do so by an appeals court that ruled there was significant evidence against the influential politician. 

Source (Found).

Background:
New Dutch Government agrees to ban burqa, cut deficit.
Geert Wilders on trial.
Prosecutors call for partial acquittal.

Dutch prosecutors call for partial Wilders acquittal | Radio Netherlands Worldwide:

"Prosecutors in the trial of anti-Islam Freedom Party (PVV) leader Geert Wilders say he should be acquitted of group defamation.

The populist Dutch MP is standing trial for defamation of Muslims as a group because of his comparison of the Qur’an to Hitler’s Mein Kampf. He is also charged with inciting hatred and discrimination.

Public prosecutors Birgit van Roessel and Paul Velleman now say his comments on the Qur’an referred to Islam and its holy book, and not to Muslim people.

In explaining their call for acquittal on the defamation charges, the prosecutors also explained that statements contained in the MP’s film, Fitna, referred to Islam as a religion and not to its followers. Even though the statements could hurt the feelings of Muslims, that was not the same as defamation of the group.

On Friday, the prosecutors will either press for Mr Wilders to be found guilty on the incitement charges or for him to be acquitted. If they call for a guilty verdict, they will also put forward what they consider an appropriate sentence."

I don't understand how he can be accused of discrimination and hatred when he was speaking only of the Qu'ran and Islam, and not of Muslims. That would be like saying you are feeling hatred for Germans for speaking about Nazis and Nazism.

Background:
New Dutch Government agrees to ban burqa, cut deficit.
Geert Wilders on trial.

BBC:

The Dutch anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders has gone on trial in Amsterdam accused of inciting hatred against Muslims.

Mr Wilders, whose statements have included comparing the Koran with Hitler's Mein Kampf, told the court freedom of expression was on trial.

If found guilty, he faces a maximum sentence of a year in jail.

Mr Wilders' Freedom Party is the third biggest in the Netherlands after June's elections, and is expected to play a key role in the next parliament.

Prosecutors have brought five charges of inciting hatred and discrimination, and the trial will scrutinise statements he made between 2006 and 2008.

Wilders' speech:


Muslims in the UK openly call for Wilders' murder (just as a reminder...):

Liberals and Christian Democrats in the Netherlands say they will ban the Muslim burqa-style veil as part of a pact to form a minority coalition government backed by the anti-Islam Freedom Party.

The pact presented by the parties' leaders Thursday also proposes to cut about $25 billion from the Dutch budget.

The incoming coalition government will be dependent on support of the Freedom Party lawmakers to give it a majority in the 150-seat chamber.

Christian Democrats are waiting the outcome of their October 2 convention vote before they make a final decision to approve the coalition proposal.

The Netherlands' new "Freedom and responsibility" coalition formally includes just the Liberal Party (VVD) and the the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA). But the 46-page-long coalition agreement by the minority government makes far-reaching concessions on burqas and immigration rules in order to be able to count on parliamentary support from Mr Wilders' PVV faction. 

Under the plans, immigrants already living in the Netherlands will face extra hurdles in bringing family members to the country and unskilled people will have even fewer chances of finding work and coming to settle. The coalition text also promises in writing to bring a burqa bill to parliament.

Speaking at a joint press conference with the VVD and CDA leaders on Thursday (30 September), Mr Wilders said "A new wind will blow in the Netherlands" and "We want the Islamisation to be stopped."

He also took a swipe at German Chancellor Angela Merkel who had earlier voiced "regret" at his potential role in The Hague. Speaking in broken German during the press conference, he said "Ms Merkel, you are not right," and told her to stop meddling in Dutch politics.