The Public Prosecution Office has once again requested an acquittal for Geert Wilders on all charges against him. The charges include insulting Muslims as a group, inciting hatred and inciting discrimination on the grounds of religion and race.

The Public Prosecution argues that Mr Wilders’ comments may be experienced as insulting by certain groups, but they are directed at Islam as a religion and not at Muslims as a people. The PPO also argued that many of the comments were made in political debates. Mr Wilders’ call to ban the Qur’an is on the edge of what is permissible, however, said the office.

The PPO made the same request at the first Wilders trial in October, shortly before defence lawyer Bram Moszkowicz accused the judges of bias. As a result, the judges were replaced and a retrial had to be called.

RNW

If the judges accept this (which would be against jurisprudence by the European Court of Human Rights on politicians Le Pen and Féret), it would have two simple consequences:

1. Muslims and Islam can be insulted and humiliated as one would please

2. We could do the same to all other religious communities and minorities; Jews, Blacks, Gays….

No democracy could bear the ethnic and social tensions resulting from this, so it would result in complete social chaos – the opposite of law. (ed.)