Main focus of Friday, January 23, 2009

The borders of freedom of opinion

The Dutch right-wing populist Geert Wilders will be prosecuted for making statements critical of Islam, the highest court in Amsterdam ruled on Wednesday. The European press discusses how far freedom of opinion should extend.

De Standaard - Belgium

The Wilders judgement passed by the court in Amsterdam is incomprehensible, writes the Belgian daily De Standaard: "This decision in the Netherlands threatens to further encourage the already huge degree of self-censorship there is as regards Islam. It looks worryingly like a gesture of submission to a religion that does not hesitate to use violence. Making Christians and Jews look ridiculous is as safe as can be. The worst that can happen is a letter of protest or a protest mail. But the world has already seen what hysterical demonstrations and violence the publishing of a few Muhammad cartoons in a Danish paper unleashed. And only look how many Europeans are having to go underground because they were disrespectful towards Islam, from a Swedish cartoonist to a French professor of philosophy. ... That a judge has now joined in this collective bow to intolerance is an alarming sign for the rest of Europe." (23/01/2009)

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NRC Handelsblad - Netherlands

The national daily NRC Handelsblad criticises the decision of the judge in Amsterdam and predicts that the Islam debate will be played out in courts over the next few years. "The main stress has been placed on the punishable nature of Geert Wilders' remarks, while their (in)correctness was given secondary importance. This is not a good perspective. A further escalation and polarisation could be the result. We have previously written that the position of Muslims is not so weak that it warrants them being protected from penal law. Free political debate is an adequate deterrent. ... Even if the court is right to condemn Wilders' offensive remarks, the right to make them weighs heavier. The court's historical comparison with the 1930s is equally unfortunate. There can be no doubt that the law against incitement of the masses was introduced with good intentions back then. ... However the law did not have a positive impact, but rather the contrary. The same could happen now." (23/01/2009)

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De Volkskrant - Netherlands

Putting the right-wing populist Geert Wilders on trial is a dangerous move, writes the daily Trouw: "It is now clear that taking literally the law on the freedom of opinion is counterproductive. The force of propaganda that the court gives to Wilders with this move will only increase his following. ... Must a judge also consider this sort of consequence in passing judgement? In the Netherlands one judge does. The murder of [right-wing populist politician] Pim Fortuyn weighed heavier on his murderer than if he had killed a normal citizen, on the grounds that it greatly influenced society and had far-reaching consequences. By this logic ... the court is in fact obliged to dismiss criminal proceedings against Wilders, since the social consequences of such a trial could be immense, and exceedingly detrimental for relations between the various groups in society." (23/01/2009)

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