Geert Wilders

Geert Wilders ( ; born 6 September 1963) is a politician and leader of the Party for Freedom (PVV), the third leading political party in the Netherlands. Born in the city of Venlo , raised as a Roman Catholic and having left the Church at his coming of age, Wilders attributes his politics to his support for what he calls 'Judeo-Christian values'. He formed many of his political views on his travels to Israel , as well as the neighbouring Arab countries. His early job at the Dutch social insurance agency propelled him into politics, where he worked as a speechwriter for the conservative-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD). In 1996, he moved to the city of Utrecht , where he was elected to the city council and later to the House of Representatives of the Netherlands . Citing irreconcilable differences over the party's position on the accession of Turkey to the European Union , Wilders left the VVD in 2004 to form his own party, the Party for Freedom . Since then, he has been outspoken on a number of issues such as immigration , freedom of speech , and Islam , not only in The Netherlands, but also on an international scale, where he became one of the proponents of anti-jihadism . In the international press he was called The Netherlands' "most inflammatory public figure". Wilders has pleaded, for instance, for a hard line against what he called the "street terror" exerted by minorities in Dutch cities. His controversial 2008 film about Islam in the Netherlands , Fitna , has received international attention . On 21 January 2009, the Amsterdam Court of Appeal ordered his prosecution for what it said was "the incitement to hatred and discrimination". Wilders was also controversially banned from entering the United Kingdom between 12 February 2009 and 13 October 2009, with the Home Office viewing his presence as a "threat to one of the fundamental interests of society". The ban was overturned after Wilders appealed. He visited the UK on 16 October 2009, and again in March 2010, to show his film. In March 2010, it was announced that a documentary film about Geert Wilders was due to be released in the United States; Wilders himself was writing a book and producing a sequel to his film, both to be released after the parliamentary elections in the Netherlands in June 2010. Wilders' gains toward becoming next Dutch prime minister according to polls in March 2010 have triggered concerns of political violence in the Netherlands or against Dutch nationals according to the country’s National Anti-terrorism Coordinator. The Independent. 11 June 2010 . "Los Angeles Times, 3 October 2009, "Unifying Dutch city falls to Muslim mayor" " . " "PVV: Leger inzetten tegen straatterreur Gouda" " . " "Wilders: Fitna 2 not ready before elections" " . " "Geert Wilders, the ultra-right firebrand, campaigns to be Holland's prime minister - Radical anti-Islamic politics are under the microscope as a hero of the far right tries to capitalise on cultural divisions" " . " "Dutch elections = greater terrorism threat" " .

Geert Wilders ( , born 6 September 1963) is a Dutch politician and the founder and leader of the Party for Freedom (Partij voor de Vrijheid – PVV) which is currently the fourth-largest party in the Dutch parliament. Wilders is the Parliamentary group leader of his party in the Dutch House of Representatives . In the formation in 2010 of the Rutte cabinet , a minority cabinet of VVD and CDA, he actively participated in the negotiations, resulting in a "support agreement" ( gedoogakkoord ) between the PVV and these parties, but withdrew his support in April 2012, citing disagreements with the cabinet on proposed budget cuts. Wilders is best known for his criticism of Islam . Wilders' views regarding Islam have made him a controversial figure in the Netherlands and abroad, and since 2004 he receives permanent personal protection by armed bodyguards. Raised a Roman Catholic, Wilders left the church at his coming of age. His travels to Israel as a young adult, as well as to neighbouring Arab countries , helped form his political views. Wilders worked as a speechwriter for the conservative-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie – VVD), and later served as parliamentary assistant to party leader Frits Bolkestein from 1990 to 1998. He was elected to the Utrecht city council in 1996, and later to the House of Representatives. Citing irreconcilable differences over the party's position on the accession of Turkey to the European Union , he left the VVD in 2004 to form his own party, the Party for Freedom . Wilders has campaigned to stop what he views as the " Islamisation of the Netherlands". He has compared the Quran to Mein Kampf and has campaigned to have the book banned in the Netherlands. He advocates ending immigration from Muslim countries, and supports banning the construction of new mosques. Wilders was a speaker at the Facing Jihad Conference held in Jerusalem in 2008, which discussed the dangers of jihad , and has called for a hard line against what he called the "street terror" exerted by minorities in Dutch cities. His controversial 2008 film about his views on Islam, Fitna , received international attention . He has been described in the media as populist and labeled far-right, though this is disputed by other observers. Wilders, who long refused to align himself with European far-right leaders such as Jean-Marie Le Pen and Jörg Haider and expressed concern of being "linked with the wrong rightist fascist groups,", views himself as a right-wing liberal. More recently, however, Wilders worked together with the Front National's Marine Le Pen in a failed attempt to form a parliamentary group in the European Parliament which would also have included Austria's Freedom party, Italy's Northern League, and Belgium's Flemish Interest party. The New York Times . Geert Wilders speaks out on his radical views" (flash video) . In the Netherlands, a few decades ago, Mein Kampf was outlawed, and at that time the ... politicians in Holland applauded it. ... I am not in favour of banning any books normally but if you are consistent. ... : Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored ( |author= suggested) ( help ) Hardy, Roger (28 April 2010). Mr Wilders wants the authorities to halt all immigration from Muslim countries. " Dutch voters boost far-right party of Geert Wilders ", The Christian Science Monitor , 10 June 2010. "PVV: Leger inzetten tegen straatterreur Gouda" (in Dutch).

Dutch politician Geert Wilders ( ; born 6 September 1963) is a Dutch politician. He has been Leader of the Party for Freedom ( Partij voor de Vrijheid – PVV) since he founded it in 2006. Wilders is the parliamentary leader of his party in the House of Representatives ( Tweede Kamer ). In the 2010 formation of the Rutte cabinet , a minority cabinet of VVD and CDA, he actively participated in the negotiations, resulting in a "tolerance agreement" ( gedoogakkoord ) between the PVV and these parties, but withdrew his support in April 2012, citing disagreements with the cabinet on proposed budget cuts. Wilders is best known for his criticism of Islam ; his views have made him a controversial figure in the Netherlands and abroad, and since 2004 he has been protected at all times by armed bodyguards. Raised a Roman Catholic, Wilders left the church at his coming of age. His travels to Israel and the greater Middle East as a young adult helped form his political views. Wilders worked as a speechwriter for the conservative-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie – VVD), and later served as parliamentary assistant to party leader Frits Bolkestein from 1990 to 1998. He was elected to the municipal council of Utrecht in 1997, and one year later to the House of Representatives. Citing irreconcilable differences over the party's position on the accession of Turkey to the European Union , he left the VVD in 2004 to form his own party, the Party for Freedom . Wilders has campaigned to stop what he views as the " Islamisation of the Netherlands". He has compared the Quran to Mein Kampf and has campaigned to have the book banned in the Netherlands. He advocates ending immigration from Muslim countries, and supports banning the construction of new mosques. Wilders was a speaker at the Facing Jihad Conference held in Israel in 2008, which discussed the dangers of jihad , and has called for a hard line against what he called "street terror" exerted by minorities in Dutch cities. His controversial 2008 film featuring his views on Islam, Fitna , received international attention and extreme criticism. His party was also sued due to content being used in his film without permission. He has been described in the media as populist and labeled far-right. Wilders, who long refused to align himself with European far-right leaders such as Jean-Marie Le Pen and Jörg Haider and expressed concern about being "linked with the wrong rightist fascist groups", views himself as a right-wing liberal . More recently, however, Wilders worked together with the French National Front 's Marine Le Pen in an initially ill-fated, but eventually successful attempt to form a parliamentary group in the European Parliament which now includes parties from nine countries , among them Austria's Freedom Party , Italy's Northern League , and Belgium's Flemish Interest . Geert Wilders has been charged in relation to incitement multiple times. Wilders was first accused of criminally insulting religious and ethnic groups and inciting hatred and discrimination. He was found not guilty in June 2011. In 2016, he landed in court again and was found guilty of incitement and encouraging discrimination against Moroccans, but faced no punishment. The New York Times . Geert Wilders speaks out on his radical views" (flash video) . In the Netherlands, a few decades ago, Mein Kampf was outlawed, and at that time the ... politicians in Holland applauded it ... I am not in favour of banning any books normally but if you are consistent ... : |first2= has generic name ( help ) Hardy, Roger (28 April 2010). Mr Wilders wants the authorities to halt all immigration from Muslim countries. " Dutch voters boost far-right party of Geert Wilders ", The Christian Science Monitor , 10 June 2010. "PVV: Leger inzetten tegen straatterreur Gouda" (in Dutch). "JP-tegner klar til sag mod Wilders" (in Danish) .

Dutch politician Geert Wilders ( ; born 6 September 1963) is a Dutch politician who has led the Party for Freedom (PVV) since he founded it in 2006. He is also the party's leader in the House of Representatives , having held a parliamentary seat since 1998 . In the 2010 formation of the first Rutte cabinet , a minority government of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD)—which he left in 2004—and Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), Wilders actively participated in the negotiations, resulting in a "tolerance agreement" between the PVV and these parties. He withdrew his party's parliamentary support in 2012, citing disagreements with the cabinet over proposed budget cuts. Wilders is best known for his criticism of Islam and the European Union (EU); his views have made him a controversial figure in the Netherlands and abroad. Since 2004, he has been protected at all times by armed police. Raised a Roman Catholic , Wilders left the church at his coming of age. His travels to Israel and the greater Middle East as a young adult helped form his political views. Wilders worked as a speechwriter for the conservative-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD); he later served as parliamentary assistant to party leader Frits Bolkestein from 1990 to 1998. He entered the municipal council of Utrecht in 1997. The following year he entered the House of Representatives. Citing irreconcilable differences over the party's position on the accession of Turkey to the European Union , he left the VVD in 2004 to form his own party, the Party for Freedom. Wilders has campaigned to stop what he views as the " Islamisation of the Netherlands". He has compared the Quran to Mein Kampf and has campaigned to have the book banned in the Netherlands. He advocates ending immigration from Muslim countries , and banning the construction of new mosques. Wilders was a speaker at the Facing Jihad Conference held in Israel in 2008, which discussed the dangers of jihad , and has called for a hard line against what he called "street terror" exerted by minorities in Dutch cities. His controversial 2008 film featuring his views on Islam, Fitna , received international attention and extreme criticism. His party was also sued because content was used in his film without permission. He has been described in the media as populist and labeled far-right. Wilders rejects being labeled as far-right and views himself as a right-wing liberal , while saying he does not want to be "linked with the wrong rightist fascist groups". More recently, however, Wilders has worked together with Marine Le Pen of the French National Front , as well as Austria's Freedom Party , Italy's Lega Nord and Belgium's Vlaams Belang . Geert Wilders has been charged in relation to incitement multiple times. Wilders was first accused of criminally insulting religious and ethnic groups and inciting hatred and discrimination. He was found not guilty in 2011. In 2016, he landed in court again and was found guilty of incitement and encouraging discrimination against Moroccan immigrants to the Netherlands, but faced no punishment. The verdict was later overturned. The New York Times . Mr Wilders wants the authorities to halt all immigration from Muslim countries. " Dutch voters boost far-right party of Geert Wilders ", The Christian Science Monitor , 10 June 2010. "PVV: Leger inzetten tegen straatterreur Gouda" (in Dutch). "JP-tegner klar til sag mod Wilders" (in Danish) .

Dutch politician (born 1963) Geert Wilders (born 6 September 1963) is a Dutch politician who has led Party for Freedom (PVV) since he founded it in 2006. He is also the party's leader in the House of Representatives . Wilders is best known for his right-wing populism , anti-immigration , opposition to Islam and Euroscepticism . His views have made him a controversial figure in the Netherlands and abroad. Since 2004, he has been protected at all times by armed police. Raised a Roman Catholic , Wilders left the church at his coming of age. His travels to Israel and the Arab world as a young adult significantly helped form his political views. Wilders worked as a speechwriter for the conservative-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD); he later served as parliamentary assistant to party leader Frits Bolkestein from 1990 to 1998. He was elected to the municipal council of Utrecht in 1997. The following year he was elected to the House of Representatives. Citing irreconcilable differences over the party's position on the accession of Turkey to the European Union , he left the VVD in 2004 to form his own party, the Party for Freedom. Wilders has campaigned to stop what he views as the " Islamisation of the Netherlands". He has compared the Quran to Mein Kampf and has campaigned to have the book banned in the Netherlands. He advocates ending immigration from Muslim countries , and banning the construction of new mosques. His controversial 2008 film featuring his views on Islam, Fitna , received international attention and extreme criticism. He has been described in the media as populist and as a far-right politician. He was also described by the media as an Islamophobe . Wilders rejects being labelled as far-right and views himself as a right-wing liberal , saying he does not want to be "linked with the wrong rightist fascist groups". On 4 September 2020, a Dutch court convicted Wilders for group insults, following comments he made about Moroccans in the Netherlands . There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ). The New York Times . I hate Islam,' says Holland's rising political star" . Mr Wilders wants the authorities to halt all immigration from Muslim countries. "Strafzaak Wilders - Cassatie, Politicus Geert Wilders is nu definitief veroordeeld wegens groepsbelediging" .