Wilders acquitted

Dutch right-wing populist, Geert Wilders, described the news on Thursday that he had been acquitted of hate-speech charges as "a victory for freedom of expression."

Wilders was on trial for inciting hatred against Muslims and groups of non-Western origin.

He was accused of describing Islam as a violent religion and making comparisons between the Koran and Hitler's "Mein Kampf."

Representatives of the groups who brought the lawsuit against Wilders were bitterly disappointed by the outcome. They argued that the ruling made clear that the courts do not protect religious minorities.

Now that all legal avenues to convict Wilders have been exhausted in the Netherlands, opponents plan to take the case to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Public debate makes remarks acceptable

The presiding judge, Marcel van Oosten, told the court on Thursday that, although Wilders' comments were on "the border of what is permissible," he had not called for violence against Muslims at any point.

Moreover, Wilders had said he had nothing against Muslims who were integrated in the Netherlands and had adopted Dutch values.

Judge van Oosten went on to say that Wilders' assertion that Islam is a violent religion and his call for a ban on Muslim immigration must be seen in the "context of public debate" over Dutch immigration policy.

Contested immigration policy

In recent years, immigration has become the subject of many heated debates in the country that was once considered a model for integration.

The number of people in the Netherlands who reject the so-called multi-cultural society has grown noticeably in the last ten years, political scientist and expert Andreas Wagner of the University of Göttingen told Deutsche Welle.

It had long been assumed that a lot can be achieved with tolerance and freedom of expression, he said. But now "tolerance has given way to ignorance, and many people now think there's a need for a heavier hand or harsher crackdown."

But multi-cultural society isn't just an idea in the Netherlands, it is a reality, Wagner believes. One fifth of citizens in the country have an immigrant background. In several large cities this figure is significantly higher. In Rotterdam, immigrants make up more than 50 percent of the population.

Tougher laws from the Interior Ministry

It is against this background that Geert Wilders, who holds a pivotal role in the minority government of rightwing liberals and conservatives, finds support for his restrictive polices regarding foreigners.

Last week, the conservative interior minister Piet Hein Donner announced new guidelines for government integration policy. They require immigrants from other cultures and religious groups to make efforts to integrate with any aid from the state.

Integration courses would be mandatory but would have to be paid for out of the immigrants' own pockets. Furthermore, anybody who fails an integration test would lose their residence permit.

Social Democratic opposition leader Job Cohen described this shift in integration policy as a "historic mistake." Leaving immigrants on their own to "fit in or disappear" will have serious repercussions, Cohen said. "In a few years time, we'll have to pay the bill."

For political scientist Andrew Wagner the fact that, today, the number of 15 to 24-year-olds from an immigrant background who are unemployed is already as high as 40 percent, is an "alarming finding."

Author: Sabine Faber (dpa, dapd) /ccp

Editor: Susan Houlton