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The highest Dutch court on Tuesday upheld Geert Wilders’ conviction for collectively insulting Moroccan people at a 2014 rally, saying politicians too “must adhere to the basic rule of law”.
The case in which the far-right Dutch leader is accused of asking supporters seven years ago whether they wanted “fewer Moroccans” in the Netherlands, went to the supreme court after his conviction was previously upheld by lower courts.
An appeals court in 2020 maintained Wilders’ conviction, but it threw out a charge of inciting discrimination over the 2014 gathering, where the crowd chanted back “Fewer! Fewer!” to Wilders’ question.
“The conviction of the suspect, PVV leader Wilders, remains in place,” supreme court judge Vincent van den Brink said.
“With that statement he offended an entire group of people… in this case because of their descent,” Van den Brink said in his verdict.
“The fact that he spoke as a politician, who must have the freedom to raise matters of general concern, even if they are disturbing or hurtful, does not make this any different,” the judge added.
The court also upheld a ruling that the outspoken politician would not be punished for his conviction.
The firebrand politician immediately hit back, saying the “rule of law was bankrupt” in the Netherlands.
“They want to shut me up, but I won’t. They can convict me but I will always speak the truth,” Dutch news agency ANP quoted Wilders as saying.
The court rejected Wilders’ attempts to frame the case as a free speech issue, as he has done with previous controversial acts such as a competition for cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.
“Politicians too must adhere to the basic principles of the rule of law and not incite intolerance,” Van den Brink said.
Wilders lives in a safe house and has been granted 24-hour protection by the Dutch state because of death threats over his anti-immigration and anti-Islam comments.
Despite losing three seats in this year’s general elections, Wilders’ Freedom Party (PVV) remains popular in the Netherlands and is the third-largest in Dutch parliament.