On Wednesday (15th May), conservative Dutch leader Geert Wilders who earlier hailed former BJP leader Nupur Sharma calling her a ‘brave lady’, and three other Dutch party leaders in the Netherlands said that they had reached a provisional coalition agreement, bringing like-minded ideologies to the government into yet another European Union country. To note, Wilder and his party, Partij voor de Vrijheid (PVV) is known for its anti-Islamic views.
The party leaders stated that they would distribute the document to their party’s legislators before a formal government agreement was revealed. However, the parties in the coalition have yet to agree on the next prime minister, who is believed to be a technocrat from outside the party institutions.
Currently holding or heading six administrations within the 27-nation bloc, these conservative parties seem well-positioned to gain ground in the upcoming European Parliament election on June 6–9. “We have a deal among negotiators and we will return to the position of prime minister at a later moment,” said Wilders.
Wilders meanwhile has reluctantly admitted that he will not succeed Mark Rutte and has instead advocated for an outsider for the position of prime minister. Speculation has centered on Ronald Plasterk of the Labour Party, who rose to prominence this year as the first “scout” to meet with party leaders about potential combinations.
Wilders has described Plasterk as a “creative spirit” with political experience who is also sufficiently removed from the current political environment. As per the reports, Wilders’ Party for Freedom won 37 seats in the 150-seat lower house of the Dutch parliament, giving the four parties a comfortable majority of 88 MPs.
After two decades in opposition, Wilders appeared to have a chance at governing the country, but he has stepped aside in order to get through the majority of his policy.
From Finland to Croatia, several political parties known for their anti-Islamic views are part of European government coalitions. Further, Hungary, Slovakia, and Italy are also reportedly governed by conservative prime ministers.
Who is Geert Wilders?
Geert Wilders is a Dutch politician who is known for his anti-Islam stand. Wilders, who has been under police protection since 2004, has been surrounded by controversies for his statements against Islamist ideology, Muslim immigrants and Islamic terrorism.
He has been active in Dutch politics for 25 years without holding any office. Born on 6th September 1963 in Venlo, Netherlands, he served as a member of the Dutch House of Representatives from 1998 and as a leader of the PVV from 2006. The leader was born into a middle-class family and he lived in Israel from 1981 to 1983 and travelled across the Middle East.
He was also convicted of discrimination against Moroccans over raising slogans during a campaign rally in 2014. In 2021, the Supreme Court of the Netherlands upheld his conviction. Wilders called it a “witch hunt” against him, resulting from a broken legal system.
Over time, he toned down some of his views. However, he continued with his strict anti-immigration, Dutch-first approach, which increased his popularity throughout the elections. In October 2022, Wilders supported former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nupur Sharma after Islamists hounded her for her remarks during a debate on Times Now.
Nupur Sharma is a hero who spoke nothing but the truth. The whole world should be proud of her. She deserves the Nobel Prize. And India is a Hindu nation, the Indian government is obliged to strongly defend Hindus against Islamic hate and violence.
— Geert Wilders (@geertwilderspvv) October 9, 2022
#NupurSharma #India #Islam pic.twitter.com/kVkQjEr3RN
In a post on X, he wrote, “Nupur Sharma is a hero who spoke nothing but the truth. The whole world should be proud of her. She deserves the Nobel Prize. And India is a Hindu nation, the Indian government is obliged to strongly defend Hindus against Islamic hate and violence.” He also raised the matter of violence against Hindus and urged the Dutch government to clear its stand.
Geert Wilders giving up hope of being the next Dutch prime minister
It is important to note that in March this year, the Dutch leader said that he had lost hope of becoming the Prime Minister as he did not have enough support from the coalition parties. Wilders had said that he was giving up his bid, at least for now, to become prime minister because he did not have the full support of all three parties he was negotiating with to form a ruling coalition.
“I can only become premier if ALL parties in the coalition support that. That wasn’t the case,” he had posted on X.
Later he seemed unhappy about not becoming prime minister despite his election triumph, reflecting latent tensions between potential government partners. His statement came after Dutch media, citing unnamed sources, reported a breakthrough in coalition discussions in the Netherlands.
It was believed that the leaders of all four parties participating in the long-running coalition negotiations would remain in parliament. This would establish the possibility of some form of technical Cabinet comprised of experts.
However, later he had said that though he wanted to become the Prime Minister, he could not. But he would continue to be the driving force of the next administration. “Don’t forget: I will still become premier of the Netherlands. With the support of even more Dutch people. If not tomorrow, then the day after tomorrow. Because the voice of millions of Dutch people will be heard!” he said.
Wilders has often advocated for a ban on mosques, Islamic schools, and the Quran. In January, however, he pulled draft legislation to enact the bans in order to appease potential coalition partners.
The Netherlands is not alone in experiencing a tilt to the anti-Islamic stance. As per the reports, populist parties are also anticipated to make major gains in the European Union’s parliamentary elections scheduled to happen in June.
