To stop rising anti-Semitism in the Netherlands and Europe, political leaders must end mass immigration through open borders and reverse the failure of cultural relativism to promote integration, Geert Wilders, founder and leader of the Dutch Party for Freedom, said in an interview with The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday, in which he also explained that his support for Israel is based on a broader defense of Western values.
After six months of negotiations, Prime Minister Dick Schauff’s coalition government was sworn in on Tuesday with the support of the Party for Freedom (PVV), which campaigned on a policy of prioritizing immigration and won the most seats in the 2023 Dutch general election.
Wilders said that the very same issues, “policies of mass immigration and open borders,” are responsible for rising levels of anti-Semitism in Europe. These policies feed into “one of the greatest flaws in our society: cultural relativism,” which argues that “for politically correct reasons” all cultures are considered equal and any criticism or action within a culture is unacceptable.
“If we had always had open borders, we would never ask people to fully integrate into society, they (immigrants) would not speak our language, they would treat women, Jews, homosexuals and so on in a way that we would not accept,” Wilders said. “We would close our eyes and look the other way.”
Wilders said the rise in anti-Semitic incidents would not stop without policy changes, which is why it was crucial his coalition government remained in power. A sharp rise in anti-Semitism followed the October 7 massacre, as in many European countries. Wilders pointed to the massacre as evidence of growing extremist and anti-Semitic sentiment, especially among immigrant populations. Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders speaks to media in The Hague, Netherlands, after polls closed for the 2024 EU elections on June 6. (Photo by Lewis MacDonald/Reuters)
“From Vienna to Paris, from Amsterdam to Berlin to London, I saw so many people walking the streets, and millions of them were supporting extremist groups in our cities – not Palestinians, but Hamas and (Palestinian) Islamic Jihad,” Wilders said. “I didn’t even know there were so many people in Europe who supported their ideology. This was a kind of wake-up call and one of the reasons our party won the election, because people realised that what we were telling them was actually not a fairy tale, but something that actually happens in our society.”
Islamic extremism across Europe is a cause for concern, says Wilders
While Wilders was keen to stress that not all Dutch Muslims are extremists, he said polls showed a significant number of Dutch Muslims held problematic beliefs, with the majority not considering friendship with Jews and many supporting Sharia law as more important than civil law.
“These are huge amounts of money and we need to accept and act on them,” Wilders said, calling for the establishment of red lines for action and principles for pro-integration.
“If you play by our rules, cooperate with our society, don’t go against our values and – again – don’t disrupt our laws – you are welcome, you are equal to everyone else in our society. You can achieve anything you want, you can be an MP, you can be successful in business – if you identify with us like everyone else there are no limits to your possibilities,” Wilders said. “If you become violent, if you become anti-Semitic or do anything else, we will not accept it.”
Wilder advocated for tougher laws against the “ever-growing” number of people opposed to Dutch values in order to protect society and democracy. One of the policies sought by leading Dutch politicians was to make it easier for foreign criminals and violators to have their residence permits revoked and be deported. Wilder also wanted to strongly instill Western values and teach Dutch history in schools to combat extremism.
“Many teachers in our schools are afraid to teach about the Second World War or the Holocaust because they are scared of what might happen – they are afraid that they will not be able to control the children in their classes and that their parents will be angry,” Wilders said. “We have to start talking honestly, even in schools, about the impact of Nazism, the Holocaust, anti-Semitism and many other things that are not discussed today. Not only in the Netherlands, but in many schools in the European Union, this is a sign of weakness.”
Wilders said there was cross-party agreement on the need to fight anti-Semitism, including support from opposition parties, some of whom did not link anti-Semitism to cultural relativism or immigration.
Wilders said Europe as a whole was slowly waking up to the challenges of immigration and integration. While France’s right-wing Rally National (RN) ultimately failed to gain more seats than the left-wing New Popular Front in recent European elections, and the Labour Party replaced the Conservatives in winning a majority in Britain, the Dutch politician still sees the political right as more successful overall.
“I believe that we have no choice but to move slowly and incrementally, and things are changing for the better,” Wilders said, but lamented that “progress is too slow in the fight against anti-Semitism. We need to act faster.”
After the PVV won the election, Wilders spent six months negotiating with the other three parties and was forced to compromise. No other country had a right-wing majority outside of Hungary, but progress was made across Europe, from Austria to Belgium. Wilders also saw success in France and the UK.
“If we don’t support Israel, Israel will cease to exist. That doesn’t mean that everything Israel does is good, but I understand Israel’s reaction to those who want the end of the state of Israel and the end of the Jewish people.”
Geert Wilders
Marine Le Pen’s RN and Nigel Farage’s UK Reform Party enjoyed huge public support, but because of the structure of the electoral system this did not necessarily translate into seats in parliament. They may not have gained more political power, but the right wing was winning more hearts and minds.
In France, as in other right-wing contested elections, the Rally National wrestled with its own anti-Semitic past. Wilders stressed that his party had been a friend of Israel and the Jewish people “from day one,” despite the backlash from the far right. Not only did Wilders argue that the PVV did not have the same past as the RN, he said he would not have allied with Le Pen in the European Parliament if he had not believed in the reforms that would repudiate and distance herself from the anti-Semitism of her father and his party.
“She is a good politician,” Wilders said of Le Pen. “She fights for the interests of France and stands alongside me in the fight against anti-Semitism.”
Wilders saw the right’s fight for Western values as intertwined with Israel’s existential fight against jihadist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
“We should support countries that share our values. And if you lose, we’re next. I truly believe that,” Wilders said. Israel is “the only democracy, the only country in the Middle East that shares our values. You know, we have an independent judiciary, we can take the president and the prime minister to court. This is how a normal democracy should work.”
You have a parliament that can send your prime minister home, you have a functioning civil society. So we share values, and I believe Judeo-Christian values are ones that we can be proud of, in addition to humanitarian values. As I often say, you are a beacon of light in an area of darkness.”
The events of October 7 showed that Israel is fighting for its survival and that the ongoing conflict in the Levant is not simply about territory, a misconception held by many Western politicians, Wilders said. He recalled conversations with former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, whom he called a friend, in which Sharon made a decision to cede the Gaza Strip to the Palestinians, a decision Wilders respected, but that did not solve the problem of Islamic extremism.
“Giving up land is not going to solve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict,” Wilders said, explaining that extremists in the Islamic world want any part of Israeli land to be completely destroyed. “If you don’t support Israel, there will be no Israel. That doesn’t mean everything Israel does is good, but their actions are understandable because we need to push back against those who want the state of Israel and the Jewish people to disappear.”
Wilders experienced the hatred some in the Middle East harbor towards Israel during his youth travels to countries such as Egypt, and said it was tragic to see people he had close relationships with become enraged when the topic of Israel was brought up.
So he was shocked but not surprised by the brutality of Hamas’ October 7 attacks. Wilders said the impact of the October 7 attacks was comparable to that of the September 11 attacks, but was perhaps more shocking to Israeli society because a relatively large percentage of Israelis were killed or seriously injured. PVV leader Geert Wilders meets with party members at the Dutch parliament in The Hague after last month’s parliamentary elections (Photo by Yves Herman/Reuters)
“When you start a war, don’t complain that you’re losing,” Wilders said of his frustration with Hamas and Israel’s actions.
The Dutch leader was also not surprised by the rapid change in international political reaction in a short space of time when Israel responded to the Hamas attacks. Wilders felt that the most important assistance he could offer Israel was diplomatic support to spread the understanding that Israel was fighting for its own survival against Hamas and Hezbollah.
“Diplomatic support is the most important thing we can offer today and unfortunately it is lacking,” Wilders said, adding that politicians should be courageous and stand up for friends like Israel and countries that share Western values, even if it means making political sacrifices. Some in the Dutch opposition wanted economic sanctions against Israel, but Wilders said he was opposed.
Wilders also opposes the issuance of International Criminal Court arrest warrants for Israeli officials such as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. While he cannot speak for the government or the Dutch prime minister, he believes it would be a mistake to detain Israeli officials if arrest warrants were issued.
Wilders said his coalition government had agreed to support the state of Israel and that as part of a political agreement the Dutch embassy would eventually move to Jerusalem.
“Don’t give up, you have friends,” Wilders said in a message to Israelis.
“There is a lot of support among the public. This is a fight you are fighting, you are not alone. You are never alone. You have friends. I would love to be one of your best friends. But I am certainly not alone,” Wilders said.
“Dutch parents sleep well at night because Israeli parents cannot sleep because they think about what is happening to their sons and daughters who are fighting a battle that sooner or later we too will have to fight, the battle against extremism and barbarism.”
