Rabat – Geert Wilders, a right-wing Dutch politician, has decided to re-launch a contest for cartoons caricaturing the Prophet Muhammad.
Wilders’ provocative move comes a year after he canceled a similar competition when Dutch police arrested a man who had threatened to kill Wilders over his anti-Islam stance.
In a tweet on Sunday, December 29, the leader of the largest opposition party in the Dutch parliament, invited people to send in their cartoons.
“Freedom of speech must prevail over violence and Islamic fatwas,” the anti-Muslim politician wrote.
He then wrote that the mission is accomplished and revealed the winner of the contest.
Depicting or ridiculing the Prophet Muhammed is offensive to Muslims as images of the Prophet are forbidden in Islam and classed as idolatry.
Twitter appears to have lifted the ban on Wilders’ account, previously blocked due to misuse and hate speech.
Anti-Moroccans stance
In addition to his islamophobia, Wilders is also known for his hatred toward Moroccans living in the Netherlands.
Geert became controversial following his pledge for “fewer Moroccans” during his election campaign in 2014.
Read also: Geert Wilders Claims Unfair Trial in “Fewer Moroccans” Discrimination Case
In 2016, a Dutch court convicted Geert of inciting discrimination with his racist remarks.
Since the beginning of the trial in 2014, Geert maintained that the prosecution is politically motivated and even filed a complaint against the Public Prosecutor.
The Prosecutor, however, maintains that the decision to initiate prosecution was not influenced by any other parties and took place in accordance with the rule of law.
