Geert Wilders, the leader of the Dutch Party for Freedom (PVV), told Sputnik on Monday that he was hoping to convince the majority of Dutch lawmakers to back his plan for the ban on public expression of Islamic faith in 2019.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th September, 2018) Geert Wilders, the leader of the Dutch Party for Freedom (PVV), told Sputnik on Monday that he was hoping to convince the majority of Dutch lawmakers to back his plan for the ban on public expression of Islamic faith in 2019.
Last week, Wilders' proposal was rejected in the parliament. A Peil poll released Sunday showed that PVV's proposal to remove islam from the Netherlands' public life was backed by 39 percent of the Dutch. At the same time, 50 percent were opposed to the idea.
"Almost 40 percent of the Dutch people support the law according to an independent national poll from yesterday. There does not seem to be a majority in the Dutch Parliament today but it will be voted on next year and I will do everything in my power to get a majority by then," Wilders said.
Wilders said that rejecting such a law was irresponsible.
"We will use any democratic means inside and outside parliament to reverse Islamization since our existence and freedom ... and that of our children are at stake since Islam and freedom are incompatible," the Dutch politician said.
A number of European countries, including Austria, Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Latvia, and the Netherlands, have introduced bans on religious symbols associated with Islam, such as headscarves.
