Party for Freedom | |
---|---|
Party leader | Geert Wilders |
Parliamentary leader | |
Founded | February 22, 2006 |
Headquarters | |
Political ideology | Nationalism |
Political position | Fiscal: Left-wing Social: Right-wing |
International affiliation | |
Color(s) | Blue, white, red |
Website | www.pvv.nl |
The Party for Freedom (Partij voor de Vrijheid or PVV) is a right-wing and Euroskeptic political party. It currently occupies 15 seats in the Lower House (Tweede Kamer) of the Dutch Parliament. The PVV is unusual in that its leader, Geert Wilders, is its only registered member.
The leader of the PVV is Geert Wilders. The other legislators are Fleur Agema, Raymond de Roon, Hero Brinkman, Martin Bosma, Barry Madlener, Teun van Dijck, Sietse Fritsma, Dion Graus[1]
Because of his outspoken views on radical Islam, PVV leader Wilders is under 24-7 police protection:
In the 2017 elections, although the PVV did not achieve a massive victory as hoped, it saw a rise in votes at the same time when establishment parties either declined or collapsed.[3] Establishment "conservative" [in-name-only] Prime Minister Mark Rutte[4] and several political parties did shift their stances to the political Right in order to attract voters who would otherwise have supported Wilders.[5] Rutte's diplomatic battle with Turkey just before the election served as an example of this.[5][6]
In June 2018, the Dutch parliament passed a limited ban on Islamic veils, something that Geert Wilders and the PVV had advocated for a decade.[7][8]
The party aims to stop immigration, lower taxes, create stricter laws against criminals and terrorists and create basic laws for animal rights.[9]
The PVV's ideology can be difficult to describe and the party is often described as "right-wing" (or "far-right" by the mainstream media) due to its anti-immigration, anti-Islam, pro-Euroskepticism, and pro-Israel stances. The PVV can be left-wing on economic issues and supports the homosexual agenda. Some commentators describe it as "national liberal."
Its leader Geert Wilders celebrated U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital city of Israel and to eventually move the embassy there.[10] He also welcomed Trump's withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.[11]