A blow to free speech.
Geert Wilders was not allowed on the plane to England today.
Wilders produced this 10 minute film called “Fitna” that offended Muslims.
Because of this controversial film, England announced this week that Wilders would not be allowed into the country.
Wilders was asked to show the film at the House of Lords by UK Independence Party peer Lord Pearson.
This morning he was stopped at the airport in The Netherlands.
GeenStijl reported:
(Translated version)
It has just been announced that the ticket that Geert Wilders illegally entered British territory wild is canceled. Bomb threat? Failure of the landing? Qassam on the beach of Scheveningen? Nothing of all this. The reason is that airlines reserves the right to refuse passengers if the country of destination has indicated that the passenger is not welcome. And why British Midlands immediately decided a thick line through the best-paid airplane ticket of the spring. Rutger’s report, therefore, still to come.
UPDATE: The ticket may now valid according to the same website(?)
(Developing)
UPDATE: The Sun reported that Geert made it on a plane and is heading to London:
A CONTROVERSIAL right-wing Dutch politician banned from visiting the UK over his anti-Islam views has left Amsterdam on a flight headed to London.
He boarded the plane despite Dutch authorities earlier saying he may not be allowed to leave Holland.
Gates of Vienna is following the story.
UPDATE 2: A Dutch MP who called the Koran a “fascist book” is being questioned by immigration officials at Heathrow after defying a ban on entering the UK.
Wilders said today, “They (the British government) are more Chamberlain than Churchill.” …Wilders said the government’s decision had proved that Gordon Brown was the “biggest coward in Europe”.
British Foreign Secretary responded to the situation:
Foreign Secretary David Miliband told the BBC’s Hardtalk: “The home secretary made a decision on an individual case as she is required to do.”
He added that the film contained “extreme anti-Muslim hate and we have very clear laws in this country”.
Mr Miliband also said: “We have profound commitment to freedom of speech but there is no freedom to cry ‘fire’ in a crowded theatre and there is no freedom to stir up hate, religious and racial hatred, according to the laws of the land.”
