Soumaya Sahla is stepping down from her position as table chairperson of the VVD’s justice network. This is stated in a joint statement by Sahla and acting VVD chairman Onno Hoes. Last week there was a lot of criticism, mainly from the PVV, of VVD member Soumaya Sahla, who was convicted in 2014 for her membership of the terrorist Hofstad group. “The VVD employs a terrorist who wanted to get me covered,” Wilders said in the House of Representatives last week.
Sahla was sentenced in 2014 to three years in prison for membership of a terrorist organization (the Hofstad group) and illegal possession of weapons. In the statement, she regrets her past on Wednesday and labels the period in question as “black pages”. She says it is “good” to share this apology publicly now. “I deeply regret the choices I made then and everyone around me knows that about me.” She remains a member of the VVD.
Hoes writes that “it has taken far too long” before the party has resolved this matter. “We blame ourselves for that.” According to Hoes, the VVD felt “discomfort” with Sahla’s work, because she had not yet expressed “public regret” for her past.
Also read: VVD hesitates: how to proceed with Sahla?