News item | 10-01-2025 | 15:45
The constitutional freedom to demonstrate is a fundamental right and an important part of our democratic society. Ministers Van Weel (Justice and Security) and Uitermark (Interior and Kingdom Relations) emphasize the importance of this freedom, which is widely supported in the Netherlands, in a letter sent to the House of Representatives today. Demonstrations may be grating, but where boundaries are crossed, understanding stops. How do we guarantee the right to demonstrate for everyone if a small group misbehaves? It is this dilemma that the ministers denounce.
Research
In order to take faster, more effective and more targeted action against deliberately disruptive actions that violate the law and thus maintain social support for demonstrations, the government wants to make a clearer distinction between peaceful protests and disruptive actions. The previously announced research conducted through the Scientific Research and Documentation Center (WODC) is expected to contribute to making a sharper distinction. The results of this research are expected in the summer of 2025.
Exploration of ban on face-covering clothing
In parallel to this investigation, the government will also take steps to address problems surrounding demonstrations. For example, a legal ban on face-covering clothing at demonstrations will be explored in the first quarter of 2025. There have been a number of demonstrations in which rioters wearing face-covering clothing have broken the law, for example by destroying property or committing violence. Face-covering clothing can then make the detection of these rioters more difficult.
Pressure on the capacity of the police and the Public Prosecution Service
The total number of demonstrations in the Netherlands has more than tripled between 2015 and 2022. Police deployment at demonstrations has also increased by 84% since 2017. The chief of police has sent an urgent signal that this effort is putting a heavy burden on the police organization. The Public Prosecution Service is also making increasingly strict choices to simplify the criminal justice chain. One of these is that the Public Prosecution Service in principle does not initiate criminal proceedings for a violation of the Public Manifestations Act, partly because practice shows that judges often impose low or no penalties for relatively minor criminal offenses committed in relation to a peaceful demonstration.
In principle, criminal prosecution will take place for the commission of crimes, such as vandalism, threats, (group) insults, discrimination or arson. Multiple consecutive violations can also be prosecuted. This can only be registered if demonstrators are arrested. This currently happens to a limited extent, because demonstrators sometimes do not have identification with them and registration costs a lot of police capacity. The government will consult with the police and the Public Prosecution Service to determine whether additional actions are necessary to prosecute criminal behavior more than is currently the case.
Online calls
Disruptions fueled online are a relatively new problem. This concerns (threatening) physical disturbances that start online or are amplified online. Consider the online calls to revolt during the curfew riots during corona times and an out-of-control giveaway in a shopping center, as well as calls to block highways.
Preventing expressions affects the constitutional freedom of expression (ban on censorship). Reactive action based on the content of an expression is possible, such as prosecution for incitement. In addition, the aim is to have these types of statements taken offline as quickly as possible and to punish the people who post the statements more often and more quickly.
The Minister of Justice and Security is therefore preparing a bill to improve the information position of the police regarding public order enforcement. In the first half of this year, a bill will be put out for consultation that regulates the authority to systematically collect information in publicly accessible online sources. At the same time, we are working hard on the possibility of giving the police access to closed app and chat groups in the context of public order enforcement, as MP Yeşilgöz-Zegerius requests in her motion.
Stay in conversation
In addition, the Ministries of the Interior and Kingdom Relations and Justice and Security continue to engage in discussions with various involved parties, such as municipalities, police, civil society organizations and interest groups of demonstrators. This dialogue is essential to find the balance between protecting the right to demonstrate and tackling the small group that misbehaves. By working together with all those involved, the government wants to achieve a broadly supported approach that both provides space for peaceful demonstrations and contributes to a safe and orderly society.