At the request of the Public Prosecution Service (OM), the police in Rotterdam have started an investigation into the racist slogans projected on the Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam on New Year’s Eve. The OM announced this on Tuesday in a statement. The perpetrators projected slogans such as “White Lives Matter” and “Merry White 2023” on the bridge, as well as quotes from American neo-Nazi David Lane and an anti-Semitic website.
According to the Public Prosecution Service, there is discrimination “on the basis of the context in which the statements were made and their coherence”. “Freedom of expression is one of the fundamental rights in Dutch law. But there are limits to that freedom of expression.” The OM considers the statements punishable, partly because they incite discrimination and insult to other population groups.
Earlier on Tuesday reported it General Journal that the extreme right movement White Lives Matter is behind the projections on the Erasmus Bridge. In an unverified video on Telegram, the group, along with White Lives Matters Germany, claims to have been responsible for the action. In addition, they are announcing even more actions at “large locations”. The Rotterdam police are calling on witnesses to contact them if they know more about where the projection came from.
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