7 September 2011
Frits Bolkestein, former leader of the Dutch center-right VVD and a prominent “elder statesman” in the country, has released a new book, The Intellectual Seduction: Dangerous Ideas in Politics. At a reading in Amsterdam Bolkestein expressed his opinion on Islam and multiculturalism in the Netherlands, disparaging cultural relativism and calling for European leaders to stand up for freedom of expression and individualism. Bolkestein distanced himself from Geert Wilders and the notion that Islam poses a threat to western civilization, stating “I think that’s nonsense. On the contrary, it is us with our ideas, our ideals of individualism and secularism which constitute a danger to Islam: That’s why they react so strongly.”
