(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - A large number of Dutch adults are against a proposed measure to forbid a key religious text of Islam, according to a poll by Maurice de Hond. 75 per cent of respondents think the Koran should not be banned in the European country.

In September 2004, Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders quit the liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD). Wilders criticized Muslims in the Netherlands for failing to properly integrate to society, and openly opposed Turkey's accession to the European Union (EU).

In November 2004, controversial filmmaker Theo Van Gogh was murdered. Van Gogh directed a short motion picture that depicts a husband's abuse on a Muslim woman. Death threats to Wilders and other former VVD members were left at the crime scene.

On Aug. 8, Wilders—who now leads the anti-immigration opposition Party for Freedom (PvdV)—called for a ban on the Koran in the country, branding it a "fascist book" in the vein of Adolf Hitler's "Mein Kampf". Wilders wrote in a newspaper piece: "Ban this wretched book just like 'Mein Kampf' is banned. Send a signal to Islamists that the Koran can never, ever be used in our country as an excuse or inspiration for violence."

Ayhan Tonca, chairman of the CMO umbrella group of Dutch Muslim organizations dismissed Wilders' comments, saying, "This is typical Wilders. This is a ridiculous idea. There is not much news at the moment so he is trying to create some."

Polling Data

Do you think the Koran should be banned in the Netherlands?

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