Court rules UK was wrong to bar Geert Wilders

The Asylum and Immigration Tribunal in London ruled Tuesday that Dutch anti-immigrant politician Geert Wilders should not have been refused entry to the United Kingdom in February.

The Birkenhead Society, a British organisation that promotes freedom of expression, had brought the case on his behalf.

Wilders was invited to show his anti-Islam film Fitna at the House of Lords, the upper house of parliament, by a UK Independence party peer, Lord Pearson. However, the British home affairs ministry refused him entry to the country, saying his visit would “threaten community security and therefore public security”.

Wilders, whose film urged Muslims to tear out "hate-filled" verses from the Koran and who has compared Islam to Nazism, faces prosecution by an Amsterdam court for inciting hatred and discrimination.

The UK home office said it would "stop those who want to spread extremism, hatred and violent messages in our communities from coming to our country". It blocked Wilders' visit on the basis of legislation primarily designed to keep out religious extremists, so-called “preachers of hate”.

Wilders wanted to defy the ban and flew to the UK anyway. He was detained when he arrived in London and put back on a plane to the Netherlands.

The screening at the House of Lords went ahead without him. It was attended by reporters and only a handful of politicians.

In response to Tuesday's ruling, a British home office spokesman said, "We are disappointed by the court's decision today. The government opposes extremism is all its forms. The decision to refuse Wilders admission was taken on the basis that his presence could have inflamed tensions between our communities and have led to inter-faith violence. We still maintain this view."

Wilders has welcomed the ruling as “fantastic news”. He added that “The British government’s political decision has rightly been swept off the table by the British judge. This is a victory for the freedom of expression.”

Dutch foreign minister Maxime Verhagen also welcomed the court decision. He said he hopes Wilders will now be admitted to the UK.

His exclusion caused a diplomatic spat between the Netherlands and Britain. Prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende spoke to his British counterpart Gordon Brown about the refusal and Verhagen advised Wilders to appeal against the decision. However, Wilders strongly criticised the Dutch government for failing to raise the matter at European Union level.