Dutch filmmaker/newspaper columnist Theo van Gogh murdered

[Mr. Make Believe]

What is the world comming to?
Freedom of speech will never be the same in the Netherlands after the second "political" murder in 3 years.


AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (Reuters) -- A controversial Dutch filmmaker and newspaper columnist Theo van Gogh, who made a film about violence against women in Islamic societies, has been murdered in Amsterdam, police said.

Amsterdam police said Van Gogh had been stabbed and shot in the centre of the city Tuesday.

Van Gogh's short feature film "Submission" angered some Dutch Muslims for its portrayal of a Muslim woman who is abused by her husband.

Police said they arrested a man at the scene after an exchange of gunfire in which the suspect wounded a police officer. The suspect was wounded in his leg.

Some Dutch media said Van Gogh had been planning to make a film about anti-immigration populist Pim Fortuyn, who was gunned down by an animal rights activist in May 2002, days before his grass-roots party stormed to second place in a general election.

Van Gogh received death threats after "Submission" was broadcast earlier this year. He made the film with Dutch politician Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Somali refugee who won Dutch citizenship after fleeing an arranged marriage 12 years ago.

She has been under police protection after receiving death threats.

[merijn]

yes. truely sad. This drives people to racism

[Ibanezrocks!]

Yeah it's really bad.

i live 1 street away from where it happened

[Mr. Make Believe]

I really don't understand the reason why...
With the Fortuyn incident, not that's excusable, there was the posibilty that the man would get some sort of power within the government. I know television can be a powerfull medium, but was van Gogh in a possition in which he formed a real threat??? I can't imagine that. He did hurt people by speaking out the way he did, but if even getting hurt is a reason to kill these days than things really got from bad to worse...
It's unbeleivable.. We always were such a nice and quite little country..
Where do we go from here???

[Keyplayer]

There is no word in Dutch, English or whatever which language to express my feelings about this. Always believed that this could never happen in this country. Freedom of speech is one very valuable thing, that is not ordinary in so many countries. This really has to end before we can't say what we think anymore! I'm really shocked...

Daan

[Taurus]

First its horrible that this even happens, second thing is horrible why it happened. I have my own thoughts about this, and I think many people have the same thoughts, who are now too scared to open their mouth.
- my condolences

[StandBuilder]

This news really shocked me, when I heard it on the radio today...

I have always thought -and still think- that we live in a civilized country, where something like this is impossible.

Van Gogh had some opinions about some religions, but what gives another
person the right to kill him for that...

Right now on Dutch television, we have a public debate about people who have 2 passports. Some people (including some politicians) want to
have people screened on base of their religion and their religious ideas...

I think the problem of racism will only become a lot bigger and most of the times, innocent people/foreigners will have to face the facts...

For Van Gogh, this whole discussion is too late.
He had to be the victim of (how it seems right now) a terrorist attack...

R.I.P.

Stained,

Patrick

[Zorbas]

It's unbeleivable.. We always were such a nice and quite little country..

Are you kidding?!

Don't they teach colonial history in your schools?!

Our 2 countries alone fought over colonial possesions from South America to South-East Asia for centuries.

[Mr. Make Believe]

It's unbeleivable.. We always were such a nice and quite little country..

Are you kidding?!

Don't they teach colonial history in your schools?!

Our 2 countries alone fought over colonial possesions from South America to South-East Asia for centuries.

True.. I appolagise for that statement. I should have been more specific which timeframe I was talking about. I was talking about the more civilized period :-)
The Dutch were some nasty little basstards during our golden century and the results of that period.

[Nolan]

It's a f&^&%king outrage that this happened......

Amsterdam is known as the most tolerant city in the world.
I'm so angry right now.

It's time we do something about our legal systme here.

The shooter probably had a bad childhood and willbe back on the streets in a couple of years :x :x


Coen

[Zorbas]

The Dutch were some nasty little basstards during our golden century and the results of that period.

Pretty much any European country which gave colonialism a try was. Heck, the founders of the Dutch East India company were Jews who ran away from Portugal when our wise-ass king decided to let the Inquisition into the country.