

Since councilor Ashley North rolled out the new parking policy in Leiden, he has become the target of online hate and threats. He is increasingly being verbally abused on the street, until eventually, at a residents' meeting, he is threatened with death multiple times. How could it escalate to this point? Currently, about half of local politicians are dealing with aggression. Local party leader Femke Hoekstra-Wittebol also experiences this, having been intimidated and insulted online for almost a year. Why is it so difficult to curb this problem? Are we doing enough to tackle online perpetrators?