Corona Inquiry: Protest Group Founder Claims Media Ignored Them, Fundamental Rights Eroded by Vaccine Focus

Romy Quint, a co-founder of the Dutch protest group Vrijheid voor Vrouwen (Freedom for Women), described her group's role during the COVID-19 crisis as "social workers for the country." Testifying before the Parliamentary Inquiry Committee on Corona, Quint stated that their demonstrations, aimed at voicing concerns and dissatisfaction, were largely ignored by mainstream media.

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We have tried through manifestations to give a voice to all concerns and dissatisfaction, but the mainstream media have ignored us.

Quint explained how her Facebook account quickly became a hub for like-minded individuals, transforming the group into what she called "people's representatives." Despite their efforts to take their concerns to the streets, Quint felt they were either disregarded or unfairly portrayed by the media as "difficult crazies." This, she argued, created a homogenous and inaccurate image of the activists, masking the diverse groups and individuals they represented. She criticized media coverage for focusing on violence during protests rather than the underlying reasons for people taking to the streets.

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We became a kind of people's representatives.

Vrijheid voor Vrouwen advocates for fundamental rights such as freedom of demonstration, the right to privacy, and the right to bodily integrity, which Quint believes were compromised by the government's COVID-19 policies. Quint, who had been researching vaccines since 2014, expressed concern over the accelerated rollout of COVID-19 vaccines. She felt that the government, particularly through statements by Minister Hugo de Jonge, created an impression that vaccination was the sole condition for returning to normal life, diminishing individual choice and infringing upon fundamental rights.

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There was a blind fixation on vaccines.

Quint also shared that her attempts to raise concerns about denying access to unvaccinated individuals were met with silence from established political parties in the Dutch Parliament. She had emailed all members of the House of Representatives but received no replies. While she eventually resigned from the Party for the Animals due to disagreements over lockdown measures, she expressed hesitation in directly accusing the government of intentionally creating fear, though she believes fear was indeed generated. She recalled De Jonge's statement in November 2021 about continuing vaccinations "neighborhood by neighborhood, door to door, and arm by arm."

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Fundamental rights were taken away.