Dutch ‘cuddle army’ counters online election hate

Dutch politicians who were bombarded with online hate in the middle of a heated election campaign are now being embraced virtually.

A volunteer group calling itself the “hug army” (Troetelleger) has started sending positive notes if a politician encounters a lot of hateful messages online.

Many female politicians face regular online harassment.

According to Ana Karadarevic, who joined the initiative, the group has already attracted more than 2,000 people.

Organizers say the approach has been successful.

“Hundreds of positive messages mean hateful ones no longer stand out and we can even influence an algorithm,” the group said.

Karadarevic adds that their approach also means others are less likely to post negative posts.

“Hate is contagious. But if it is invisible, it stops.”

The initiative comes as Dutch voters prepare to elect a new parliament on October 29.

There has been an increase in threats and online attacks against MPs since the start of the campaign.

MPs from many parties even canceled public meetings many times for fear of attacks.

The government is responding by making special security arrangements for campaign events and strengthening personal protection for leading candidates.

An independent citizens’ movement launched the “Hoopzaaiers” (Sowers of Hope) campaign.

“We want to show that we have more health than you,” says Karadarevic.

They also noticed an increase in attacks during the election campaign.

“We are getting more and more clues about who we should be sending friendly messages to.”

And he said more and more volunteers are coming forward.

The group launched its “hug army” less than a month ago and so far is deploying two or three times a week.

Organizers send participants a link asking them to send kind messages via messaging services such as WhatsApp or Signal.

“It could be very short or just a few hearts,” Karadarevic said.

Following the awards ceremony of a gay magazine earlier in the week, trolls sent hateful messages and comments to Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema.

In response, volunteers dwarfed any negative comments by posting hundreds of positive posts and scores of pink hearts, along with hashtags drawing attention to their initiative.

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