de Volkskrant does not have to rectify an article in which Wim Hof is accused of domestic violence. The court in Amsterdam ruled this on Wednesday. Hof accused the newspaper of defamation and slander and, together with his four eldest children, also demanded damages.
According to the court, “the interest of de Volkskrant in being able to publish about a social problem (domestic violence) outweighs the interest of the plaintiff and his children in protecting their personal privacy.”
Hof, who is called ‘The Iceman’ because of his cold water training, was particularly concerned about a passage with accusations of violence against Olaya, the Spanish mother of his eldest children. She died in 1995 by suicide. According to Hof’s brother, she experienced domestic violence during her relationship with Hof, de Volkskrant wrote.
However, the court states that the newspaper did not publish the accusation “as a fact”, but acted as a messenger of Hof’s brother.
Deputy editor-in-chief of the newspaper Annieke Kranenberg is satisfied with the ruling, which according to her is “of great social and journalistic importance”. “Because domestic violence often takes place in silence, and is difficult to prove. It is also difficult for journalists to highlight this almost invisible problem with concrete stories.”
Hof’s son Enahm calls the accusations of his uncle against his father “nonsense and lies”. “de Volkskrant went along with it. They shouldn’t have done that,” he responds. “I won’t let it rest. Of course, we will appeal.”