A Dutch state prosecutor today requested a life sentence for an animal rights activist who confessed to killing Dutch right-wing leader Pim Fortuyn.
Mr Volkert Van der Graaf (33), confessed in court last week to the killing of Mr Fortuyn.
"This was a murder of the freedom of speech," said prosecutor Mr Koos Plooy in his closing argument on the third day of the trial.
He said the murder, just days before a general election last year in which Mr Fortuyn's party was tipped to score impressive gains, deserved "unique sentence".
"Whoever hits the heart of the democratic process must be severely punished," Mr Van der Graaf told the court.
Fortuyn supporters in the public gallery cheered when Mr Plooy announced he would seek life imprisonment.
The assassination of the populist, anti-immigrant politician last May stunned The Netherlands, which had seen no political murders in its recent history.
AFP