The Belgian Prime Minister charges that the municipal veto is “unacceptable” and unconstitutional
BRUSSELS, 16 ()
The local authorities of one of the districts of Brussels have ordered this Friday the suspension of the meeting of European far-right parties called on the eve of the summit of heads of State and Government of the European Union, a veto issued when the meeting was already underway for fear of “public disorder.”
Ultra-conservative leaders such as the French Eric Zemmour, the British euroskeptic Nigel Farage, the MEP of the Belgian extreme right Vlaams Belang Tom Vandendriessche, and the Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban, were announced on the poster of the conference scheduled for this Tuesday and Thursday , although in the case of the Hungarian president his presence was not scheduled until Wednesday.
The Hungarian Prime Minister has condemned the police action on social media and has promised that “they will not give up.” “I guess they couldn't stand free speech anymore. The last time they wanted to silence me with the police was in 1988, when the communists unleashed the police on me,” he declared.
After members of the Brussels Police went to the scene to try to prevent more participants from joining the event, already underway, the Belgian Prime Minister, the liberal Alexander de Croo, has charged in a brief statement against the municipal veto by consider it “unacceptable” and “unconstitutional.”
“Municipal autonomy is a cornerstone of our democracy but it can never annul the Belgian Constitution, which has guaranteed freedom of expression and peaceful assembly since 1830. Prohibiting political meetings is unconstitutional. Final point,” De Croo concluded in a message broadcast on social networks.
In another statement, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni revealed that she contacted De Croo to ask for explanations for the prohibition of an event to which “heads of government and national and European parliamentarians” were invited and thanked the Belgian president for his strong reaction. in the face of the “unjustifiable abuse” against the freedom of expression of the attendees.
The event began in a reserved party room in the Saint-Josse-ten-Noode district, very close to the European quarter of Brussels where the main community institutions are based; after two other locations denied them the space because in the previous days the corresponding municipal authorities did not give the green light to the event either.
“I have issued a mayoral order to prohibit the 'National Conference of Conservatives' event to guarantee public safety,” justified the mayor of the Brussels district of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, Emir Kir, explaining that he asked the Police of Brussels to prevent the meeting.
“Neither in Etterbeek, nor in Brussels city nor in Saint-Josse is the extreme right welcome,” Kir continued, alluding to the other districts that hindered the celebration of the event.
Kir's performance, however, took place hours after the meeting began in the scheduled room, although it was being held behind closed doors when the decision to veto it emerged. Police officers moved to the site to prevent the entry of more attendees, but the organizers have expressed their willingness to continue with the meeting inside.
