Belgian justice on Tuesday suspended the closure of theaters, cinemas and other performance halls announced last week in Belgium by Prime Minister Alexander De Croo to stem the spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.
The authorities have not shown "how theaters in the cultural sector are particularly dangerous places for the health and life of people as they promote the spread of the coronavirus, to the point that it is necessary to 'order its closure,' said the Council of State, the highest Belgian administrative court.
The Belgian government decided on December 22 to close theaters, performance halls and cinemas, angering the cultural world in Belgium.
Several thousand people, 5,000 according to the police, demonstrated in Brussels on Sunday to demand the withdrawal of this measure.
A decision applicable immediately
The Council of State had been seized in summary by the producer of a show scheduled from Tuesday to Thursday in Auderghem, one of the municipalities of Brussels.
His suspension decision, which the government cannot appeal, is applicable immediately.
It is valid until a decision is taken on the merits, which could take several months.
If the cinemas are not formally concerned by the judgment of Tuesday, which relates to the only request of the producer, they are the subject of other appeals which risk to lead to the same decision, because of this jurisprudence.
Speaking of "inconsistency" or even "aberration", several health experts have publicly denounced the closure of cultural places in Belgium, deeming it all the more surprising since, at the same time, cafes and restaurants could remain open until at 11 p.m. nationwide.
Certain theaters and numerous cinemas, notably in Brussels, Namur (center) and Liège (east), have decided to defy the ban by remaining open.
