A conference in Belgium is dissolved. Conservatives and right-wingers are outraged. The organizers go to the highest court - and are proven right.
Brussels - There were chaotic scenes at a meeting of Europe's right-wing extremist elite in Brussels as police moved to break up the conference and barricaded the entrance to the venue. The step, which was taken on the instructions of the local mayor, caused great outrage - especially among right-wing and conservative politicians. Now that a Brussels court has lifted the closure order, the conference will now continue.
Starting on Tuesday (April 16), speakers from the right-wing and conservative spectrum were scheduled to speak at the National Conservatism Conference (NatCon) for two days. These included the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, the German ex-President for the Protection of the Constitution Hans-Georg Maaßen, the former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and the founder of the Brexit Party Nigel Farage. At first, however, it looked as if nothing would come of it.
“The extreme right” is not welcome in Brussels – “Simply outrageous”
About two hours after the conference began on Tuesday morning, Belgian police arrived at the Claridge venue near the European Quarter to tell organizers that the meeting had to be canceled. “The authorities have decided to cancel the event due to possible public unrest,” a police officer told one of the organizers, according to the US news portal
Politico
. The meeting reportedly continued, but other spectators and speakers were prevented from entering. Anyone who wanted to leave the venue could still do so. Farage, who gave his speech as planned, meanwhile described the actions of the Brussels authorities as “simply outrageous”.
Around an hour after their first arrival, the police returned at 12.45 p.m. to hand an official order to the local organizer of the event, Anthony Gilland from the right-wing think tank MCC. "One of the reasons we've been given - and it's not the only one - is that there will be a counter-protest this afternoon around 5 p.m. and the police are unable to protect free speech at that event," Gilland said to the press. The mayor of the Saint-Josse district, Emir Kir, confirmed on Facebook that he had issued a ban “to ensure public safety.”
In the statement to the organization, Kir also stated that some participants at the conference held homophobic and anti-abortion views. “Among these personalities there are several who belong primarily to the right-wing conservative, religious and European extreme right,” said the statement. In a post on the short message service X, he also noted that “the extreme right” was not welcome. The Claridge was the third venue for the conference after the first two venues - the Concert Noble and the luxury hotel Sofitel - had canceled the event.
Orbán criticizes Brussels’ “left-liberal leadership” – does such an approach harm democracy?
The renewed rejection caused waves of indignation among right-wing and conservative politicians in Europe. Orbán, who was in Belgium anyway for a meeting of the European Council, criticized Brussels' "left-liberal leadership" at a press conference. He wrote on Facebook: “Brussels has just stepped up a gear.” Anyone who “stands up for peace” will be “simply banned” – a swipe at the war in Ukraine. “No question, on June 9th we have to say clearly: No War!” he added, referring to the date of the European elections.
A spokesman for the conservative British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, also took up the dispute and said: "These reports are extremely worrying." Sunak is "a strong supporter and advocate of free expression" and "is aware that the cancellation of events or the non-admission of speakers is harmful to freedom of expression and democracy,” the spokesman continued.
The constitution can never be overridden - organizers get justice in court
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, a Flemish liberal, also criticized the incident. On X he wrote: “What happened at Claridge today is unacceptable. Local autonomy is a cornerstone of our democracy, but it can never override the Belgian constitution, which has guaranteed freedom of speech and peaceful assembly since 1830. The ban on political gatherings is unconstitutional. Period.”
With De Croo's testimony behind them, the organizers finally went before the Conseil d'État, the country's highest administrative court. This is reported by the British
Guardian
. Citing Article 26 of the Belgian Constitution – which “grantes everyone the right to peacefully assemble” – the court ruled that there was no evidence of a threat to public order from the event itself. This can be attributed “solely to the reactions that their organization could provoke among their opponents.” So NatCon will continue.
(tpn)