Given the fait accompli this morning that a conference bringing together several far-right personalities in the territory of his commune, the mayor of Saint-Josse Emir Kir issued an order this midday to put an end to the event.
As a reminder, this conference was initially organized at the Concert Noble but was canceled under pressure from several anti-fascist associations in view of a far-right casting. The Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the Vlaams Belang MEP Tom Vandendriessche, the National Rally MEP Patricia Chagnon and the Europhobic British politician Nigel Farage are notably invited to speak.
“The police will meet the manager of the room and the organizers to do what is necessary,” confirms the mayor after announcing on Facebook that he had issued an order. “In Brussels-Cities, Etterbeek or Saint-Josse, the extreme right is not welcome,” he says, referring to the other municipalities where the event wanted to take place.
“There is a risk of public disorder if this conference is maintained,” explained the mayor of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode. “Based on an opinion from my police zone chief as well as the opinion of the Coordination Body for Threat Analysis (Ocam), I decided to issue a police order aimed at prohibiting the event – and this with immediate effect”, he continued.
“This entity is legal”
The conference started at 8:00 a.m., according to the private manager of Claridge. The latter, questioned by Belga, did not seem concerned about the ideological content of this annual meeting. “We signed a contract with the co-organizer, the Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) Brussels. This entity is legal, so I don’t see why I should answer for anything,” he insisted. He then claimed to have received agreement from the municipal authorities, but this assertion was not confirmed by the mayor.
Emir Kir underlines the importance of avoiding “any public disorder” and recalls his categorical refusal to the organization of any event with a fascist tendency within his commune.
