A “social and anti-fascist” march brought together between 4,500 (according to the Brussels police) and 10,000 people (according to the organizers) on Sunday afternoon in Brussels. During a speech, the FGTB insisted on the importance of creating a solid left-wing “progressive front” in the face of the rise of the right and the far-right in Belgium.
The procession of thousands of demonstrators, who left the Mont des Arts at 1:30 p.m. at the call of the anti-fascist coordination of Belgium (CAB), arrived a few hours later on the Place du Luxembourg, where speeches and concerts were planned. .
“While the real purchasing power of workers is decreasing in Belgium, the feeling of injustice continues to grow: it is a real cocktail for the far right,” pointed out the president of the FGTB, Thierry Bodson. However, the far right “not only threatens our fundamental rights, but it has never provided a real response to the problems of workers and citizens. It has never acted against inequalities, improved social security or fought against climate change”, recalled the trade unionist.
Faced with the breakthrough of the right and the far-right during the elections of June 9, the FGTB emphasized the importance of organizing a true “progressive union” among members of civil society, associations and unions. . The objective: “to make left-wing parties understand that it is high time to unite against the rise of far-right parties”.
The union calls for us to remain “extremely vigilant towards classic right-wing parties – such as the MR and the N-VA – which we see increasingly corrupted by populist and far-right remarks” . “In France, the left, with its back against the wall, is waking up with the creation of a popular front. Let’s not wait until it is too late in Belgium,” concluded Thierry Bodson.
Brussels anti-fascism FGTB Bodson
