Brusselers demonstrate against political class and failure to form a regional government

The 89 minutes represent the 89 politicians elected to the Brussels regional parliament, the organisers explain. The demonstrators want the region’s elected politicians and political parties to abandon their vetoes and hold substantive talks on a future Brussels government.

Demo organiser Joost Vandenbroele wanted the demonstration ‘above all to send a signal to Brussels politicians and explain that people are angry and indignant about the lack of a new Brussels government. We are very concerned about where our city is heading.’

Brussels faces many problems: there have been several shootings in the borough of Anderlecht this year.  They are being linked to drug trafficking and a turf war; the region’s public debt is sky-high, and its credit rating is in danger of completely derailing. Confidence in political institutions is in visible decline.

‘Every day, Brussels is losing and the debt is rising by €4.6 million. Work should be made of something positive. The people of Brussels deserve that,’ Mr Vandenbroele said. ‘The challenges are well known; it is up to the politicians to take decisions and get out of this impasse together. It is time for political leaders with a clear political project to stand up.’

Those present included civil servants like Inge Paemen, spokeswoman for Brussels Mobility. She said she found it ‘appalling’ that ‘politicians can only talk to each other like toddlers and no one has yet said anything substantive about the problems’. ‘That our politicians are not dealing with that calls for revenge,’ she said.

On Sunday afternoon, Francophone liberal leader Georges-Louis Bouchez and Frédéric De Gucht of the Flemish liberal Open VLD had what was described as ‘a constructive meeting’. The Flemish liberals are refusing to drop the Flemish nationalist N-VA in the power-sharing executive, a key demand of the Francophone socialists of PS. Other talks are planned.