In Belgium, the demonstration against the sanitary pass degenerates

The rally gave rise to overflows from the beginning of the afternoon in the European district of Brussels.

© AP Photo / Olivier Matthys

Text by: RFI Follow

2 min

The Belgian government has reintroduced measures that had been abandoned for several weeks, if not a few months.

This Sunday, tens of thousands of demonstrators converged on Brussels.

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"Together for freedom", such is the motto of the demonstration which brought together in Brussels nearly 35,000 people against the health measures reintroduced since Friday by the federal government. It is above all the obligation of the health pass that mobilized the Belgians, very inspired by the

. As a result, the rally in Brussels drew many demonstrators from Flanders unlike previous Brussels demonstrations

.

Peaceful and good-natured at the departure of the procession at midday, the gathering gave rise to excesses from the beginning of the afternoon in the European district of Brussels.

Street furniture was set on fire, cars vandalized, including police vans, says our correspondent in Brussels,

. 

Tear gas against fireworks

Small groups of rioters particularly attacked the police, targets of stone throwing and especially fireworks as in the Netherlands.

The Dutch demonstrations of Friday and Saturday had also alerted the Belgian police who had set up a major device and did not hesitate to use tear gas and water cannons.

Belgium, which announced on Wednesday the generalization of the wearing of a mask, also wants to make teleworking compulsory for jobs that allow it in order to stem the strong rebound of the epidemic in the country.

With nearly 10,300 new infections per day on average over the past week, the country is back to a rate of spread of the virus that had not been reached for a year, like other countries in Europe.

He knows levels of hospitalization of Covid patients that he had not recorded since May (more than 2,000 patients, including more than 25% in intensive care).

For the Belgian demonstrators, the vaccine which was supposed to guarantee the return of freedom does not keep its promises and nothing justifies its use for a health pass

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• Belgium

• Coronavirus