Police have tried to shut down the event, as demanded by Brussels' socialist mayor.Continue reading
It is now clear that freedom of expression is not important to left-wing politicians, said Frank Füredi, head of the Mathias Corvinus Collegium Brussels (MCC Brussels) in Brussels on Thursday.
Photo: Hungary Today
Prof. Füredi was speaking after three Brussels mayors tried to ban this week’s two-day National Conservatism Conference (NatCon), but the event went ahead thanks to a last minute ruling by a Belgian municipal court. MCC Brussels has called a “meeting of those committed to upholding media and freedom of expression” for Thursday, with the aim of issuing a statement in defense of freedom of expression.
Prof. Frank Füredi (L) at the press conference in Brussels. Photo: Hungary Today
In a statement, Frank Füredi said that after the Brussels incident, no one can teach Hungary “how to behave”, as the events have shown that “Hungary is a much freer country than Belgium.” He added that the liberal Belgian federal prime minister, Alexander de Croo, despite “not liking Hungarian politics”, had said that such bans should not happen in his country.
What happened at the Claridge today is unacceptable. Municipal autonomy is a cornerstone of our democracy but can never overrule the Belgian constitution guaranteeing the freedom of speech and peaceful assembly since 1830. Banning political meetings is unconstitutional.Full stop.
— Alexander De Croo (@alexanderdecroo) April 16, 2024
Prof. Füredi added that the attempts to block the conference had in fact given the event “very good publicity”, with the professor receiving encouraging messages not only from Europe but also from overseas. He also pointed out that Hungary is likely to come under attack during the Hungarian EU presidency, which starts in July.
What we saw this week was an abuse of the rule of law as political elites made up the rules as they went along all wìth the purpose to close our meeting @Furedibyte remembering #April16 pic.twitter.com/kcAAx96CZ9
— MCC Brussels (@MCC_Brussels) April 18, 2024
Frank Füredi underlined that the aim of Thursday’s event was to bring together people who care about defending freedom of expression in Brussels “because it is an important issue for them and they will fight for it”.
Via MTI; Featured Image: Hungary Today