Marsipulami
15-09-05, 18:07
Filip Dewinter speaking in Ghent, Belgium. "You should know, the real enemies of Israel today are not on the right, but rather on the left: the socialists and the Greens."
Between Haider and a hard place
By Adi Schwartz
BRUSSELS - On a hot day in late June, the only way to escape the heat was to jump into the cold water of one of the city’s swimming pools. Such was the scene on Sunday, June 26, at the outdoor De Molen pool on the western side of the city, a particularly popular pool in an area that overlooks the river. But then, several Muslim youths began to behave violently. Unable to maintain control, the authorities decided to close the pool and send the swimmers home, much to their chagrin.
Violent incidents involving Muslim youths at swimming pools are nothing new in Antwerp, but this time one of the members of the municipality had an idea about how to solve the problem. In a meeting the next day, Filip Dewinter, chairman of the far-right Vlaams Belang (The Flemish Interest) party in Antwerp and leader of the party, proposed establishing a quota system to limit the entry of young Muslims to public swimming pools. First, he suggested, known lawbreakers should be barred from entering public pools for two years. Second, priority should be given to families - "Flemish, Muslim or Jewish," he said - and only then would Muslim youths be allowed to enter. The expression "Muslim youths" meant Belgian-born citizens who have no criminal record, but whose parents or grandparents immigrated to Belgium from a Muslim country. The Belgian media immediately called this proposal "selection."
"Suddenly a great riot began," Dewinter told Haaretz in an interview several days after the incident. "People started to say that `Dewinter is a racist, he’s instituting apartheid methods, he’s placing a yellow patch [as used on Jews in the Holocaust] on young Arabs.’ All I suggested was to offer free entrance to families, without any ethnic discrimination, in order to decrease the number of young Arabs who try to take over the pools. I say there is a problem and that most of the people at these pools are young Arabs who make problems."
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This ostensibly marginal incident, familiar to only a few outside of Antwerp, perhaps reflects the essence of the relationship between the Muslim community in Belgium (and in Europe as a whole) and the non-Muslim population: the lack of integration by some of the Muslims and the criminal activity that stems from this; the inability of the political establishment in many countries to deal with this phenomenon; and the consequent strengthening of far-right movements that offer problematic and sometimes even repugnant solutions. This relationship also touches on the Jewish community, which is often hurt by expressions of anti-Semitism. And, in the specific case of Belgium, this relationship also involves the State of Israel. Indeed, during recent years, Dewinter has made himself into Israel’s "No. 1 Belgian friend" and he is now interested in making an official visit.
Leading political force
Filip Dewinter, 43, is a fascinating phenomenon in Belgian and European politics. Under his leadership, the Vlaams Blok party - which was forced to reestablish itself as Vlaams Belang in November 2004 after the state’s supreme court declared that it "continually incites toward racial discrimination and segregation" - has transformed itself from an ephemeral party into a leading political force. Dewinter is probably the most successful leader of the far right in Europe today: His party is the second largest in the Flemish (Dutch-speaking) part of Belgium, with about 25 percent support. In reality, it is actually the largest single party because the Christian-Democratic bloc (with about 27 percent support) comprises several parties. Since the beginning of the 1980s, the party has grown steadily; with every election - municipal, regional and federal - the number of the party’s supporters increases.
The other parties have adopted a policy toward Vlaams Belang that is defined as a "cordon sanitaire" - and involves an absolute political boycott of the party, with a commitment never to invite it into any coalition. This is because of the party’s violent and racist style and content. Thus, it turns out that one in four Flemish voters is not really represented in the political arena and the court has officially declared the party’s representatives to be racists. And that is not all. In the heart of an expanding Europe, not far from the headquarters of NATO and the European Union, there is a strong political force whose declared aim is to dismantle Belgium ("within 15 years," Dewinter promises) and whose style is diametrically opposed to the pleasant manner and sweet talk of most European politicians.
Dewinter is now trying to break the boycott imposed on his party, and the municipal elections scheduled for next year in Antwerp (including a mayoral contest) constitute a crucial test for him.
"The year 2006 is critical for him," says Bart Brinckman, the political editor of the De Standaard newspaper, who has followed Dewinter’s career for about 15 years. "Dewinter’s future and his political career are in jeopardy. After 20 years in politics, Dewinter must show he is advancing."
Cas Mude, a political science professor at the University of Antwerp and a researcher of far-right movements, believes this is the reason for Dewinter’s intensive courting of the city’s Jewish community and the State of Israel. In order to fulfill his aspiration of gaining control of the city, Dewinter needs the Jewish economic elite that controls one of the leading commercial branches in the city: diamonds. According to Prof. Mude, Dewinter hopes that the State of Israel and the Jews will pave the way to the city’s business community and legitimize his image in local popular opinion.
"I’m interested in visiting Israel," Dewinter says in the interview. "First of all, from a geopolitical point of view. We in Western Europe should realize that our allies are not in the Arab or Muslim world, but rather in Israel. This is not just because we have a common civilization and values, but also to balance out the Islamic forces in the Middle East that are getting stronger. The State of Israel is a sort of outpost for our Western society, an outpost of democracy, of freedom of speech, of protecting common values within a hostile environment. You are surrounded by Islamic states, some of them fundamentalist, which are interested in only one thing: to throw the Jews into the sea.
"I also think that Islam is now the No. 1 enemy not only of Europe, but of the entire free world. After communism, the greatest threat to the West is radical fundamentalist Islam. There are already 25-30 million Muslims on Europe’s soil and this becomes a threat. It’s a real Trojan horse. Thus, I think that an alliance is needed between Western Europe and the State of Israel. I think we in Western Europe are too critical of Israel and we should support Israel in its struggle to survive. I think we should support Israel more than we do because its struggle is also very important for us."
But Dewinter admits that he wants to visit Israel for other reasons. "It’s very important to me as leader of a right-wing national party [he rejects defining the party as "far right" - A.S.] to say that we respect the State of Israel and the Jews. To all of those who regard us as neo-Nazis, we say: `No, we want good relations with the Jews.’ We should distance ourselves from all of those individuals and groups with anti-Semitic tendencies and from Holocaust deniers. I have no connection with these things. Because I am a leader of a right-wing party, some of the Jewish leaders in Antwerp do not believe that I am sincere. They think that this is a pose, that I am doing this to avoid being regarded as a neo-Nazi and that I am afraid they will call me a fascist. I’m interested in visiting Israel to express my affinity, but also to prove that I’m sincere."
Chilly response
Dewinter hopes to visit Israel during the coming year, but clarifies: "I’ll come only if I know I am wanted. Only if there is a consensus about the visit in Israel and in Belgium." He has yet to take any explicit initiative and has not approached any officials about this, but it seems that he would receive quite a chilly response. The Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem has made it clear that Israel would not be the one to violate the cordon sanitaire and that Israel’s policy is largely derived from the official Belgian policy. Thus, for example, Israel’s embassy in Brussels is not in contact with Dewinter’s party, despite its size, and does not provide it with information as it does in the case of other parties in the parliament. According to Jerusalem, its policy represents an ethical stand because Vlaams Belang is a xenophobic party that opposes immigrants and expresses racism. In addition, the party advocates the dismantling of Belgium and the establishment instead of an independent state in the Flemish part. Thus, an Israeli connection would be seen as intervening in the internal affairs of Belgium.
The possibility of Dewinter visiting Israel has also stirred an uproar in the Jewish community in Belgium. Vivian Teitelbaum is a Jewish member of the parliament in Brussels. (In Belgium, in addition to the federal national parliament, there are also parliaments in the Flemish region, the francophone region and the region of Brussels, the capital city.) Teitelbaum says she would feel ashamed if Dewinter visited Israel and adds, "I don’t know how I would cope with this." Claude Marinower, the only Jewish member of the federal parliament, is even more vociferous and says he would come to Israel and hold a press conference at every stop on Dewinter’s itinerary to warn against him. Both MPs believe that the answer to the central question of whether Dewinter can be trusted is "No."
Members of the Flemish nationalist movement established Vlaams Blok in the late 1970s. Many members of this movement had openly collaborated with the Nazi regime during World War II. "My view of the party has not changed," says Marinower during an interview at his Antwerp office. "The founders of the party were collaborators, anti-Semites and racists." And not much has changed since then, he adds.
Prof. Mude thinks the party is not officially anti-Semitic because there are no anti-Semitic references in its official literature, which he says he studies carefully. However, he notes, there is indeed anti-Semitism among its grass-roots activists. "Dewinter has no problem associating with anti-Semites," he explains. "And you can almost always find someone anti-Semitic around him. The reason is that he is not philo-Semitic; he’s philo-Flemish. His goal is to take over Antwerp and act on behalf of the Flemish. The question of whether this is good for the Jews does not interest him."
Brinckman, however, is certain that Dewinter himself "harbors anti-Semitic feelings. He always associates with anti-Semitic circles and it is impossible that he changed his mind. He now needs to maneuver between his voters, many of whom are very extremist, and the public arena, which demands that he demonstrate moderation."
Between Haider and a hard place
By Adi Schwartz
BRUSSELS - On a hot day in late June, the only way to escape the heat was to jump into the cold water of one of the city’s swimming pools. Such was the scene on Sunday, June 26, at the outdoor De Molen pool on the western side of the city, a particularly popular pool in an area that overlooks the river. But then, several Muslim youths began to behave violently. Unable to maintain control, the authorities decided to close the pool and send the swimmers home, much to their chagrin.
Violent incidents involving Muslim youths at swimming pools are nothing new in Antwerp, but this time one of the members of the municipality had an idea about how to solve the problem. In a meeting the next day, Filip Dewinter, chairman of the far-right Vlaams Belang (The Flemish Interest) party in Antwerp and leader of the party, proposed establishing a quota system to limit the entry of young Muslims to public swimming pools. First, he suggested, known lawbreakers should be barred from entering public pools for two years. Second, priority should be given to families - "Flemish, Muslim or Jewish," he said - and only then would Muslim youths be allowed to enter. The expression "Muslim youths" meant Belgian-born citizens who have no criminal record, but whose parents or grandparents immigrated to Belgium from a Muslim country. The Belgian media immediately called this proposal "selection."
"Suddenly a great riot began," Dewinter told Haaretz in an interview several days after the incident. "People started to say that `Dewinter is a racist, he’s instituting apartheid methods, he’s placing a yellow patch [as used on Jews in the Holocaust] on young Arabs.’ All I suggested was to offer free entrance to families, without any ethnic discrimination, in order to decrease the number of young Arabs who try to take over the pools. I say there is a problem and that most of the people at these pools are young Arabs who make problems."
Advertisement
This ostensibly marginal incident, familiar to only a few outside of Antwerp, perhaps reflects the essence of the relationship between the Muslim community in Belgium (and in Europe as a whole) and the non-Muslim population: the lack of integration by some of the Muslims and the criminal activity that stems from this; the inability of the political establishment in many countries to deal with this phenomenon; and the consequent strengthening of far-right movements that offer problematic and sometimes even repugnant solutions. This relationship also touches on the Jewish community, which is often hurt by expressions of anti-Semitism. And, in the specific case of Belgium, this relationship also involves the State of Israel. Indeed, during recent years, Dewinter has made himself into Israel’s "No. 1 Belgian friend" and he is now interested in making an official visit.
Leading political force
Filip Dewinter, 43, is a fascinating phenomenon in Belgian and European politics. Under his leadership, the Vlaams Blok party - which was forced to reestablish itself as Vlaams Belang in November 2004 after the state’s supreme court declared that it "continually incites toward racial discrimination and segregation" - has transformed itself from an ephemeral party into a leading political force. Dewinter is probably the most successful leader of the far right in Europe today: His party is the second largest in the Flemish (Dutch-speaking) part of Belgium, with about 25 percent support. In reality, it is actually the largest single party because the Christian-Democratic bloc (with about 27 percent support) comprises several parties. Since the beginning of the 1980s, the party has grown steadily; with every election - municipal, regional and federal - the number of the party’s supporters increases.
The other parties have adopted a policy toward Vlaams Belang that is defined as a "cordon sanitaire" - and involves an absolute political boycott of the party, with a commitment never to invite it into any coalition. This is because of the party’s violent and racist style and content. Thus, it turns out that one in four Flemish voters is not really represented in the political arena and the court has officially declared the party’s representatives to be racists. And that is not all. In the heart of an expanding Europe, not far from the headquarters of NATO and the European Union, there is a strong political force whose declared aim is to dismantle Belgium ("within 15 years," Dewinter promises) and whose style is diametrically opposed to the pleasant manner and sweet talk of most European politicians.
Dewinter is now trying to break the boycott imposed on his party, and the municipal elections scheduled for next year in Antwerp (including a mayoral contest) constitute a crucial test for him.
"The year 2006 is critical for him," says Bart Brinckman, the political editor of the De Standaard newspaper, who has followed Dewinter’s career for about 15 years. "Dewinter’s future and his political career are in jeopardy. After 20 years in politics, Dewinter must show he is advancing."
Cas Mude, a political science professor at the University of Antwerp and a researcher of far-right movements, believes this is the reason for Dewinter’s intensive courting of the city’s Jewish community and the State of Israel. In order to fulfill his aspiration of gaining control of the city, Dewinter needs the Jewish economic elite that controls one of the leading commercial branches in the city: diamonds. According to Prof. Mude, Dewinter hopes that the State of Israel and the Jews will pave the way to the city’s business community and legitimize his image in local popular opinion.
"I’m interested in visiting Israel," Dewinter says in the interview. "First of all, from a geopolitical point of view. We in Western Europe should realize that our allies are not in the Arab or Muslim world, but rather in Israel. This is not just because we have a common civilization and values, but also to balance out the Islamic forces in the Middle East that are getting stronger. The State of Israel is a sort of outpost for our Western society, an outpost of democracy, of freedom of speech, of protecting common values within a hostile environment. You are surrounded by Islamic states, some of them fundamentalist, which are interested in only one thing: to throw the Jews into the sea.
"I also think that Islam is now the No. 1 enemy not only of Europe, but of the entire free world. After communism, the greatest threat to the West is radical fundamentalist Islam. There are already 25-30 million Muslims on Europe’s soil and this becomes a threat. It’s a real Trojan horse. Thus, I think that an alliance is needed between Western Europe and the State of Israel. I think we in Western Europe are too critical of Israel and we should support Israel in its struggle to survive. I think we should support Israel more than we do because its struggle is also very important for us."
But Dewinter admits that he wants to visit Israel for other reasons. "It’s very important to me as leader of a right-wing national party [he rejects defining the party as "far right" - A.S.] to say that we respect the State of Israel and the Jews. To all of those who regard us as neo-Nazis, we say: `No, we want good relations with the Jews.’ We should distance ourselves from all of those individuals and groups with anti-Semitic tendencies and from Holocaust deniers. I have no connection with these things. Because I am a leader of a right-wing party, some of the Jewish leaders in Antwerp do not believe that I am sincere. They think that this is a pose, that I am doing this to avoid being regarded as a neo-Nazi and that I am afraid they will call me a fascist. I’m interested in visiting Israel to express my affinity, but also to prove that I’m sincere."
Chilly response
Dewinter hopes to visit Israel during the coming year, but clarifies: "I’ll come only if I know I am wanted. Only if there is a consensus about the visit in Israel and in Belgium." He has yet to take any explicit initiative and has not approached any officials about this, but it seems that he would receive quite a chilly response. The Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem has made it clear that Israel would not be the one to violate the cordon sanitaire and that Israel’s policy is largely derived from the official Belgian policy. Thus, for example, Israel’s embassy in Brussels is not in contact with Dewinter’s party, despite its size, and does not provide it with information as it does in the case of other parties in the parliament. According to Jerusalem, its policy represents an ethical stand because Vlaams Belang is a xenophobic party that opposes immigrants and expresses racism. In addition, the party advocates the dismantling of Belgium and the establishment instead of an independent state in the Flemish part. Thus, an Israeli connection would be seen as intervening in the internal affairs of Belgium.
The possibility of Dewinter visiting Israel has also stirred an uproar in the Jewish community in Belgium. Vivian Teitelbaum is a Jewish member of the parliament in Brussels. (In Belgium, in addition to the federal national parliament, there are also parliaments in the Flemish region, the francophone region and the region of Brussels, the capital city.) Teitelbaum says she would feel ashamed if Dewinter visited Israel and adds, "I don’t know how I would cope with this." Claude Marinower, the only Jewish member of the federal parliament, is even more vociferous and says he would come to Israel and hold a press conference at every stop on Dewinter’s itinerary to warn against him. Both MPs believe that the answer to the central question of whether Dewinter can be trusted is "No."
Members of the Flemish nationalist movement established Vlaams Blok in the late 1970s. Many members of this movement had openly collaborated with the Nazi regime during World War II. "My view of the party has not changed," says Marinower during an interview at his Antwerp office. "The founders of the party were collaborators, anti-Semites and racists." And not much has changed since then, he adds.
Prof. Mude thinks the party is not officially anti-Semitic because there are no anti-Semitic references in its official literature, which he says he studies carefully. However, he notes, there is indeed anti-Semitism among its grass-roots activists. "Dewinter has no problem associating with anti-Semites," he explains. "And you can almost always find someone anti-Semitic around him. The reason is that he is not philo-Semitic; he’s philo-Flemish. His goal is to take over Antwerp and act on behalf of the Flemish. The question of whether this is good for the Jews does not interest him."
Brinckman, however, is certain that Dewinter himself "harbors anti-Semitic feelings. He always associates with anti-Semitic circles and it is impossible that he changed his mind. He now needs to maneuver between his voters, many of whom are very extremist, and the public arena, which demands that he demonstrate moderation."