The far-left opposition party PVDA reiterates that it does not intend to take a petition regarding “grab pensions” offline. PVDA chairman Raoul Hedebouw said this in a response to a letter he received from Herman De Croo’s lawyer. “Launching a petition is a constitutional right,” it said.
The case revolves around a petition that the communist party launched about the pension bonuses that former House Speakers Siegfried Bracke and De Croo received. The aim is to fully repay their “thousands of euros of extra grab-and-go pension” – on top of the legally established maximum pension.
Walter Van Steenbrugge, Herman De Croo’s lawyer, sent a reminder to the PVDA to take the petition offline. In the meantime, a second notice of default was issued, after Hedebouw’s statements on Tuesday in ‘De Afspraak’.
“Incitement to hatred”
“With our petition we want to put pressure on the debate to expose this system and ensure that reimbursement actually takes place,” the PVDA chairman responds. “The purpose of the petition is completely legitimate. How that would be a criminal offense is beyond us.”
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Van Steenbrugge criticized, among other things, that the communists continue to portray De Croo as a “grabber”. “My client has already paid back more than he actually had to. Hedebouw incites people to hate my client.”
“Constitutional law”
“We do not use the word ‘grabbing’ to insult you, but to name a reality that we want to change. The word fits the facts perfectly and clearly reflects our opinion,” says Hedebouw.
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“Launching a petition is a constitutional right. Even if it feels insulting to you. Its content and existence undeniably fall under the right to freedom of expression. That is essential in a democratic society,” he said.
“Attempt to silence us”
The PVDA chairman also calls on De Croo not to take legal action. “I am of the opinion that this entire discussion does not belong in court and I therefore invite you not to take the debate to court. Political battles should be waged in parliament and in the public forum, not in court.”
“We are deeply disturbed by this whole turn of events. It is unacceptable that politicians in Belgium are prohibited from using the words ‘grabbing’ and ‘grabbing’. It seems that all this is an attempt to silence the PVDA,” Hedebouw concludes.
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