More than 200 residents of Antwerp gathered at the Vlinderpaleis on Wednesday afternoon to demand greater involvement in city governance.
The group marched from the courthouse to Steenplein, voicing frustration over what they described as “particularly aggressive and repressive actions” by law enforcement during recent protests in and around Antwerp.
The organisers, united under the name Collectief Ongehoord, criticised city officials for making decisions without adequately considering the views of locals. The collective is an alliance of progressive groups, including Doe Deurne Dicht (opposing the airport in Deurne), Grootouders voor het Klimaat, and about ten other organisations.
Speaking at the event, Kris Peeters, a mobility expert, accused even progressive politicians of ignoring concerns raised by residents. “We might feel unheard, but today we are not unseen. Democracy in Antwerp is being dismantled, and soon it will be happening across Flanders and Belgium.”
Participants pointed to recent incidents as their key motivation for action. During a protest over tree cutting and the construction of a traffic loop at Boekenberglei, clashes erupted between police and local residents, leaving two injured.
The tipping point for the protesters was the use of water cannon and pepper spray during demonstrations against the Gaza war near Antwerp’s city hall. Mayor Els van Doesburg later defended the police’s actions and maintained the decision to relocate protests to Steenplein, further from the city centre.
Peeters accused city officials of deliberately suppressing voices advocating for the public good. He cited the rejection of thousands of objections to the expansion of Deurne airport as an example. “The city simply throws our objections in the bin,” he said, adding that funding cuts to civil society organisations were being used to silence dissent. “Subsidies have become nothing more than hush money.”
