Events announced for Saturday evening in Brussels parks failed to materialise, according to capital police and the organisers of one of the events, the Boum 3.
Police officers seized the sound system of the Abîme collective, in charge of organising the Boum 3 event, on Saturday at around 4 p.m., according to the collective’s spokesperson.
Ilse Van de Keere, spokeswoman of the Brussels-Ixelles police confirmed the seizure and indicated that no party had been observed in the park by the end of the evening.
The spokeswoman of the Brussels-Midi police also indicated that there had been no events in the parks within their zone, which comprises Forest, Saint-Gilles and Anderlecht.
The recording of a radio programme with DJs, which had been planned for Saturday at the Vibration, also did not take place. Deprived of this musical programming, which was to have enabled the Boum 3 to take place in various locations, the Abîme collective still turned on the sound system in the Bois de la Cambre at 4 p.m., the time announced for the start of the event.
A few minutes later, police arrived, asked the group to turn the music off, and seized the equipment.
Earlier in the day, protesters had gathered at the Bois de la Cambre for a march on the European institutions. Dubbed the “European Demonstration for Freedom & Democracy,” the march was held to denounce health-related restrictions described by the organisers as “liberticide,” and the vaccine policy in Europe.
Police used teargas when the group arrived at the Schuman roundabout in order to contain the roughly 1,000 demonstrators in the Rue de la Loi and the Avenue de la Joyeuse Entrée, after some tried to continue marching beyond the police barricades. One person hit by teargas was treated on site by first-aid workers, as was an inebriated protester. There were no arrests.
After the march, some of the demonstrators went back to the Bois de la Cambre, then dispersed. There was no incident.
The Brussels Times
