Former leader of the Flemish socialist Vooruit party Conner Rousseau will have to appear in court for racist statements he made about the Roma community after all. The trial will take place on Monday 10 June, the day after the elections.
The Public Prosecutor's Office previously decided that it was not necessary to take Rousseau to court. A mediation procedure was initiated, and Rousseau was required to talk with the Roma community, visit the Kazerne Dossin in Mechelen and attend sessions with a therapist on the impact of words and language use.
Now, however, Brussels-based non-profit organisation Kham has now subpoenaed him directly.
While Kham was part of Rousseau's mediation process, it recently withdrew because it was denied access to the criminal file. "My client's position is very clear," the organisation's lawyer Abderrahim Lahlali, told VRT. "Right from the beginning, the non-profit organisation said that it can only participate in the reconciliation process if it has knowledge of the correct context and the incidents that took place."
Initially, the Public Prosecutor's Office gave the non-profit partial permission to access the criminal file, but withdrew that permission later. "To be clear, this is not Rousseau's fault, but that does not alter the fact that the non-profit organisation feels that the community's suffering has not been recognised," said Lahlali. "This is incomprehensible to my client."
'Pertinent lie'
Lahlali said Kham therefore never met with Rousseau, which would mean that he did not complete the mediation process. In that case, it is up to the Public Prosecutor to decide whether to dismiss the case or still take it to court.
As no decision was forthcoming, the non-profit association has now summoned Rousseau to court, where he must appear on 10 June, a day after the elections. He risks one year in prison.
Rousseau reacted to the news with surprise, saying that he did meet with Kham. He also provided VRT with a document to show that he and Kham's representative, Biser Akelov, did indeed meet.
"It is a pertinent lie that this did not happen. I also continued to invite the non-profit organisation, even when it cancelled the meeting," he said. "Everyone has the right to continue taking legal action and to be angry, so I respect that. But for me, it is unclear what the intention is."
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Additionally, Rousseau underlined that he completed the mediation process. "I apologised. I resigned as party leader and from parliament. I still blame myself every day for what happened. And in the meantime, I did everything I had to do. The Public Prosecutor's Office has drawn up a positive final report that proves I have fulfilled all agreements."
He added that he is still in talks with the Roma community in his home town of Sint-Niklaas at his own initiative. "They accepted my apologies. That is all going very well."
Rousseau also drew attention to the timing of the summons: three weeks before the elections. While the fact that he is expected in court on the day after the elections is coincidental, the timing of the summons is not, he said.
Rousseau is currently not an MP, but should he be elected on 9 June, he would again have parliamentary immunity and could then no longer be directly subpoenaed. "My client is of course aware of that," said Lahlali. "I did not make the choice for them, but that choice is perfectly defensible."
