Belgian PM De Wever attends performance by Israeli conductor Lahav Shani in Germany
Belgian prime minister Bart De Wever attended a performance by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra on Saturday in Essen, conducted by Israeli maestro Lahav Shani. Following the orchestra's removal from the Flanders Festival Ghent programme days earlier, the visit has sparked mixed reactions.
The Munich Philharmonic was scheduled to perform in Ghent on 18 September as part of the festival, but the organisers cancelled the concert. They cited "insufficient clarity about the conductor's position towards the genocidal regime" as the reason for the cancellation, in reference to the Israeli government.
De Wever had already condemned this decision and chose to travel to Essen to show his support. He posted a photograph of the concert on Instagram, writing: “There will never be room for racism or antisemitism in this country, under any circumstances.”
“That is where I draw the line," he added. I strongly condemn the recent cancellation of the Munich Philharmonic by the Flanders Festival Ghent, solely on the basis of the origin of conductor Lahav Shani. I insisted on delivering this message to him personally, and to express my appreciation for his contribution to the power of music.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz publicly thanked De Wever via X on Sunday: “I thank the Belgian prime minister for the strong sign of solidarity he has given with his visit to the Munich Philharmonic in Essen. Dear Bart De Wever, we cannot allow this flagrant antisemitism to take root.”
The incident has divided Flanders’ government. While minister president Matthias Diependaele of N-VA has distanced himself from De Wever’s move, Flemish Culture minister Caroline Gennez of Vooruit has expressed support.
Vooruit party leader Conner Rousseau told Belgian media: “Can the prime minister stop fuelling this himself? The focus must now be on the national budget and how to get it back on track fairly and socially. That is what people expect of him.”
He added that De Wever should dismiss the N-VA representatives on the festival's board of directors who co-approved and co-decided the cancellation.
Meanwhile, Christoph D’Haese, N-VA MP and mayor of Aalst, threatened to resign from the festival’s board unless it reversed the decision to cancel Shani's concert, which he called “wrong”.
The far-right Vlaams Belang party has called for an emergency meeting of the Flemish Parliament’s Culture Committee, accusing the festival of "the purest form of government censorship on the basis of origin".
#FlandersNewsService | © SVEN HOPPE / DPA
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