Flanders Festival Ghent confirms cancellation, backlash continues
The Flanders Festival Ghent board has confirmed the cancellation of a planned concert by the Munich Philharmonic, which was to be conducted by Israeli conductor Lahav Shani. The decision, finalised on Monday night following a late meeting, has intensified rather than ended the controversy.
Christoph D’Haese (N-VA), the mayor of Aalst and a board member, announced his resignation after his colleagues refused to reverse the decision to cancel. He argued that this would cause “serious reputational damage to the country”, describing the demand for every artist to publicly distance themselves from their government's policies as “sheer madness”.
“Russians or Chinese are not expected to do this. In Ghent, it seems not enough for someone to avoid holding the wrong opinion. They must also hold and express the right one,” he said. D’Haese accused the festival of discrimination on the basis of origin and said that he would not be part of a board that was unwilling to issue a collective apology.
Formal letter to sponsors
Jewish organisations, including the Jewish Documentation and Information Centre (JID), the Coordinating Committee of Jewish Organisations in Belgium (CCOJB), the Forum of Jewish Organisations (FJO), and the European Jewish Association (EJA), have written to sponsors in a formal letter. In it, they warned of 'serious reputational, liability and moral risks' associated with supporting what they described as a discriminatory decision. They urged sponsors to sever ties with the festival and publicly distance themselves from antisemitism.
The festival receives support from a wide range of sponsors and partners. Institutional backers include the Flemish government, the City of Ghent, the National Lottery, North Sea Port, and VRT's cultural broadcaster, Klara. Media partners include De Standaard and the regional channel AVS, while commercial sponsors include the Belgian financial group KBC and the Swedish electric car manufacturer Polestar.
Shift focus
Flemish Culture minister Caroline Gennez ( Vooruit) said that she hopes the debate can now focus on the budget. The initial decision to cancel the concert, announced last week, was criticised by the N-VA. In a gesture of goodwill, prime minister Bart De Wever (N-VA) attended one of the conductor’s concerts in Germany last weekend.
“For me, the incident is now closed,” said Gennez. “And I would call on other parties to do the same.” She stressed that she had remained calm throughout the controversy, but added, "We must never trivialise racism." Gennez concluded: "Let us now focus on the enormous challenge we must address in the September Declaration."
#FlandersNewsService | © BELGA PHOTO NICOLAS MAETERLINCK
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