Belgium high court finds popular Flemish party racist News
Belgium high court finds popular Flemish party racist

[JURIST] Belgium's highest court – Hof van Cassatie in Dutch/Flemish, Cour de cassation in French (official website here) – ruled Tuesday that the Flemish far-right Vlaams Blok party is racist. The ruling, which is final and cannot be appealed, in effect shuts down the party as the Blok will lose access to state funding and access to television. Read a court press release on the ruling here (in French). The Blok had been appealing a lower court ruling which found the party was guilty of violations of anti-racism legislation. Vlaams Blok, which advocates anti-immigration laws, is the most popular party in the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders. Blok will likely launch a new party with the new name, Vlaams Belang, or Flemish Interest. Read the Vlaams Blok press release here (Dutch/Flemish). BBC News has more.