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september 23, 2015 \ newsweekly - € 0,75 \ read more at www.flanderstoday.eu current affairs \ p2

politics \ p4

Bye-Bye BadBoot

A pride and joy of Antwerp, the floating swimming pool on the Scheldt known as the Badboot, sank last week \2

business \ p6

innovation \ p7

education \ p9

Future’s so Bright

Several institutions in Ghent are teaming up to prepare non Dutch-speaking newcomers for higher education

Critters in need

art & living \ p10

Michelin on a Budget

The best chefs in Flanders are gathering next week behind Bruges’ train station to serve up their finest at brasserie prices \9

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flanders’ rescue centres offer injured animals care and a temporary home diana goodwin more articles by Diana \ flanderstoday.eu

Every year, a network of centres, volunteers and caring citizens collaborate to rescue tens of thousands of animals across Flanders – from birds of prey to hedgehogs to lions – with everything from an ambulance service to an intensive care unit.

magine hiking in the woods and finding a baby bird that’s fallen out of its nest. Or your cat bringing a baby bunny it has captured to your back door. Or seeing an injured fox on the side of the road. You want to help, but what can you do? For thousands of people each year, these aren’t just hypothetical situations. And thanks to a network of wild animal rescue centres across Flanders, there is help for these sick and injured animals. Some 30,000 animals a year are rescued by caring citizens and brought to a specialised centre for medical care and rehabilitation. There are 10 such wildlife rescue centres in Flanders, and all but one of them are part of a network overseen by the non-

profit organisation Vogelbescherming Vlaanderen (Flanders Bird Protection). The agency was founded to protect birds from illegal capture and hunting but has since grown to become Flanders’ premier organisation working to protect native birds and other animals as well as their habitat. “Vogelbescherming Vlaanderen is an umbrella organisation for nine wild animal rescue centres across Flanders,” explains Jimmy Pijcke, a co-ordinator for the agency. “They all operate independently, so we provide co-ordination and support. Four times a year, we host a meeting of all the centres where they can come together and exchange information, and we also provide training. How to apply for government subsidies, for instance.” The rescue centres range in size from a small shelter run out of a private home, to a large, professional organisation that takes in thousands of animals each year. Most employ a few paid staff members, including veterinarians and animal care specialists, but they rely heavily on volunteers to care

for the animals. The vast majority of wild animals they receive are birds; of all the animals they receive, about 60% are able to return to the wild. Pijcke emphasises that the goal is always to return the animal to its natural environment whenever possible. A common way of reintroducing the creature to the wild is through what he calls a “soft release”. When the animal is ready, the cage is left open so that it can venture outside. “But if it can’t find enough food at first, it can come back and get some food at the centre. Eventually, it doesn’t come back anymore.” Forthemostpart,individualswhofindinjuredanimalsbring them to one of the rescue centres themselves. However, in some areas the nearest centre is pretty far away. In Flemish Brabant, for instance, there is no rescue centre within easy reach of most residents. That’s why, particularly in that province, Vogelbescherming Vlaanderen created the Wildlife Taxi Service – a network continued on page 5

\ CUrrent AFFAIrs

Antwerp’s floating pool sinks to bottom of Scheldt an investigation is underway into cause of malfunction of city’s badboot alan Hope Follow Alan on twitter \ @AlanHopeFt

he Badboot, an open-air swimming pool floating in the river Scheldt in Antwerp, sank last Friday, despite attempts by the fire brigade to save it. The Badboot, which opened in the summer of 2012, consisted of a floating swimming pool and separate children’s pool for 120 swimmers. The Badboot was attached to a ship with a sundeck, bar and restaurant at the Kattendijk dock near the city’s MAS museum. It was built by HSS shipyards in the Netherlands. According to reports, the Badboot started taking on water and was quickly evacuated. The pool section broke away from the rest of the vessel as a result of the weight of the water

streaming in, broke in two pieces and sank within half an hour. The remaining part of the ship was secured by the fire brigade. The Badboot had become a popular attraction for the people of Antwerp and for visitors – not only in summer but also in winter, when it was turned into a floating ice rink. It was also a popular venue for organised events. On Friday evening it was due to host a boxing gala. Whether the pool will be brought to the surface is not yet known, nor is the cause of the sinking. An investigation is underway. © Jonas roosens/belGA

Aquino trial in Hasselt halted as judges accused of conflict of interest

NMBS releases details of S-train express network

The trial of members of the Aquino crime family in Hasselt has been stopped, after defence lawyers accused the three judges of conflict of interest. The motion to recuse the presiding judge, Valerie Fontaine, and her two colleagues was filed by Nathalie Buisseret, the lawyer for Silvia Liskova. Liskova is the widow of Silvio Aquino, the trial’s main defendant who was shot dead days before the trial resumed. The motion claims that Liskova, who is also on trial, “can no longer have any guarantee of an unprejudiced and impartial judge,” according to a statement issued by Buisseret. The defence has been trying, without success, to have the case postponed since it resumed on 7 September, citing the death of Aquino. The motion also referred to the prosecution’s 1,350 pages of new evidence

National rail authority NMBS has revealed its plans for the regional express network (GEN) in and around Brussels. The plans include the opening of the SchumanJosaphat tunnel after eight years of works. That tunnel will provide a new and faster link to other lines, including a connection to Brussels Airport, Vilvoorde, Mechelen and points further east. The plan for the new “S-trains” (logo pictured), which comes into effect on 13 December, also includes two new stops, at Mouterij in Elsene and at Tour & Taxis in Laken. The Mouterij stop has been in place for several years, but has so far not seen any passengers. The Tour & Taxis stop is adja-

that was presented on 7 September, with the judge refusing to give the defence time to consider it. “The pressure exercised by the prosecutor’s office is unworthy of the rule of law and makes certain that the court can no longer judge in an independent and impartial manner,” the statement says. Assuming that judge Fontaine and her colleagues do not recuse themselves voluntarily, the defence motion will be considered by the Court of Appeal in Antwerp, a procedure expected to take at least five weeks. In the unlikely case that the motion should succeed, the three judges would be replaced, and the trial would begin again from the beginning. \ AH

Flanders carries out massive bike census for Week of Mobility

Last week saw the start of the Week of Mobility in Flanders, with the first-ever census of the region’s bicycles. Some 150 municipalities have signed up to count the number of bicycles on their territory by setting up automatic counters at strategic locations. Cyclists can also download an app that shares cycling information automatically. “The more people who share information on their cycling behaviour, the more insight we will gain into numbers, routes

400,000

visitors to Flanders’ Open Monument Day this month, when some 800 architectural heritage sites were open to the public

to avoid or routes to recommend, speeds, origins and destinations,” said Wout Baert of cycling organisation Fietsberaad Vlaanderen. “With all that information, we can improve cycling policy.” Flemish mobility minister Ben Weyts was an the opening of the counter in Zaventem. “We want to encourage the people of Flanders to travel at least part of their journey from home to work by bike,” he said. “Aside from anything else, it’s often faster going via

the cycle highways than the motorways.” The fietsostrades, or cycle highways, are high-speed cycle paths that criss-cross the region, running along canals or disused railway lines, for example, to avoid traffic and pedestrians. Meanwhile, a record number of 33 municipalities signed up to take part in Car-Free Sunday on 20 September. As well as Brussels, Antwerp and Ghent, the day extended to Diksmuide and Ichtegem in West Flan-

cent to Pannenhuis metro and hasn’t been used for 30 years. Because of the development of the Tour & Taxis site, including the arrival of Flemish government administration, the site is being reopened. The new routes include express links to and from Brussels to other cities, including Louvain-La-Neuve, Mechelen, Leuven, Aalst and Dendermonde. They will correspond with MIVB transport where possible, said NMBS, but integration of tickets is not yet on the agenda. Travellers transferring from the Brussels metro to the S-train, for example, will have to pay for two tickets. But fare for the network can be loaded on the region’s Mobib card. \ AH

ders, Hamme in East Flanders, Lier in Antwerp province, Eppegem in Flemish Brabant and Hasselt in Limburg. Other towns have plans to banish the car later: on 26 September in Kontich, for instance, and on 27 September in SintTruiden and Izegem. In most cases, the traffic-free streets will be given over to other activities, including go-cart races, bicycle repair sessions, markets and entertainment. \ AH

860,000

00 0 , 0 9 n € o i ill .71 m tickets bought by SMS for travel on Flemish public transport authority De Lijn’s buses and trams in the first eight months of the year, 14% more than the same period last year

from the federal interior ministry to extend the security camera network in Ostend’s port to help tackle human trafficking and illegal immigration

gender gap in the average wages paid to men and women in Belgium. The average man earns €3,356 a month before deductions, while the average woman earns 7% less

people under the age of 25 bought a Go Unlimited rail ticket from the NMBS this summer, allowing them to make unlimited train journeys to attend, for example, the many music festivals

september 23, 2015

WeeK in BrieF Unions representing staff at the Flemish public broadcaster VRT held a protest last week against a savings plan that would see nearly 300 jobs cut over the next five years. Unions shut down normal programming on all VRT television and radio channels for four hours and picketed at the entrance to the headquarters in Brussels. According to socialist union ACOD, some sections of VRT staff are prepared to strike if the plan is not amended. Father Damien, the priest who carried out missionary work in leper colonies in the Pacific in the 19th century, is to be awarded the title of honorary citizen of his birth town, Tremelo, Flemish Brabant. The ceremony will be followed by a procession to lay the first stone of a planned Damien museum. Father Damien was canonised as a saint by Pope Benedict six years ago. No fewer than 1,800 people have come forward to volunteer for a project to take in refugee families or unaccompanied minors, the Flemish agency for youth welfare said. The candidates will be examined to determine their motivation and abilities, just as they would be in any fostering situation, a spokesperson for the agency said. “This is a warm response to a concrete need,” he said. Approximately three out of four people in Flanders would be willing to pay more for produce if it provided farmers with a fair price, according to a survey carried out for Bayer CropScience. Eight out of 10 thought that protesting farmers have a valid case, while a majority said the job of farmer was of more importance to society than police, journalists and politicians. The Flexity 2 tram, otherwise known as the Albatross, has

Face oF Flanders been awarded a Henry Van de Velde label by Design Vlaanderen. The tram, constructed for De Lijn by Bombardier in Bruges, was one of over 200 designs considered by the jury. In service in Ghent since May and in Antwerp since the beginning of September, a total of 88 of the trams have been ordered. The former head of the federal judicial police in Brussels, Glenn Audenaert, has been accused of taking bribes and of money laundering. The case is being handled by the Dendermonde office of the East Flanders prosecutor. The investigation dates back to 2010, when tax inspectors investigating a fruit and vegetable wholesaler found a letter implicating Audenaert in using confidential police intelligence to help business contacts. In 2012, he was accused of breach of confidentiality and forgery. The new employment status that abolishes the difference between “workers” – manual labourers – and “employees” – people in administrative posts – discriminates against construction workers, the Constitutional Court has ruled. The law introduced in 2014 harmonised employment requirements such as notice required for dismissal, holiday entitlement and salary conditions, but an exception was made for construction workers by allowing a shorter notice period. The court gave the government until the end of 2017 to scrap the exception. The fishing boat Morgenster sank last January due to weather conditions and not by being rammed, as previously reported, an investigation has concluded. The 28-metre trawler disappeared on a crossing from Boulogne in France to Hastings in England, with the loss of the Belgian captain, two Dutch fishermen and one Portuguese. The wreck was discovered six days later.

The federal government is ready to approve a tax on all soft drinks containing sugar, according to government sources cited by Het Laatste Nieuws. The decision is a victory for federal health minister Maggie De Block. How much the tax will add to the cost of a can of cola is not yet decided, but the government aims to raise €50 million a year. Two workers were killed in the port of Antwerp last week when the basket of the crane they were working on fell in a dry dock. The cause of the fault is being investigated by the prosecutor’s office. The men, both of Bulgarian origin, were working for a subcontractor of ship repair company Antwerp Dry Docks. Taxi service Uber will co-operate with tax authorities and check the VAT numbers of its drivers to ensure they are in order, the head of Uber Belgium, Filip Nuytemans, said last week as a protest by official taxi drivers against the continued activities of Uber caused traffic chaos once again in Brussels. Drivers whose VAT numbers were not in order would be “deactivated”, Nuytemans promised. The Flemish agency for roads and traffic said it was building up stocks of 105,000 tonnes of road salt to be ready by the end of the month for the winter season, which starts officially on 19 October. Last year the agency had the same amount in stock, but only 41,000 tonnes was needed. The winter season runs until 25 April 2016. The Brussels-Capital Region has released €2 million in subsidies for 387 projects to prevent truancy in schools. Most of the projects in Dutch-speaking schools involve personal coaching for pupils who play truant.

oFFside gold in them thar hills Not far from the Flanders Today office, in the Wolsemveld area of Dilbeek, the remains of a firstor second-century Roman villa complex were recently uncovered. Six stone buildings and several other wooden buildings on 5.5 hectares, to be exact. The site was what is known as a villa rustica, a wealthy farm complex surrounded by a moat two metres broad. We know it was luxurious not only from the size, but also from the gold, silver and bronze coins found there, as well as a decorative mask of the type worn by actors. The farm supplied foodstuffs to

nearby towns, including what we now know as Asse, seven kilometres to the north. Other sorts of industry were also carried out on the site, including glass- and metalwork, with substantial

pascale naessens Think of a Flemish cookbook, and your mind probably wanders to TV chefs Pete Huysentruyt, Jeroen Meus or newcomer Sofie Dumont. But the best-selling Flemish cookbook author, it was revealed last week, is Pascale Naessens, who is leaving the giants in her dust. And she’s doing it without a TV show. Naessens, 46, was born in Eeklo, East Flanders. By the age of 18, she was travelling the world as a photo model, which eventually gave way to TV announcer on VTM when the station was brand new. Paul Jambers was a celebrated investigative reporter who also had his own show on VTM. He was 24 years her senior, but the pair married and created a travel show together. In her post-model days, Naessens struggled with eating disorders, which led her to the philosophy of healthy eating. She travelled to China and studied Tai Chi and shiatsu massage, as well as macrobiotic cookery and how to run a restaurant. She has now published six cook-

books with titles like Mijn pure keuken (My Pure Kitchen) and Pure genieten (Pure Enjoyment), selling hundreds of thousands of copies. Judging from her inspiration, they might sound like a hot-pot of hipster ideas, but in fact are anything but. The public is attracted to her simple recipes, created for people who cook at home. Many celebrity cookbooks are restaurant recipes scaled down, with lobster, foie gras or white truffle often sounding too complicated for the causal cook. With Naessens, you get dishes that look stunning but with ingredients that are easily accessible, such as baked apples with mozzarella, cod with mustard sauce and tomatoes and chocolate mousse with a speculoos crust. This week Naessens is not only the best-selling cookbook author, she’s Flanders’ number one best-selling author period. But she also has other strings to her bow, such as a new line of table service and designer furniture. Nothing, for the time being, seems impossible. \ Alan Hope

flanders today, a weekly english-language newspaper, is an initiative of the flemish region and is financially supported by the flemish authorities.

remains of both materials found. The site was carefully examined by the independent study bureau for archaeology and cultural history BAAC, which has saved the most valuable pieces. But the rest of the site was reburied. The land is destined for social housing – 280 new homes for sale and rent – the construction of which was brought to a halt when the relics were discovered. “When the building work will continue is not yet clear,” said Dilbeek mayor Willy Segers. “But I'll be happy to give the new neighbourhood a name that alludes to the Roman villa complex.” \ AH

The logo and the name Flanders Today belong to the Flemish Region (Benelux Beeldmerk nr 815.088). The editorial team of Flanders Today has full editorial autonomy regarding the content of the newspaper and is responsible for all content, as stipulated in the agreement between Corelio Publishing and the Flemish authorities.

editor Lisa Bradshaw deputy editor Sally Tipper contributing editor Alan Hope sub editor Linda A Thompson agenda Robyn Boyle, Georgio Valentino art director Paul Van Dooren prepress Mediahuis AdPro contributors Rebecca Benoot, Bartosz Brzezi´nski, Derek Blyth, Leo Cendrowicz, Katy Desmond, Andy Furniere, Diana Goodwin, Julie Kavanagh, Catherine Kosters, Toon Lambrechts, Katrien Lindemans, Ian Mundell, Anja Otte, Tom Peeters, Daniel Shamaun, Senne Starckx, Christophe Verbiest, Débora Votquenne, Denzil Walton general manager Hans De Loore publisHer Mediahuis NV

editorial address Gossetlaan 30 - 1702 Groot-Bijgaarden tel 02 467 23 06 editorial@flanderstoday.eu subscriptions tel 03 560 17 49 subscriptions@flanderstoday.eu or order online at www.flanderstoday.eu advertising 02 467 24 37 advertising@flanderstoday.eu verantwoordelijke uitgever Hans De Loore

\ pOlItICs

5th coluMn Old mores

The refugee crisis has seen Belgium politics reverting to old mores. This is particularly the case with Maximilianpark in Brussels where newly arrived refugees waiting to be registered are staying in tents. The campsite, which is run by organisations such as the Red Cross, has become the object of a bitter political controversy. Brussels’ socialist mayor Yvan Mayeur blames N-VA – more specifically the secretary of state for migration and asylum, Theo Francken – for the very existence of the site. The daily limit of 250 registrations is the reason it popped up in the first place. Mayeur claims that this limit is not there for practical purposes but for ideological ones: to discourage more refugees opting for Belgium as their final destination. This explains Francken’s irritation when he opened up the shelter in a nearby office block as an alternative and only a handful of refugees decided to use it. “Criticism stops here,” he tweeted shortly after the opening, calling the park campsite “too comfy”. One week later, the shelter is being used by hundreds of refugees. But the tent camp is also still in use, prompting Francken to yet another online remark. “I have the impression that Maximilianpark is being run by people who abuse the situation to be able to rail against the government and especially against me as a person. But that may be just an impression,” he wrote on Facebook. His party president Bart De Wever, also mayor of Antwerp, put it more bluntly. He called the camp “an extreme-left activist post”. Now that there is an indoor shelter, Mayeur should remove it, he says, but he fails to do so. “Mayeur is totally unqualified,” is De Wever’s conclusion. N-VA and PS are of course each other’s favourite opponent, situated at opposite ends of the political spectrum and in different constituencies, with different electorates and different sensitivities. The more they accuse the other of “abusing the refugees,” the more they both win. Flanders, meanwhile, is getting to grips with the full impact of the influx of refugees, which has now reached a peak of 1,800 a week. Municipalities like Leopoldsburg, Weelde and Koksijde have been assigned shelters for hundreds of refugees in former military bases. More will be needed, but most mayors are reluctant to make room for new centres. Convincing them is just one more job to do for Theo Francken. \ Anja Otte

No lifting of slaughter ban

muslim organisations lose case against animal welfare minister alan Hope more articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

group of Muslim organisations that took Flemish animal welfare minister Ben Weyts to court to try to overturn his ban on ritual slaughter lost their case in a Brussels court last week. The organisations were seeking a temporary lift of the ban on slaughtering animals without stunning them. The ruling is the final blow to the Islamic Eid al-Adha, or Feast of the Sacrifice, which falls on 24 September. Traditionally, each family buys a sheep and has it slaughtered according to the ritual that the animal is conscious a the time of slaughter. According to the organisations, that means no stunning, which uses an electrical charge to render the animal unconscious before slaughter. In previous years, because of the spike in demand during Eid, slaughtering has been carried out at temporary facilities. However,

Weyts has declared that the killing of an animal without first stunning it is illegal unless carried out in officially licensed slaughterhouses. The feast of Eid sees thousands of animals, mainly sheep, being slaughtered, far beyond the capacity of licensed slaughterhouses. The Council of Theologians, a panel of experts

on Islam, ruled earlier this month that the obligation to sacrifice this year is lifted, in the hope of arriving at a solution to the problem in time for next year’s Eid. The court action was a last-minute bid to have the ban lifted to allow Eid to go ahead as usual. The court ruled only on the motion to grant an emergency lifting of the ban, but did not go into whether the ban is legal or, as the group argued, a breach of religious freedom. “We respect the ruling of the court to uphold the ban on ritual slaughter outside of the licensed slaughterhouses,” Hasselt city councillor Habib El Ouakili told De Standaard. “Muslims will not carry out slaughter without stunning: We are also Flemings, with rights and duties, who are bound to abide by the democratic rule of law.”

WTC building booked, hundreds more places found for refugees

Mobility minister plans to test drones in traffic incidents Flanders’ minister for mobility, Ben Weyts, is to test of the use of drones in road traffic incidents, such as taking aerial photographs to help authorities clear the road quickly in the case of accidents. The plan was revealed in the answer to a written question from a member of the Flemish parliament. Socialist member Joris Vandenbroucke was enquiring about progress on the installation of a central accident director, as promised by Weyts’ predecessor, Hilde Crevits. An accident director would take control over major accident scenes such as the one in Wetteren in July when a lorry struck a bridge support and caused hours of traffic chaos. The director’s arrival is still a long way off, as a working group continues to consider the question, Weyts said, but drones are now being considered. According to Weyts, talks are taking place about the rules of engagement, with the federal police already willing to co-operate. A test project would involve the mobility department, the roads and traffic agency, the traffic police and the directorate-general of airspace. \ AH

Koen Geens “furious” at justice palace security teams Federal justice minister Koen Geens is said to be “furious” about an action taken by the security detail at the Justice Palace in Brussels last week, when the officers suddenly stopped work in protest at mounting overtime hours, abandoning a jury trial and forcing the session to be adjourned. “The security detail must work in close co-operation with the police,” he told VRT radio. “That seems to not work in Brussels, and only in Brussels. There they work very badly together, despite there being a special regulation.” He admitted that the courthouse had had “an exceptional year,” with few detainees one day and many the next. He has already given instructions to magistrates to better arrange the timetables to provide a more even stream. The other problem is that the security detail only know what they will be doing a few days in advance. Geens described last week’s action as “obviously not permissible”. \ AH

The accommodation in an office block in Brussels for refugees waiting to be processed by the government agency Fedasil is fully occupied, the Red Cross has reported. The recent bad weather saw many asylum-seekers move indoors, although the tent camp in the nearby Maximilianpark is still occupied. The sleeping quarters in the building known as WTC III, close to North Station, had originally been equipped for 500 people, but the capacity was then reduced to 300 to improve on comfort. At that stage, people still preferred to remain in the tent camp, with only 20 or so refugees using the WTC accommodation. The Red Cross supervises operations at both locations and reported that the lack of privacy offered in the huge room full of cots and the requirement to vacate the WTC building during the day were the main reasons the refugees preferred the tents in Maximilianpark. Prime minister Charles Michel stepped in to ask that the premises be made accessible to occupants during the day. As the rain began to fall, all beds in the building were fully booked, and more accommodation opened up elsewhere with a further 200 beds.

refugees arrive at the wtC III building in schaarbeek

Fedasil has announced a plan to place 700 processed refugees at two military bases on the Flemish coast: 400 at the air base in Koksijde and 300 at the army base in Lombardsijde, part of Middelkerke. The move was criticised by local authorities and unions representing military personnel, citing safety concerns. Both bases are operational, with training exercises taking place daily. Elsewhere, an emergency reception centre in Sint-Niklaas also reached its maximum capacity of 252 people. Another centre will be opened this week in Houthalen-Helchteren, Limburg, with 600 beds, the Red Cross said. \ AH

Flanders offers aid of €150,000 for Syrians Flemish minister-president Geert Bourgeois has announced his government’s approval of €150,000 funding for emergency aid to Syria, to be administered by the Catholic charity Caritas. The conflict in Syria has been going on for almost five years, and the humanitarian situation is becoming desperate, Bourgeois’ department for foreign policy said, with more than 12 million people in need of aid. The majority of aid organisations on the ground in Syria do not have

enough resources to cope. Caritas International works with people who are displaced in their own country, many of whom have fled from fighting around the city of Aleppo to end up in coastal areas. They need shelter, as well as drinking water, food, health care and education for the children. The aid from Flanders will help provide essentials for some 20,000 people, particularly in the towns of Tartous, Mashta al Helou and Al Waadi. \ AH

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september 23, 2015

Critters in need

flanders’ wildlife rescue centres nurse sick animals back to health

natuurHulpcentrum.be

continued from page 1

of volunteers who are available to drive injured animals to the closest centre in response to a telephone call. Some of the centres have developed certain specialities. The one in Ostend, for instance, specialises in the rescue and rehabilitation of sea birds and other waterfowl. The most famous animal rescue centre in Flanders is in Limburg province. The Natuurhulpcentrum in Opglabbeek has been featured on the programme Dieren in nesten (Animals in Need) on TV station Éen, and it regularly makes the local news with its more exotic patients. Currently, it’s the only wildlife rescue centre in Western Europe that’s equipped to take in large animals, like lions and tigers. Sil Janssen, a local boy with a love of birds, founded the Natuurhulpcentrum in 1976. Now the chair of the organisation and its most recognisable ambassador, he is still an energetic and enthusiastic advocate for wild animals. As is often the case, he didn’t start out planning to build the biggest animal rescue centre in Belgium. “When I was 16, I found an injured pigeon. It had a cut on its chest, so I took it to the local vet,” Janssen recalls. “He said he didn’t know anything about pigeons – he was a vet for horses and cows – but he’d take a look, and I’d have to pay him.” Instead, Janssen decided to take matters into his own hands. “I thought: ‘He doesn’t know anything, and I have to pay?’ I can better do it myself !” Janssen asked around. “I found an old man who kept pigeons, and he said he could sew it up. He was a mineworker with these big hands. And I said: ‘If he can do it, so can I.’ I took my mother’s needle and thread and sewed the cut up myself. And that’s how it started.” He built a few cages in his backyard, and people started bringing him other injured animals. Today, the centre covers 20,000 square metres and encompasses an intensive care unit, an operating room, an X-ray facility, an education centre, a garage with five rescue vehicles and specialised cages for different kinds of animals. A new building with cages and care facilities has just been completed, further extending the centre’s rescue capacity. Needless to say, an operation on this scale costs a bit of money. “Last year we received €16,000 from the government, but our annual operating budget is €1.2 million,” Janssen says. The difference is met through membership fees, donations, fundraisers and bequests. “What we don’t want is to have more animals than we can afford to care for. That’s the worst-case scenario.”

vogelbescHerming.be

natuurhulpcentrum staff free a buzzard caught in a barbed wire fence and transport a wild boar injured in traffic. natuurhulpcentrum Opglabbeek is the only wildlife rescue centre in western europe equipped to take in large exotic animals like lions and tigers

Wildlife rescue centres are closed to the public by law. But once a year, the Natuurhulpcentrum opens its doors to visitors curious to see its animal residents. This year, its open house took place on three consecutive Sundays in September.

wallaby, a boa constrictor and two northern timber wolves. Some of its exotic animals came to the centre after being confiscated by the government from people who were keeping them illegally as pets. The government of Flanders has

The worst-case scenario is having more animals than we can afford to care for These events are so popular that volunteers are enlisted to manage traffic flow and parking, and the line to get in can stretch down the street. Currently, the Natuurhulpcentrum counts among its residents five lions, a tiger, two lynxes, a crocodile, some Japanese macaques, a bearded dragon, a booted eagle, parrots, lemurs, a Bennett’s

issued a list of animals that may lawfully be kept as pets. Although wild animals like raccoons and wolves are not on the list, authorities still find and confiscate these creatures from private homes every year. Other animals come from zoos and circuses. One of the lions, the lemurs and the wallaby are among 20 animals that came from a

French zoo that was closed down by authorities. The Belgian owner was imprisoned on suspicion of cruelty and illegal trade in wild animals. The Natuurhulpcentrum is able to give a temporary home to these animals until a permanent home can be found in either a licensed sanctuary or a reputable zoo. Their resident tiger is the last of four big cats that were confiscated by the German government from a circus that failed to care properly for its animals. A second tiger was placed at the Woodside Wildlife Park in England, and two female lions were placed in the Born Free Foundation’s Big Cat Sanctuary in South Africa earlier this year. There are four other lions – young males confiscated from a Belgian circus – who are awaiting a permanent home. Of course, the majority of animals at the centre are less exotic and include owls, squirrels, pigeons, crows, wild geese, ducks and

deer. The wood pigeon is the most common rescued animal in all the centres, followed by the hedgehog and the common blackbird. Small animals are often injured by automobiles, predators or house pets and, in the case of birds, by flying into electrical cables or windows. Vogelbescherming Vlaanderen continues to help existing wildlife rescue centres with organisational support, fundraising, volunteer recruitment, training and advocacy. But since there are still places in Flanders where the closest centre is too small or remote to accept all animals in need, it also plans to expand the network in coming years. Meanwhile, if you happen to find a sick or injured animal, bring it to the centre closest to you. There will be someone to care for it, heal its wounds if possible and return it to the wild. And you may have helped saved a life.

\ bUsIness

WeeK in Business brewing AbInbev The Leuven-based beer group is investing €55 million to increase the output of its premium Stella beer to 12 million hectolitres a year. The new facility is expected to come on stream in the first half of 2017.

Cars Audi

The government of Flanders is co-operating with the country’s other regions on €27 million in aid for research and development to help Audi develop an electric vehicle on its Vorst site in Brussels.

Chemicals solvay

The Brussels-based chemicals and plastics group has inaugurated a €20 million sodium bicarbonate production unit in Thailand (pictured) to supply the health, food and consumer goods markets in southeast Asia.

Distribution nike The US-based sport equipment and garments group is investing a further €60 million in its European Logistics Centre in Ham, Limburg. The additional storage and handling capacity will be in operation by next June. The company is already in the process of building additional storage space on the site, which currently handles 180 million items a year.

Handling sea Invest

The Ghent-based stevedoring and handling group is investing €300 million in the Ivory Coast on projects that include a logistic centre and bulk terminal in the ports of Abidjan and San Pedro.

steel Arcelor mittal

The UK-based steel group is investing €140 million in its Ghent production unit to build a dedicated Fortiform cold-stamped steel production unit to supply the automotive industry with lighter and more resistant ranges of steel.

transport electric Valley

The French manufacturer distributor of electricitypowered bicycles, Segways and YikeBikes is opening a flagship store in Brussels later this year. A similar outlet is scheduled for Antwerp in the first half of 2016.

AB InBev to take over SABMiller leuven brewer announces plans to acquire its biggest competitor alan Hope more articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

euven-based AB InBev, the world’s largest brewing company, is planning a shares takeover of SABMiller, its largest competitor worldwide. SABMiller brews more than 150 beers, including Miller Genuine Draft, Grolsch and Foster’s. AccordingtoABInBev(pictured),ithasinformed SABMiller of its intentions, but SABMiller issued a press release claiming not to have received such notice. “SABMiller has no further details of the conditions of this proposal,” the statement read. The company said it would await more information before responding. The share prices of both companies went up on the news. The takeover would be the largest the beer world has ever seen. AB InBev, brewers of more than 200 beers, including Stella and Hoegaarden, has a market value of €173

billion; SABMiller is worth €80 billion. In 2008, InBev took over Anheuser Busch, brewers of Budweiser, for €38 billion. SAB – South African Breweries – was created

at the end of the 19th century, and moved to London in 1999, taking over Miller Brewing of Milwaukee three years later. Along with the aforementioned, it produces brands such as Pilsner Urquell, Peroni and Carling Black Label. The company has been rumoured for some time to be a target for a takeover. Last year it tried unsuccessfully to make a move on Heineken, parent company of Alken-Maes, in an attempt to fend off a possible hostile bid. If the AB InBev move goes through, it would become the untouchable leader in every market in the world. However, it is unlikely that the two companies would be allowed by competition authorities to join together unchanged; some brands will probably have to be sold off before permission is given for the takeover.

Pattyn Packing and Aluvision are Flanders’ Export Lions

The Other Market examines future of work in post-Ford Genk

Pattyn Packing Lines of Bruges has won this year’s Export Lion for companies with more than 50 employees. The prize for smaller companies was picked up by Aluvision of Deinze in East Flanders. The awards are given out annually by Flanders Investment and Trade for outstanding export performance. Pattyn manufactures packaging machines for bulk products, especially for the food industry. The company employs 66 people and had a turnover of just over €21 million in 2014, most of it from sales to abroad to customers in 68 countries. The jury praised the company’s investment in innovation, such as the bag-in-box system for food products. “As pioneering market leaders, Pattyn is constantly aware of the needs of the market,” the jury said. Aluvision is a family business with 40 employees, which develops and makes modular and ecological aluminium systems for stands for use in the events sector. The

Researchers, designers and architects from Hasselt University (UHasselt) and the Luca School of Arts will in the coming two years examine the future of work in Genk at De Andere Markt (The Other Market). Residents and policymakers will be involved in brainstorming at the open work and demonstration centre, which is branded as a “living lab”. The centre will examine what kind of work Genkenaars would like to do if they could choose, what their workplace would look like, where in Genk the workplace would be situated and with whom they would collaborate. The purpose of the living lab, say organisers, is to detail and discuss all possible scenarios for the future of work in

Ann Vancoillie, CeO of Aluvision

company turned over €7.8 million in 2014, 82% of which was made overseas. The jury attributed Aluvision’s success to “strong personalised design and far-reaching individual support for clients”. “Internationally, there are a great many Flemish entrepreneurs doing great things,” said FIT CEO Claire Tillekaerts. “Our 2015 Export Lions are perfect examples.” And she praised the other nominated companies, two in each category. “They are all winners who can serve as an example to enterprising Flanders,” she said. \ AH

Europe orders Belgium to change Major Law on port employment The European Commission has given Belgium one month to adapt its law relating to employment in the ports, nearly 18 months after its first ruling that the so-called Major Law is in breach of EU regulations. According to the newspaper Gazet van Antwerpen, EU transport commissioner Violeta Bulc has written to federal labour minister Kris Peeters ordering the government to amend the law. In particular, the “pool system” which means that only recognised dock workers may take up employment in the port areas in Zeebrugge, Ostend, Ghent and Antwerp. Any change would be opposed by dock unions, who have said

they are prepared to go to court to defend their position. Peeters, however, faces a deadline of 23 October or see Belgium brought before the European Court of Justice. Earlier this month, Fernand Huts, CEO of logistics company Katoen Natie, said he would be prepared to take on 500 refugees if the terms of the Major Law were lifted for logistics businesses working in the port. The choice, he said in an open letter to the government published in De Morgen, was simple: “Either defence of self-interest by the dock unions, or job creation, economic growth and work for recognised refugees.” \ AH

Genk. De Andere Markt also challenges local residents to invent new workplaces “tailored to a particular skill or focused on collaboration,” explained organisers. “Through interventions, games and creative activities, the project should help with the formulations of ideas and maybe even carry them out.” De Andere Markt was launched in the wake of the closure of Ford Genk, which saw the direct loss of 4,500 jobs and several thousand more indirectly in the region. The project is supported by the City of Genk and the European Union. About 3,500 families from Genk were invited to the opening of the centre. \ Andy Furniere

Volvo Gent celebrates anniversary with €200 million investment Volvo Cars in Ghent is investing €200 million to transform its assembly plant to the CMA (compact modular architecture) platform, which will allow it to build smaller, more compact models. The news coincides with the plant’s 50th birthday celebrations. The CMA transformation will be gradual, with completion expected by 2019, when production can fully turn towards the smaller models, which will follow the current 40 series. Last January, Volvo announced it would be constructing its new XC60 model in Sweden, news that came as a disappointment to Ghent. According to the plant’s managing director, Eric Van Landeghem, the CMA move gives the plant work security until at least 2024. “Ghent has been assigned the new platform, which shows that we remain an important element in Volvo’s

industrial structure,” he said. The work will begin with the construction of a new 8,000 squaremetre building, added to the welding plant and due to be finished by the end of the year. The first robots and production machinery should be installed by next summer. “This is of invaluable importance,” commented Mathias De Clercq, chair of the Ghent port authority. “This investment will provide job security, directly for 5,200 workers and indirectly for thousands more.” \ AH

\ InnOVAtIOn

september 23, 2015

Pursuing a new ideal

WeeK in innovation

brussels event connects local and international social entrepreneurs andy furniere more articles by Andy \ flanderstoday.eu

newideals.eu

ext week, the first edition of Newideals will take place at Bozar in Brussels. Organised by the Social Innovation Factory, the goal of this new conference is to encourage cross-pollination between the corporate world, NGOs, knowledge centres and the government of Flanders. Since it was launched by the government two years ago, the Social Innovation Factory has stimulated the development of innovative projects that address issues like climate change, poverty and an increasingly multicultural society. It’s no coincidence, then, that the organisation is putting the spotlight on multiple local social entrepreneurs, or Radical Innovators in the event’s parlance, at the Newideals event next Monday and Tuesday. Among them is Solidareit!, a website created by Brusselaars that brings people in need of help with something into contact with locals who can help them. Locals can offer everything from a bed, meal, administrative help and clothes to a simple chat. Het Spilvarken, another Radical Innovator, was started by a couple of Gentenaars who wanted to introduce pigs and chickens to several neighbourhoods in the city to sustainably process food waste. Newideals will also welcome six British social entrepreneurs selected by the innovation charity Nesta, which originally launched the Radical Innovators campaign. Mel Young, the Scottish man behind the Homeless World Cup initiative, is the most highprofile name on the list of Newideals speakers. He started the football competition in 2001 as a way to stimulate homeless people’s re-integration into society. Since then, local tournaments have been established all over the world, including in Belgium. “Meeting regularly to train and play matches helps homeless people gradually make a new start in life,” says Kaat Peeters, director of the Social Innovation Factory. “This original method to battle poverty should inspire the Newideals participants to think outside the box more.” One of the key Flemish speakers is Peter Wollaert, director of the Antwerp-ITCCO training centre and an Associated Fellow at Unitar, the United Nations’ training and research agency. ITCCO regularly organises activities to convince policymakers of the necessity for sustainable action, like tours to showcase the best practices in sectors such as the diamond, port and fashion industry. As part of the Unitar network of training centres, Antwerp-ITCCO helps spread the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The 17 SDGs,

The government of Flanders and the construction sector are joining forces to make all houses in the region energyefficient by 2050. More than half the houses in Flanders were built before 1970 and many have no roof insulation or double glazing. The goal is to make every house or apartment just as energy-efficient as one built today, with reform of the policy for energy premiums and subsidies. There will be new guidelines for homeowners on the most effective renovations for energy efficiency and new homeowners will receive a step-by-step plan for energy-saving renovations.

VIl to turn Flanders into “recycling hub” © Frank toussaint/social Innovation Factory

the social Innovation Factory wants to encourage idea exchanges between the corporate, non-profit and academic worlds

which were developed as a successor to the millennium development goals, are meant to provide a framework for the political policies of UN member states for the next 15 years. The final version of the new goals will be discussed at a UN summit in New York at the end of this month. “The SDGs are a milestone,” says Wollaert. “Never before has such a broad list of targets been drawn up to improve international development.” At the Newideals conference, Wollaert will discuss the SDGs in more detail, hoping to persuade those present to integrate the goals into their own work. Wollaert will also participate in a debate with representatives from institutes of higher education in Belgium. “There is still a lack of academic research on social entrepreneurship to help improve working methods,” says Wollaert, “and the field is still too often absent from business studies.” Newideals will also host a workshop on social impact bonds, a new funding mechanism for social entrepreneur projects. In such a scheme, a private investor helps fund a social project but establishes an agreement with a government agency that commits to paying for improved social outcomes that result in public sector savings. The Brussels “Duo for a job” project was one of the first in Europe to use this bond system. The project brings experienced over-50s together

with job-seekers of foreign descent to help them in their search for a job. The Brussels employment agency Actiris was able to pay back investors, like Bank Degroof Foundation, thanks to the initiative’s success. In addition to the workshops, Newideals will also offer one-on-one counselling sessions. In these “clinics”, entrepreneurs receive tailored advice on subjects like funding options and organisational methods. “Acquiring start-up capital, for example, can be a big challenge in Flanders,” explains Peeters. One thing is certain, social innovations are slowly changing our society and economy. “The digital revolution is playing an important role,” says Peeters. “It’s getting much easier to set up a project.” According to Wollaert, more and more social entrepreneurs are people with experience in the business world who leave the traditional system because they want to address a certain societal need. “They don’t do this anymore by relying on subsidies,” says Wollaert. “They use business methods but for a good cause – not with the sole aim of making profits.”

21-22 september bozar

Ravensteinstraat 23, Brussels

Flanders’ climate report: Higher temperatures, more flooding milieurapport.be

The Flemish Environment Agency has published the Mira climate report 2015, in which it lists the effects of climate change that can already be seen in Flanders and the consequences for the future. VMM worked with the University of Leuven, the Flemish Institute for Technological Research (Vito) and the Royal Meteorological Institute to produce the report, with which it hopes to raise awareness among policymakers. According to the report, the 18 warmest years since 1833 have occurred in the last 25 years, and all seasons are becoming hotter. The annual average rainfall is 13% higher than in 1833, and the average sea level is rising rapidly: In Ostend,

every house to be energy-efficient by 2050

the level is now 11.5 cm higher than at the beginning of the 1950s. The report predicts a further increase in the average annual temperature of between 0.7 and

7.2 degrees Celsius by the end of the century. In 100 years’ time, 38% more rain is expected during the winter months. As a result, more floods and droughts are expected. Air quality, according to Mira, will decrease as higher temperatures lead to more ozone in the air. Because cities hold heat faster and longer, residents will experience more health problems, particularly the elderly and children. The report also offers advice: The government, it said, should invest in new water reservoirs. The targeted creation of surface vegetation and water would help to mitigate the impact of the increased heat. \ AF

The Flemish Institute for Logistics has launched the Flanders Recycling Hub project to make Flemish ports into global centres for recycling activities. The project will be carried out with 21 companies and in collaboration with the Flemish Public Waste Materials Agency and the Flemish Institute for Technological Research. It will create a set of directions and incentives that illustrate how to turn Flanders into a centre where materials are supplied, recuperated and exported again. In a first phase, experts will examine which and how much materials are being transported for recycling. A cost-benefit analysis will be drawn up for the most promising materials and a trial project will be set up.

UZ Gent prosthesis moved by thinking Surgeons at Ghent University Hospital have created a unique prosthetic arm by placing a prosthesis directly on the bone and connecting the nerves with other muscles. The technique is a world first and allows the patient to move the arm with his brain. Gentenaar Samy Meziani lost his right arm in an accident two years ago. Surgeons inserted a rod into the bone of his upper arm on which to attach the prosthesis, then connected nerves in the arm to nerves in the chest. Now the nerves have grown together, Meziani can use his brain to activate the muscles. The signal is registered by electrodes on the skin that, via a small computer, can move the hand or another part of the prosthesis. \ AF

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\ eDUCAtIOn

september 23, 2015

New path in a new land

ghent prepares refugees for higher education and a brighter future andy furniere more articles by Andy \ flanderstoday.eu

ducation organisations in Ghent are working to set up a second edition of a programme that prepares non-Dutch speaking newcomers in Flanders for higher education. One of last year’s participants was Syrian Imad Al-Sheikh Haidar, who now lives in Ghent’s SintAmandsberg district. Haidar arrived in Flanders in June of2013,afterfleeinghishomeinthe western Syrian town of Salamiyah because of the war that has forced so many Syrians to leave. Aged 31 at the time, Haidar arrived here with a Master’s degree in economics and many years of work experience. “In Syria, I worked first as an accountant and later at a bank,” he tells me. However, his degree was not recognised here. In Flanders, the Flemish branch of the National Academic Recognition Information Centre (Naric) determines whether a diploma gained abroad is equivalent to the Flemish standard. According to Naric, Haidar must follow 10 courses at a Flemish university to receive a Bachelor’s degree in economics here. Then, he will have to study for an extra year to obtain a Master’s degree. TohelppeopleinHaidar’ssituation, education organisations in Ghent have established a year-long study programme that prepares them for higher education in Flanders. The programme follows a similar project by the non-profit Consortium Adult Education, which had stopped receiving subsidies. Ghent University (UGent), the University College Ghent (HoGent), the local Huis van het Nederlands and the University Centre for Language Education (UCT) joined forces for the first edition of the programme. HoGent

lecturers teach new arrivals the specific academic language skills they will need at university

is no longer a partner. “Too many of these newcomers are obliged to take on a job below their educationlevel,becomingafactory worker or taxi driver, for example,” says programme co-ordinator Marijke Van Petegem, who works for Huis van het Nederlands. “Our programme helps them fulfil their potential.” There are certain qualifications required to participate: students need to have a basic level of Dutch and have at least a secondary education diploma. The registration fee amounts to about €400, but this is often paid by the local social aid agency. Last year, 21 students took the course. Among them were refugees from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, alongside students from Iran, Ghana, Cameroon, Slovakia and Russia. “Since Dutch remains a challenge for most students, UCT teachers keep working with them on this,” explains Van Petegem. “UGent lecturers teach them specific academic language skills they will need at university or college, such as clarifying the jargon used by professors.” This year, students will also have a

mentor – a regular UGent student with whom they can practise Dutch outside the lessons. It’s not just the language that causes problems, though: Students often also lack certain academic

Too many newcomers are obliged to take on a job below their education level skills. “In a separate course, they learn things like taking good notes, making summaries and writing proper emails to professors,” says Van Petegem. “A teacher works on their study methods and tackles procrastination or possible fear of failure.” Sometimes, newcomers also need to adjust to different practices. Arabic is written from right to left,

for example. The programme also includes courses in maths, statistics and academic English, taught by UGent lecturers. “Students need basic knowledge of these three subjects to succeed in higher education,” says Van Petegem. She helps students to find appropriate study programmes at the right institution and to meet the practical registration requirements. They can take two courses from their future university or college during the preparatory programme. At the end of the year, students take exams and carry out tasks such as a presentation on a subject outside their expertise. Last year, 13 of the 21 students graduated from the programme, and several of them are now registered at higher education institutions. “Several students dropped out because of financial challenges,” explains Van Petegem. “If you want to have your family come over here, for example, you have to prove that you can provide for them.” Since the programme’s lessons take place during working hours, it’s almost impossible to combine it with a job. A few months ago, Haidar found a job at a car factory in Ghent. “It had become difficult to survive with only unemployment benefits,” he explains. “But my dream is to start studying economics at UGent next February and in the end acquire a Flemish Master’s degree.” The education organisation Leerwinkel West-Vlaanderen organises a similar programme, and the Leren werkt! consortium in Leuven provides a programme that prepares non-Dutch speaking newcomers for higher education in accounting or informatics.

Q&a Wouter Smets is a researcher at Karel de Grote University College in Antwerp, who recently published an opinion piece in De Standaard on obligatory summer schools for students who are not ready to move up to the next year. You propose summer schools for those who aren’t ready for the next year. Is it a matter of study discipline? Not necessarily. It’s a matter of finding the right education package for every student. If it were only a matter of discipline, I think exam resits would do. On the other side, we also can’t let students move up to the next year if they don’t earn it. The summer schools I propose would wipe out educational arrears and prepare students for the next school year.

Who would teach in these summer schools? I’m convinced that many teachers would be prepared to spend time on this, but only if the effort allows a lightening of their workload during the rest of the school year. I think many teachers are willing to give up part of their summer holiday in exchange for a smaller assignment during the year. I also think my proposal can save money. Students who repeat a year are of course a much bigger cost to the government than a summer school that only takes a few weeks.

You have also called for more “out-of-the-box thinking” by education councils. What do you mean by that? The issue with students repeating a school year is a big problem, with an impact we keep underestimating. Though all experts agree that repeating a year doesn’t abolish any educational deficit, the measure is still used too often in Flanders. My call for more out-ofthe-box thinking was a reaction to two recent proposals regarding the issue: the reintroduction of exam resits and the ability of teachers’ councils to make students change their study stream. The problem with these proposals is that they’re skirting around the real issue. We have to

look at how other countries tackle the issue.

WeeK in education wide variation in exam marking

According to a Master’s student at Antwerp University, different teachers can evaluate the same test with widely varying results. Sem Erkens carried out an experiment with 69 teachers who taught Dutch in the fifth year of secondary education. She asked all the teachers to evaluate three writing tests by students. “For one of the tests, three-quarters of the teachers considered it good enough for the student to pass, while the other 25% would fail the student,” Erkens told Het Nieuwsblad. She says the results can be influenced by the time of day or how tired teachers are, and certain evaluations can have a big influence on a pupils’ educational choices.

Improved transport for special education

Thousands children in special education (BuSO) in Flanders must spend several hours a day getting to and from their school, according to education minister Hilde Crevits, who with mobility minister Ben Weyts is preparing a plan to improve the situation. Pupils in a BuSO school are subsidised for car or bus transport if they choose the nearest available school with BuSO facilities. About 40,000 children in the region are transported free to and from their schools via public transport authority De Lijn, but the bus journey can be up to two hours each way. Under the new plan, other options will be considered, including carpooling, assisted cycling and taxis.

thousands can’t get place in first choice of school Nearly 3,700 students in the Flemish and Dutch-speaking Brussels education networks were not able to enrol in their first choice of school, according to GO!, the Flemish Community’s education network. This was the case for 3,696 children, an increase of 35% on last year. Population growth has exceeded class capacity, increasing the numbers of students not getting a spot in their firstchoice school, so parents are increasingly looking for schools farther from home. “This used to be only a problem in the large cities like Ghent and Antwerp,” said Raymonda Verdyck, managing director of GO!. “Now the problem is spreading to the rest of Flanders.” \ AF

\ Interview by Senne Starckx

\ lIVInG

WeeK in activities water-rAnt Learn all about seamanship, steamships, sailing boats and Antwerp’s maritime heritage during this festival in the old harbour district. Guided tours, parade, exhibitions, sea shanty performances and historic vessels. 25-27 September, Hanzestedenplaats 1, Antwerp, free \ shiptoshore.be/water-rant/

Fleuramour

Twentieth edition of the annual floral show at AldenBiesen Castle, with floral designers, unique displays, demos, workshops and vendors. 25-28 September, Landcommanderij AldenBiesen, Kasteelstraat 6, Bilzen, €15 \ fleuramour.be

running Festival

Takepartinarangeofoutdoor activities, including fun runs, obstacle courses, workshops, distance running, orienteering and trail running. 26 September 13.00-17.00, Recreatiepark Blameersen, Campinglaan 16, Ghent, free \ stad.gent/sport

Corn maze

Lose yourself in a living labyrinth of corn stalks. The giant maze covers 6 hectares and contains 5 km of paths. There’s also entertainment, games for children, food and drink. 25 September 20.0023.00, 26-27 September 13.0019.00, Peredreef between Putte and Heist-op-den-Berg, €4 \ tinyurl.com/peredreef-maze

Viking thing

Third annual Viking festival, with 150 living history participants re-enacting the customs and traditions of the Norsemen. Activities include tug-o-war, archery shoot and fire-making contests, as well as the Thing, a communal gathering where grievances are aired and justice is administered. 26-27 September 10.00-18.00, Heirweg 1, Elewijt, free \ tinyurl.com/viking-thing

Antwerp by bike: the Green tour

Last chance of the season to take this three-hour guided tour of the green areas surrounding the city. 27 September, meet at Steenplein, next to the Flandria ticket office in Antwerp city centre at 13.45, €22 (€14 if you bring your own bike) \ antwerpbybike.be

\ 10

Let a thousand flowers bloom Hidden garden in ledeberg hosts events and brings neighbours together toon lambrechts more articles by toon \ flanderstoday.eu

facebook.com/tuinvanHeden

nyone who’s taken the train from Ghent to Brussels and looked out of the window in Ledeberg might have wondered what’s happening on this spot between the railway and the apartment blocks. It’s here that a group of Gentenaars have founded the Tuin van Heden community project. From the front, the Tuin van Heden, or Garden of Today, looks like an oversized summerhouse. It’s just that the location doesn’t fit. The front garden is full of colourful chairs and construction projects, and along the side of the building there’s a small vegetable garden. But the real surprise is out back, where you’ll find a terrace with a few trees, a pond and a little stretch of lawn. In short, it’s not a place you’d expect in Ledeberg, one of Ghent’s most densely populated districts. It started three years ago when a group of people from Ghent founded an organisation called Dichter bij Ithaka (Closer to Ithaca). Their intention was to organise events around the city to provide a platform for young talent. They wanted their own location and stumbled upon the site accidentally, explains Julie Kennivé, one of the people behind the project. “One of the members of our group came here to eat something,” she says. “This place was a small restaurant at the time. The owners said they had to leave because the organisation responsible for urban renewal had plans for the site. We contacted them, and two weeks later we had the key.” Kennivé hadn’t seen the place

the tuin van Heden in ledeberg offers neighbours a mix of gardening, cake, film and music

until then, “and I fell in love with it instantly,” she says. “We cleaned up the yard and refreshed the interior, then we started with small events like a poetry evening and acoustic performances.” That was three years ago. Since then,theTuinvanHedenhasgrown into a place where both neighbours and strangers have found their way. “At first, the contact with the neighbourhood wasn’t easy,” Kennivé recalls. “It wasn’t exactly our intention to become a neighbourhood project in the beginning. With the vegetable garden it works well; many people in the apartments have green fingers but no place to garden, so they’re welcome here. There’s an elderly couple who come regularly to pick herbs.”

The garden’s events are open to the neighbours, she says. “We try to go for as wide a programme as possible, from cooking workshops to music to carpentry courses. We’re not yet where we want to be, but it is going in the right direction. In November there will be a party specially for the neighbourhood in which we want to involve as many people as possible.” The site is owned by an urban development company and will be given another use at some point. Until then, Kennivé and her colleagues can use the spot; how long the garden will exist is not clear. “I certainly hope for another 30 years,” she laughs. The garden is not the only site in Ghent that has been given a temporary use. DOK is known far

outside Ghent, and in Ledeberg itself there is also the Standaert Site and Kerk. Why are there so many in Ledeberg? Kennivé: “The neighbourhood has many empty buildings and vacant areas where there are plans, but no budget for them.” For now, the Tuin van Heden is mostly open at the weekends. Among the activities are the Luie Zondagen (Lazy Sundays), offering cake and film, and De Gasten van Irma (Irma’s Guests), a kind of guided jam session. “But there are other organisations that do things here,” says Kennivé. “In the summer there was a theatre camp for children, and Ledeberg’s sports department organised cycling lessons for adults.”

Bite bruges festival serves up haute cuisine at democratic prices For three days at the end of the month, Bruges’ train station will become a three-star pop-up restaurant hosting the region’s finest chefs and food producers. The marquees of Kookeet, now in its fifth year, will take over the square behind the station with a menu of cooking demonstrations, food stands, wine bar, tastings, talks and kids’ events. The guests have 11 Michelin stars between them, with Geert Van Hecke, Peter Goossens and Gert De Mangeleer boasting three apiece. Also present will be Bruges’ own Dominique Persoone, the maverick behind The Chocolate Line and a man known for his offbeat flavours. Fried onion praline, anyone? One of only four chocolatiers to get a mention in the Michelin guide, Persoone made a name for himself around the world with his chocolate shooter, a snorting contraption he invented for Ronnie Wood’s birthday party. While he’s living proof that haute cuisine doesn’t have to be po-faced, he’s also a man who takes his craft seriously.

“First of all, all respect for the classic chocolate recipes,” he says. “I do crazy stuff and I love it, but what we’re really doing is the old classic recipes. We’re just trying to make them better with the new techniques we have. “When I started making chocolate with wasabi, olive oil, those strange flavour combinations, people said I was a wacko, and a lot of them didn’t even want to taste it,” he recalls. “But the mentality is changing, and now a customer wants to go on an adventure when eating.”

kookeet.be

The food on offer at Kookeet, he promises, will be of an incredible standard. And this quality doesn’t carry the usual price tag. Visitors can enjoy dishes by these world-famous chefs for bottom-drawer prices: witness Hof Van Cleve’s seven-bone steak with basil, mushroom and vin jaune or De Karmeliet’s red rice, smoked eel and foie gras for €8. The dessert Persoone is making for the occasion is called Kiss from the Night Nurse (pictured), inspired by hospitals. “When I explained it to my team,” he says, “everybody was like, oh no, what’s he doing now?” It’s made with different kinds of cherries, yoghurt and verbena, “and we tried to make it quite healthy, with chopped seeds and nuts”. And, of course, the whole thing is edible, from the sauce delivered via drip right down to the syringe made from chocolate. \ Sally Tipper

26-28 september behind bruges station

september 23, 2015

A bolleke like never before

de koninck’s long-awaited visitor centre is open in new antwerp city brewery alan Hope more articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

dekoninck.be

or a long time De Koninck was the beer of Antwerp, and beer drinkers around the country are still fond of ordering the occasional bolleke, as it’s known, in reference to its round glass. But there was never a great deal to see at its brewery on the Mechelsesteenweg thoroughfare near Koning Albertpark. That’s all changed now, with the opening of Antwerp City Brewery, which serves as not only De Koninck’s new visitor centre but a veritable foodie paradise. The new centre hopes to attract 100,000 visitors a year. De Koninck was taken over by Duvel Moortgat in 2010, and they’ve not only pumped money into the new visitor centre, they’ve also given master brewer Dennis De Potter carte blanche to use the Antwerp site for brewing experiments. De Potter’s beer laboratory has already produced one new beer, Wild Jo, a blond ale enriched with wild yeasts usually associated with lambics. “The experience centre offers all sorts of exhibits on brewing, on Antwerp and on historic cafes,” says De Potter. “Then you pass through a tunnel and come into the brew hall, where you see an actual working brewery in operation. We’ll be brewing De Koninck and Wild Jo, and there will be a tasting room where people can try the beers.” On the evening of the official opening, we get to taste a brew called simply “Test Brew One”. This won’t be marketed but is on sale in the tasting room that visitors cross at the end of the tour via a four-metrehigh passerelle. “We’ll keep on experimenting with

Cheese affineurs michel and Frédéric Van tricht take time off from cheese refining to enjoy a bolleke

a new beer every three months or so,” De Potter promises. “That’s important in terms of innovation.”

inck. It’s his first outlet, though he’s been making chocolate for five years, travelling the world with

We want to allow people to rediscover ingredients they already know but put together in the right way Also located in the adjacent food centre, which takes up part of the complex that used to be the brewery, is young chocolatier Jitsk Heyn-

demonstrations and selling on a small scale. His section includes an atelier and shop, all of the chocolates made on the spot.

“What we want to do with chocolate is to make a very pure product with high-quality ingredients, without anything too far-out,” he says. “We want to allow people to rediscover ingredients they already know but put together in the right way.” Michel Van Tricht and his son Frédéric have been in business for more thanthreedecadesnow,sellingtheir ripened cheeses to retailers and the public at their celebrated shop on Fruithoflaan in nearby Berchem. The cheese affineurs, or ripeners – who ripen and refine cheese made elsewhere – were the first to join

the City Brewery project by installing a state-of-the-art cell for the refining of cheese. It’s temperatureand humidity-controlled, clean to an almost operating room standard and very much not open to the public. Instead, they’ll soon be opening a small shop-cum-bar on the other side of the complex. “There will be nine or 10 bar stools where people can sample cheese,” Michel Van Tricht explains. “The design will be more basic than our shop. The whole floor will be made of glass, with a ripening cell below that people will be able to see under their feet. That way they’ll have a sort of contact with the ripening process.” In another part of the complex, over on the Boomgaardstraat side, you’ll find Luc De Laet’s Butcher’s Store and chef Bert-Jan Michielsen’s restaurant The Butcher’s Son. Those two sections will also work together so that diners can see where their food is coming from. “There are four food artisans here in the brewery – a butcher, a cheese affineur, a chocolatier and the restaurant,” Michielsen says. “The idea is that the public can see everything that’s going on behind the scenes, and that’s true in the restaurant as well. They’ll be able to look into Luc De Laet’s shop and see a butcher at work, and he’ll be making all sorts of patés and terrines and so on. They’ll see what they’re about to eat, and the whole thing will be more of an experience.” Entry to the experience centre is €12 for adults

50 weekends in Flanders: Flemish culture in Brussels Flanders Today has launched an e-book with ideas for how to spend a year’s worth of weekends. Visit our website to get your free copy of 50 Weekends in Flanders. We’ll also print one of our suggestions every week here, too. The Brussels dialect is largely made up of Dutch words, but in the 20th century, the capital became more associated with French than Dutch. Nevertheless, it is now a vibrant multicultural place where Flemish culture is a key element of the city’s identity. KVS The Royal Flemish Theatre occupies an impressive 19th-century building in a rundown neighbourhood that is slowly gentrifying. The main auditorium has been modernised to create a striking performance space, while the renovated theatre bar is one of the grandest interiors in Brussels. \ kvs.be

\ muntpunt.be

ANCIENNE BELGIQUE The AB concert hall hosts well-known bands that sell out a few hours after tickets go on sale, but it also stages performances by emerging indie and alternative bands. Performers love the atmosphere at AB, along with the local bars nearby where they can drink a beer without being mobbed by fans.

KAFKA This plain bar is popular with the young Flemish artists and writers who live around the Dansaert quarter. Decorated with a blurred photo of the gloomy Prague writer, it’s a quiet, serious place during the day, but gets more animated as the sun goes down.

\ abconcerts.be

KAAITHEATER Some of the edgiest theatre and dance performances in Europe are staged in a former Art Deco revue theatre near the canal. Look out for performances by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker’s Rosas dance company, Forced Entertainment and the Wooster Group. Grab a drink or a bite before or after any performance in the airy cafe sporting exposed brick and stagelights (pictured).

tinyurl.com/50weekends

\ cafekafka.be

\ kaaitheater.be

MUNTPUNT This Flemish library and info centre is a good place to borrow CDs, DVDs and books, or simply to discover the Dutch-speaking culture of Brussels. B-architecten redesigned the building’s interior to create a series of cool colour-coded spaces.

DE MARKTEN This was once a showroom for the Cristallerie Val Saint Lambert, a Belgian company famous for its crystal. The handsome interiors are now used for performances, exhibitions and readings, while the bare cafe is a popular meeting place for intellectuals, artists and journalists who live in the neighbourhood. \ Derek Blyth

\ demarkten.be

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brusselsairlines.com/family * Conditions: see website.

or your travel agency.

The Bulletin and ING Belgium invite you to a seminar on

PROPERTY TODAY • Kristof Serlet,

Real Estate Manager, Optima, “An update on the residential property market “

• Alexis Lemmerling,

notary, Berquin, “The latest changes in law and regulations”

October 8, 2015

ING Head Office - Marnix. Entrance via Rue du Trône, 1 – 1000 Brussels (nearest subway station: Trône)

• Registration: 17:30 • Presentations at 18:00 sharp • End by: 21:00

• Dave Deruytter,

head of Expatriates & Non-residents, ING Belgium, “ What about mortgage and taxes on private real estate”

FREE ENTRY • Register before October 5 at www.thebulletin.be/realestate

\ Arts

september 23, 2015

It’s good to be bad

enfant terrible of flemish literature marnix peeters on his raunchiest novel yet rebecca benoot more articles by rebecca \ flanderstoday.eu

The fourth novel by outspoken journalist-turned-author Marnix Peeters is his trademark blend of bizarre characters and controversial themes.

here aren’t many Flemish authors who evoke feelings of both joy and repulsion when you mention their name, but Marnix Peeters is one of them. The journalist-turned-author recently released his fourth novel, and it’s a doozy, featuring an eclectic cast of crazy characters, a dash of humour, a hint of tragedy, a dollop of bodily fluids and some confrontational themes. In other words: classic Peeters. “It took me a while to find my voice,” he says. “I love Dutch author AF Th Van der Heyden and started to write like him, but when I turned 45, I discovered my own style – which is nothing like his. Now it’s verging more towards PG Wodehouse. Just a little juicier.” His latest novel is Niemand houdt van Billie Vuist (Nobody Loves Billie Vuist), the story of a short, fat redhead who discovers that his mother is running a paedophile network called Phantasia, which supplies black and Asian girls to men. Billie wants to put a stop to this, but the lecherous pastor Pelkmans, one of his mother’s accomplices, only has one thing on his mind: winning the Super Fick Lotto. Enter the closeted Gabba Henk, and things really start to get crazy. Will Billie succeed? And, more importantly, will he finally find love? In 2008, Peeters, who celebrates his 50th birthday this year, wrote a series of articles for Het Laat-

marnix peeters isn’t afraid of having fun with fiction

ste Nieuws about sex tourism in Pattaya, Thailand, where he encountered many heartbreaking scenes. These images lingered and eventually found their way into the new book, which is topped off with Peeters’ characteristic mix of twists and characters who are larger than life. “The whole idea for this novel started with the Super Fick Lotto, or how pastor Pelkmans destroys himself,” he says. “I started writing it on my mobile phone while walking in the woods.” Sex tourism and paedophilia aren’t exactly common themes in Flemish literature. “People are always shocked by my novels, but they are based on reality,” Peeters says.

“We don’t realise how grim things are over there. People think I let my imagination run wild, but it is actually how things are in Pattaya.” It’s striking, he continues, that readers “are appalled by Billie Vuist yet when they watch a documentary about the Belzec concentration camp, they don’t bat an eyelid. I think in this case they are more afraid of the writer than the work. Because I could be standing behind them in the supermarket,” he jokes. Peeters excels at creating ballsy characters. Whether you love or hate them, you can’t deny that they’re unique, that they leap off the page and almost smack you in the face. And with Gabba Henk,

Naphtuli Steinkopf, Joseph Bamba Julien or Adolf and Antoon Branstigters, Peeters is also inventive at naming his protagonists. “I’m a freak when it comes to names,” he admits. “I once stopped reading a book because I couldn’t get over the banality of the names; it destroyed my imagination. Names have to be inspired without being cartoony.” Though most of them are horrible human beings, some, like Billie, are tender and sweet, just down on their luck. “I feel for Billie,” Peeters says. “He’s had a hard time, he’s not easy on the eye. But when I was writing the ending, I was glowing with happiness.” Peeters’ novels being considered

grotesque by many people only adds to his charm. He dares to be different, he dares to push the boundaries and go beyond the conventions of local literature. “There’s not a lot of fun in Flemish fiction, or genre fiction in general, for that matter,” he explains. “But you don’t have to be afraid of entertainment. Flemish authors are scared of letting go of this idea that fiction has to be stylised, have weighty themes and be profound. What’s wrong with having a good time? I feel strongly about introducing different styles and genres to Flemish fiction, and readers are starting to get on board – especially young people.” The act of writing also doesn’t have to be a weighty endeavour, he claims. He loves his job and is disciplined when working on a novel, which is why he has published one a year since his first. “I never understood how authors could take years to write a novel,” he says. “But I don’t do anything other than write; there’s no other job or children to distract me. It’s just me, my computer and my mountain in the East Cantons. I don’t have the attention span to spend four years on the same story.” Niemand houdt van Billie Vuist is a novel filled with peculiar characters, weighty themes and raunchy humour. As usual, Peeters tells it like it is, whether he’s talking about underage prostitution or fellow writers. He takes no prisoners, making him a refreshing rarity in Flemish literature. Niemand houdt van Billie Vuist ) is published in Dutch by ( Prometheus

More neW BooKs this Month Hotel rozenstok christophe vekeman • Arbeiderspers Christophe Vekeman is again testing his own limits, this time by penning a story in which a nameless narrator decides to stop writing. After giving us a few plots of novels that he didn’t write, he throws in the towel. Then he’s faced with the big question: What do I do now? He decides to go to a quirky Dutch town to figure it all out, but suddenly sparks fly and inspiration starts to burn a hole in his brain. But is it the end or the beginning of his career? A tragicomic delight.

drift (passion) Ellen van Pelt • Vrijdag Psychotherapist Ellen van Pelt’s debut novel tells the story of 30-something

Eloïse, an architect who returns to her home town of Antwerp with her husband and baby daughter. Having difficulty dealing with motherhood, she walks the streets filled with memories and longing. Until one day she meets Jacob, her former lover. She decides to leave her old life and start anew. Drift is a tale about following your heart and how our parents’ choices form us. A charming debut.

alles verandert (everything changes) Kristien Hemmerechts • De Geus In prolific novelist Kristien Hemmerechts’ latest provocative novel, professor Iris Verdonck looks back on her prestigious career as well as her love life. One night she embarks on a tempestuous relationship with one of her students, a decision that changes her life dramatically and

pushes her to the edge. Reminiscent of JM Coetzee’s Disgrace, Alles verandert seems to be on a mission to prove that anything men can do, women can do better.

voet bij stuk (stand firm) Joseph Pearce • Vrijdag Emma is a secretary at Opperman & Winterberg, a prestigious publishing house. When the head of the company retires, he is succeeded by Barbara, a businesswoman who doesn’t know the first thing about publishing. Emma tries to uphold the literary standard and save the company from its downfall, especially when she discovers a wonderful manuscript. This navel-gazing satire filled with tongue-in-cheek jokes about the industry is intriguing and insightful.

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\ Arts

WeeK in arts & culture Christian wijnants opens flagship store Antwerp fashion designer Christian Wijnants has opened his first flagship store on the city’s Steenhouwersvest in the Sint-Andries district. The minimalist space has a large picture window at the back, which looks out onto an abundant back garden. The shop now houses Wijnants’ autumn and winter collection for women, which, he says, was inspired by New York photographer Jackie Nickerson’s series on African agriculture. Wijnants was born in Brussels and attended the Antwerp Academy’s design department, winning the Dries Van Noten Award for best graduation collection in 2000. He worked for Van Noten until 2003, when he launched his own label.

waste land big winner at ensors

Waste Land, a crime thriller set in Brussels’ Congolese underground, won four Ensors at the Flemish film awards last weekend, handed out as the closing event of the Ostend Film Festival. Aside from a best director award for Pieter Van Hees, the film won best script, best male supporting role (Peter Van den Begin) and best female supporting role (Babetida Sadjo). The docu-drama N: The Madness of Reason won best film honours. The movie by director Peter Krüger is a poetic meandering through the life of 20th-century self-proclaimed encyclopaedist Raymond Borremans. N also took home Ensors for best editing and music. Best actor honours went to Amaryllis Uitterlinden for her role in rival brass band comedy Brabançonne and to Gène Bervoets for his role as hapless bus driver Mario in the comedy-drama Paradise Trips.

Carll Cneut wins Flemish Culture prize

Author and illustrator Carll Cneut, the subject of a retrospective exhibition earlier this year in Ghent, has won this year’s Flemish Culture Prize for literature. The jury awarded him the prize for his entire body of work – mostly children’s literature that also appeals to adults – but they specifically cited his illustrations for the recent book De gouden kooi (The Golden Cage) as “evidence of his mastery”. Culture minister Sven Gatz, who awarded Cneut the prize at the weekend, said: “You get the feeling in his work that these are real worlds that exist outside the page.” \ Lisa Bradshaw

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Reed all about it

ghent’s international festival celebrates the clarinet alan Hope more articles by Alan \ flanderstoday.eu

gHentclarinet.be

he clarinet is possibly one of the least considered yet most flexible of orchestral instruments. From the spine-tingling glissando opening to Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue”, past Mozart’s heavenly quintet, through jazz to Balkan beat and Klezmer, the clarinet is ever-present. So the idea of having an international clarinet festival is not a stretch for musicians, and that’s what will be happening in Ghent this weekend. The Ghent Clarinet Festival is being organised by Eddy Vanoosthuyse, who plays principal clarinet with the Brussels Philharmonic as well as teaching at the Ghent conservatory and the Lemmens Institute in Leuven. “In 2010 we started an international clarinet competition at the level of the Queen Elisabeth Competition, so a really very high standard,” he explains. “It was in Kortrijk, where I live. At the same time, we started the European Clarinet Association (ECA) in Kortrijk. The competition was organised over two weeks, and we kept the last two days for the first clarinet festival.” The festival was to become an annual event, returning every other year to Flanders, first in Kortrijk and later in Ghent. In between, the festival has taken place in Madrid and Katowice, Poland, and next year it’s planned for Assisi in Italy. “The festival has been growing since that first one,” Vanoosthuyse says. “Now we go over two days with 60 or 70 concerts, master classes and lectures. Two full days of music. It’s really very busy.” At the same time, the ECA organises the clarinet competition, which takes place every two years, alternating with a similar competition for young people rather professionals. The various competitions and Ghent-based festivals are brought together under the title Ghent Clarinet Capital. The participants are both local and international. The Waregems Clarinet Choir is made up of students and staff from the West Flanders town’s arts academy; they’re 35-strong and that’s a lot of breathing power, which they use

belline klarinetkwartet from the netherlands, with a repertoire from chamber to tango, are one of many clarinet-based ensembles playing in Ghent this weekend

to play mainly modern music as well as arrangements of popular tunes. The International Clarinets is a band put together by Vanoosthuyse from among his current and former conservatory students. His classes attract students from across the world, and the ensemble has in its time had clarinettists from Canada, Venezuela, Japan and Iraq. The repertoire features original works by modern composers, as well as arrangements by Guido Six of symphonic music by Richard Strauss, Rossini and Bach. Coming from the Netherlands are the Belline Klarinetkwartet, whose repertoire is classical chamber music as well as Latin dances by the Flemish composer Patrick Hiketick, tango by Albeniz and Romanian folk dances by Bartok, the last of which they’ll be playing here. They were recently heard in Antwerp at the annual culture market, as well as in the main hall of Antwerp’s Central Station. Soloist Luca Luciano was born in Naples and taught at Leeds College of Music in England; he’s now based in London. He’s considered, according to musician and presenter Tom Robinson on the BBC, “one of Europe’s leading exponents of jazz clarinet”. The main events are concerts on Saturday even-

ing and Sunday afternoon by Les Bons Becs, a group of five musicians whose show is not only musical but comical, and heavily influenced by circus and street performance. With music that ranges “from Handel to Nino Rota, from Gershwin to The Beatles via Louis Prima and Darius Milhaud”, they’ve left the idea of genre far behind them. The main venue is Miry Hall, part of the Ghent conservatory, near the cathedral. It was also the venue earlier this year for the clarinet competition featuring 120 promising young candidates from all over the world, backed by the Ballet of Flanders, the Flemish Radio Choir and the Brussels Philharmonic, organised by Vanoosthuyse. Concerts and recitals will also be staged in Mengal Hall and the nearby town hall. Master classes and lectures will be given in the conservatory’s classrooms, while the entrance hall houses stands from music publishers, instrument makers and other companies associated with the instrument.

26-27 september Across Ghent city centre

Theatre group counts human cost of Ford Genk closure nieuwstedelijk.be

“I still get lost here,” says actor Bram De Win, taking a break from rehearsals for Schroot (Scrap), the new reality-based play by the nieuwstedelijk theatre company. He’s standing, running and even driving around an immense but empty car park at what used to be a thriving car factory. Henri, the character he plays, has just been made redundant, and, throughout his monologue, it’s clear that it was more than just a job. For half a century, Ford Genk was the motor of the local economy in this corner of Limburg, employing upto14,000 peoplein its heyday.After heavy restructuring in 2003, the announcement in 2012 that it would close came as a shock, as job security had been promised until 2020. Through in-depth interviews with former employees, nieuwstedelijk investigates what it means when your job becomes your identity. In Schroot they show people dealing with losing both. “Looking from one perspective, it’s a beautiful thing how workers can identify with their jobs,” says director Simon De Vos. “I do the same. But

Ford Genk was a prime example of the cradleto-the-grave principle. The factory really used to take care of its employees, offering them longterm prospects with many opportunities for leisure activities and colleagues who became friends for life. “On the downside, it can be very tragic when this job is taken away, quite apart from the fact that all your friends and maybe even your partner or children are losing their job at the very same time. In the play, we see how hard it is for

Henri, whose wife also works at Ford, to say goodbye.” Although Mechelen-based De Win has driven a few Fords, he has no personal bond with the factory. But during the process, he says, “I came to fully realise the impact the closure has had on this whole region, while the rest of Flanders has almost forgotten what happened here.” With Schroot, nieuwstedelijk wants to prevent human heritage being forgotten in the absence of the factory. After Vuur (Fire), this is the second play by this new theatre company, a merger of talent from Braakland/ZheBilding and de Queeste. Launched as a city theatre for the Leuven-Hasselt-Genk axis, its focus on local stories has a far wider social dimension, as Schroot proves. \ Tom Peeters

23-30 september Ford Genk

Henry Fordlaan 8, Genk (on location)

\ AGenDA

september 23, 2015

Quiet, please

concert

Bessst Festival 25-27 september

he hurly-burly of modern life is characterised above all by its speed. We mere mortals are forced to follow its break-neck pace if we are to even hope of getting on. But it needn’t always be that way. Indeed, there is a revolution underway in some of the world’s fastest cities, one that renounces this cult of speed in favour of random acts of slowness. The movement’s founding principles are simple. Hold your horses. Stop and smell the roses. Chill out. Its adherents lament not just the speed of modern life but its industrial scale. They advocate a return to sustainable living, both on the individual and ecological levels.

Across Flanders Arno Peace & War Collectif: Inimitable Flemish singer Arno pulls out numerous hits from the past but also old war songs for this special series of concerts featuring his band plus an orchestra. Until 25 October, across Flanders

Across brussels bessst.be

The organisers of Brussels’ Bessst Festival hold these truths to be selfevident and are turning Tour & Taxis into an oasis of slow. Opening night kicks off with live music by Brussels-based afrofusion group Safar Republique and slowly wanders into the wee hours with DJ sets by the Red Bamboo. Things get seriously slow the following day with workshops dedicated to slow cooking, intuitive drawing and meditation. Saturday evening sees more live music – this time by the Bruxello cello quartet – and an open-air film screening. In-between, festivalgoers are invited to peruse the festival’s pop-up library, contemplate its

\ arno.be/concerts

PerForMance brussels

urban art installations, play board games, slowly sip a beverage at the bar or simply space out at the campsite. In true slow style, Sunday begins with yoga and bike ride. The afternoon’s activities are geared towards slow families and include games, a vocal improv performance and a bread-baking workshop. The festi-

val wraps with a tasting of herbal teas and organic juices and beers. The festival isn’t just a one-off. It’s part of the ongoing BE SSST project, undertaken by a coalition of organisations including Citizenne and the Flemish Community Commission. BE SSST puts on workshops and other slow-minded events throughout the year. \ Georgio Valentino

\ kvs.be

concert

PerForMance

oddisee and good compny

puppetry of the penis

23 september, 19.30 Sudanese-American rapper Oddisee and his backing band Good Compny might be the hardest working musicians in hip-hop. The sextet are in the middle of a marathon tour of Europe, which finds them in transit every day and on stage every night for an entire month. Despite his tender

Vk Concerts, brussels vkconcerts.be

age, Oddisee has already taken the American underground hip-hop scene by storm. He hopes that his new album, The Good Fight, will grow his reputation in Europe. This Brussels date caps a threeday sprint through Belgium. The group also perform in Bruges on 24 September. \ GV

event

Flanders’ fireworks extravaganza is back and promises to pack more punch than ever before. Billed as the biggest fireworks show in Northern Europe, Zena Trophy draws hobbyists from the entire region. The main event is the competition between six amateur teams for the trophy, but there’s

get tic

kets n

Across Flanders puppetryoftHepenis.com

One of the world’s most unique stage shows flops back down in Flanders. As its title suggests, Puppetry of the Penis is a comedy performance built around penis contortions. Two men clad only in capes mount the stage and spend an hour twisting, stretching and folding their genitalia into the most remarkable shapes for your amusement. The Australian-Americanduo boast animpressiverepertoire of “installations,” all with lively names like The Windsurfer or The Baby Bird. Puppetry of the Penis debuted at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 1998 and hasn’t stopped since, with regular runs in Las Vegas and London’s West End. \ GV

Zena-event.com

much more in addition. Spectators can expect no less than 11 fireworks shows, not just at night but throughout the day as well. There are also workshops, games, concerts and DJ sets as well as a street art exhibition. The best part: Entry is free. \ GV

26-27 september The biggest comics, sci-fi and anime convention in the Benelux celebrates its 25th birthday this year. Some 40,000 enthusiasts converge on FACTS to discover the latest the genre has to offer and to celebrate its rich history. The event boasts dozens of celebrity guests, including Ghostbusters’ Ernie Hudson and Back to the

brussels In Riotous Profusion: The evolution of contemporary ink art from 1960s Taiwan to 1980s mainland China, reflecting the influence of globalisation. Until 18 October, De Markten, Oude Graanmarkt 5

meise Tinctoria: An exhibition of Belgian artist Sandrine de Borman’s organic flower prints on textile, plus demonstrations by the artist and workshops for adults and children. Until 11 November, National Botanical Garden, Nieuwelaan 38 \ plantentuinmeise.be

FilM Antwerp

facts Herenlaakweg, maaseik

visual arts

\ demarkten.be

Fair

Zena trophy 26 september, 14.00

14-24 october

Speak Low if You Speak Love: Flemish choreographer Wim Vandekeybus presents his new work, a collaboration with musician Mauro Pawlowski featuring songs inspired by classical love stories and performed by the South African Tutu Puoane. 23 September to 3 October 20.00-22.00, KVS, Lakensestraat 146

Flanders expo, Ghent facts.be

Future’sChristopherLloyd.Oneofthis year’s invitees, however, towers over the rest: Peter Mayhew, the gangling British actor who has played Han Solo’s steadfast Wookiee companion Chewbacca since the beginning of the Star Wars franchise in 1977 (and who reprises the role in its forthcoming seventh instalment). \ GV

Carnotstraat 17: Flemish filmmaker Klara Van Es presents her new film about three migrant families searching for a better life in Antwerp. Film screens across Flanders from 29 September, and Van Es makes more appearances on later dates. 29 September 19.45, Cartoon’s, Kaasstraat 4 \ docpoppies.be

event Ghent Ik was 10 in 2015: Flemish education experts Pedro De Bruyckere and Bert Smits present their new book about raising children in light of an uncertain future, followed by an acoustic performance by Johannes Genard of the band School is Cool. 29 September 20.00, Vooruit, Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 23 \ vooruit.be

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september 23, 2015

Talking Dutch invasion of the giant spiders

In response to: Muslim organisations lose case against animal welfare minister Victoria Statham Wow, compare the respectful, law-abiding response of the Muslim organizations here versus the Kim Davis mess in the U.S.

derek blyth more articles by Derek \ flanderstoday.eu

t wouldn’t be September without reports of giant spiders invading our homes. But is there any truth to the reports or are we just scaring ourselves? A journalist from De Morgen decided to find out. So he went to see ecologist Dries Bonte of Arabel, the Flemish spider association. Yes, there is such a thing. Is there a spider invasion? asked De Morgen. Bonte says not. Elk jaar duikt er wel ergens een dergelijk bericht op – We get reports like this surfacing somewhere every year, he said. Het ene jaar zijn het er meer – One year there are more; het andere zijn ze groter – the next year, they’re bigger. Die beweringen zijn niet gestoeld op feiten – The facts don’t support these observations, he reasoned. Mensen dénken vaak dat er meer spinnen zijn – People often think there are more spiders, maar eigenlijk zijn ze gewoon vergeten hoeveel het er vorig jaar waren – but they’ve just forgotten how many there were last year. Élk jaar zijn er veel spinnen – There are lots of spiders every year. The reason we see more at this time of year, Bonte says, is that it’s the mating season. De jongen die tijdens het vorige paarseizoen verwekt zijn – The baby spiders that were born in the previous mating season, hebben zich de afgelopen maanden gevoed met allerlei insecten die in huis zitten – have spent the last few months feeding on the insects in your house. Eind augustus zijn ze volwassen – By the end of August they are adults, en zijn ze dus groter én bouwen ze grotere webben – and so they’re bigger, and they build bigger webs. Terwijl de spinnen de afgelopen maanden dus verscholen zaten in hoekjes en kiertjes – While the spiders spent

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In response to: Brussels refugee tent camp to be evacuated Mike Chambers It will only get worse with the bad weather. A long-term solution needs to be found.

the previous months hidden in nooks and crannies, verlaten ze nu hun schuilplaats – they’re now coming out of their hiding places. So should you be thinking about getting rid of them? Wie niet van spinnen houdt – Anyone who doesn’t like spiders, denkt toch beter twee keer na alvorens hij de beestjes buiten zet – should think twice before putting the little critters outside, says Bonte. Spinnen zijn namelijk nuttige dieren – Spiders are actually useful creatures. Zonder spinnen had u wellicht veel meer vliegen in huis – Without spiders you’d have a lot more flies in your house. And it doesn’t help the spider. Een spin buiten zetten mag overigens een diervriendelijke oplossing lijken – You might think that putting a spider outside is an animalfriendly thing to do, maar de overlevingskansen in zijn nieuwe habitat zijn niet heel groot – but its survival chances in the new habitat are not very good. So don’t believe those stories you hear. Someone is spinning a web of lies.

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Poll

a. Of course. It's getting colder out and anyway the capital of Europe should not be allowing refugees to live in a shanty-town

36% b. No way. Have you seen the support they get from locals by being visible and approachable? Let them stay if they want!

64% tal of the EU is “unable to manage the refugee crisis”. But some organisations were concerned – as were a majority of our readers – that it would be a matter of out of sight, out of mind. Members of the public have been hugely generous with their time, money and gifts, to such an extent that the Red Cross have asked people to stop bringing toys, clothes and food because the

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volunteers were swamped and storage capacity had been reached. Would that sort of public engagement have happened if the refugees had been in an office building all along? Probably not. The tent campsite near the Office for Foreigners may be unsightly, but that’s why it’s been important: to remind us of the conditions to which these people have been driven.

Muslim organisations have lost a case to temporarily lift the ban on ritual slaughter, as they celebrate Eid al-Adha this week (see p4). What do you think? Log in to the Flanders Today website at www.flanderstoday.eu and click on VOTE!

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In response to: NMBS releases details of S-train express network Ray Southward This can only be a good thing. The Dendermonde line to Brussels centre is dismal with some commuters having to take three trains to travel 15km to the city center. In response to: Asylum seekers on streets is “a caricature”, says Francken Shirley Foxcastle The Iraqi I met at the camp had paid half this figure for a passage on a boat to Turkey... It is not inconceivable that refugees arrive having spent all their money or having had it stolen. Rosi Cook @RosiCook A better use of #brussels ring road tunnels: partying! #carfreesunday #autolozezondag Gareth Harding @garethharding As Europeans quibble about divvying up 120,000 #refugees, Red Star museum in Antwerp reminds us of our own exodus.

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the last Word

do you agree with federal minister alexander de croo's insistence that brussels’ tent camp in maximilianpark be dismantled and the refugees moved?

Flanders Today readers were roughly two to one against the idea of clearing out the campsite of tents in Brussels Maximilianpark for refugees and moving them all into one of the WTC office blocks, as demanded by Alexander De Croo, the federal minister for development policy. One can see De Croo’s point, as he said: “The media of the world are here,” and it appears that the capi-

voices oF Flanders today

country roads

“It’s only logical that we have a very low score. In green, rural Brakel there isn’t a single traffic light, and we plan to keep it that way.”

Police in the municipality of Brakel, East Flanders, issued only one ticket in 2014 for running a red light – a temporary light placed during roadworks, mayor Stefaan Devleeschouwer explains

proud mum

“Our son was four before he could even talk. Now he’s performing onstage as a rapper. Unbelievable.”

Samia Lutin comments on her son, Goran G, the latest hip-hop sensation from West Flanders, who happens to be autistic

brand loyalty

“I’m not going to buy anything because I already have everything Apple. I just came for the opening.”

A Chinese fan studying in Germany was the first one in the new Apple Store in Brussels, after standing in line for two days

advantage belgium

“Don’t underestimate the importance of these supporters. It’s fantastic that Belgium has been able to get so far. They could even make the final.”

Tennis legend John McEnroe was in Buizingen to spur Belgium’s Davis Cup tennis fans to greater efforts. (Belgium did make the final.)

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