Hans Van Themsche
Encyclopedia
Hans Van Themsche was, at age 18, a student who, in the city of Antwerp, shot three people; life-threateningly injuring one and killing two, before being stopped by a police bullet. His conviction of lifelong incarceration for these racism-motivated crimes followed in 2008.
The highly mediatized event drew major public and political attention to responsibilities regarding political presentation of immigrant and racial issues and its possible effects on individuals.
He travelled from Roeselare
to Antwerp where, on the morning of the eleventh, he had his long hair cut and shaven off (apart from a ponytail) before legally purchasing a Marlin
hunting rifle in .30-30 Winchester
and ammunition from a local weapons merchant. About ten minutes before noon, dressed in a Gothic fashion
, he began his rampage in the city centre with a shot in the breast of a woman of Turkish
descent who was seated six metres away on a bench reading a book; Songul Koç was severely wounded. He chambered another round and passed a pregnant Mali
an nanny, Oulemata Niangadou, and her two-year-old European
charge, Luna Drowart. He turned and shot each of them in the back at close range, killing both instantly. While he moved on (presumably looking for more victims) Van Themsche was intercepted by a passing police officer, who held him at gunpoint and ordered him to surrender the rifle. After Van Themsche's refusal to put his weapon down and upon a suspicious movement, the officer fired once, neutralizing him with a shot to the stomach. Later on, the father of the killer would comment: "In my eyes, the policeman who shot down my son is a hero. I'm glad the man had so much courage, or else even more victims would have fallen."
Van Themsche, while being treated in hospital, described himself as a skinhead
and admitted to police – as he had before the murders to boarding school friends – to specifically targeting non-whites. Of the 2-year old (white) child, Van Themsche said she was "in the wrong place at the wrong time". Her death, however, was not incidental, since he had to chamber a new round before each shot. He told his interrogators "the presence near a black was sufficient reason" to kill the toddler. According to his statement, his reason for targeting coloured people is that youths of foreign descent used to bully him at school; that would have been at least three years earlier. A farewell letter found in his room – as he may not have expected to survive – did not declare the premeditated murderous intent to which he confessed but did reveal that he wanted to take action against chaos in society.
On 11 October, a jury of 12 citizens found Van Themsche guilty on all charges pressed against him, including the murder of Oulemata Niangadou and Luna Drowart. They also judged that the murders were motivated by racism. The next day, the jury and the three professional judges of the Court of Assize
sentenced him to 'lifelong incarceration', which by Belgian Penal Law warrants an effective imprisonment exceeding one third of the conviction with longest defined duration (30 years) before an early release and its conditions can be considered. The Court of Cassation
rejected Van Themsche's appeal in February 2008. By June 2009, civil lawsuits at Antwerp had recognized a total of nearly 325,000 euro for damages to victims' families and Songul Koç whom he had caused a permanent professional disability of 55 percent; further treatment costs would add to his dues.
sent a message to the victims' families; the Royal Palace press service explicitly reminded on the King's well-known perspective on racism and violence to have been illuminated in his January speech before the several Institutions of the country. Guy Verhofstadt
was quoted as saying: "These horrific, cowardly murders are a form of extreme racism. It should be clear to everyone now where extreme right can lead to." The president of the European Parliament
, Josep Borrell
, noted that the succession of attacks "shows that the step from xenophobic talk to crime is, unfortunately, possible".
, was a member of parliament for the large far right
party with anti-immigrant rhetoric Vlaams Belang
, immediately brought press attention to the murderer's family background. In World War II
, the twin brothers Van Themsche voluntarily fought on the side of their country's occupier, Nazi Germany
, in Waffen SS uniform against the Soviets
on the Eastern Front
, costing one brother's life and Hans' grandfather Karel a leg; in the sixties he joined the Volksunie, in 1978 following Karel Dillen
into its hard right split-off Vlaams Blok
. Also his children Frieda and Peter, who would about ten years later father Hans, were earliest day members and became militants.
On 12 April, Vlaams Belang MP Alexandra Colen
's husband Paul Beliën
, named a Vlaams Belang ideologist and a publicist, reportedly had called upon the Flemish people to get rid of people of Arab origin in a pamphlet titled 'Give us weapons'. That title referred to a 1963 –then obviously figurative– outcry refutedly ascribed to the later Prime Minister Martens
that was related to disputes between Belgian speakers of Dutch and of French. Beliën withdrew his text upon an official complaint by the Centre for Equal Opportunities and Fight against Racism (CEOFR or CGKR)
.
Public debate targeted the Vlaams Belang party with claims that it was partly morally responsible for the murderous shooting at Antwerp. In addition to their decade-long calls for a tighter immigration policy – including in its previous incarnation as the Vlaams Blok, the removal of Belgian citizens of foreign ethnicity – this party is in favour of armed self defence; except for its principle public figure, Filip Dewinter
, who has specifically distanced himself from this notion in the aftermath of this murder spree
. One month before the latter on the other hand, he had published: "We've had enough of serving as autochthonous chased game. Instead of going through life as scaredy-hares, we should rather become foresters." The used Dutch term for a scaredy-cat refers to the often hunted animal, for a forester to a patrol officer often against poachers and then typically armed with a shotgun (and possibly the less easily perceived 9 mm semiautomatic handgun).
Carl Devos, a political scientist at Ghent University
, reportedly stated: "It's intellectually unfair to blame the act of a lunatic on a political party, whatever his family ties to the Vlaams Belang, but the VB is responsible for creating an atmosphere and popularizing the theme of racial tension."
In a press release on 12 May, the Belgian Movement against Racism, Anti-Semitism, and Xenophobia (MRAX) stated: "This violence does not come from nowhere. It is the result of years of ambiguous or openly racist discourse, which aims to make 'foreigners' responsible for individual frustrations and social misery" and questioned Belgium's continued public financing of political parties such as Vlaams Belang, which, according to MRAX, encouraged the stigmatization of ethnic minorities in Belgium. Four days later the European Network Against Racism
cited that press release and added "Europe must act to address the reality of racism in its societies".
Four days after the murder, Flanders
' main commercial TV station VTM
conducted a poll among 700 Flemings, concerning the political consequences of the murders:
On 18 May, the political parties ocialistische Partij Anders|Socialist Party - Different], Spirit
, Socialist Party
, Reformist Movement and Humanist Democratic Centre filed a complaint against Vlaams Belang with the Belgian Council of State
, attempting to decrease the party's state funding (dotation).
The family of Luna denounced a letter of sympathy from Vlaams Belang, and asked to be left in peace until after the funeral. The African nanny was buried in Mali
, repatriated at the expense of the city of Antwerp. After Luna's funeral, her parents' advocate
asked Vlaams Belang to withdraw a campaign banner that displays a little blond girl, reminding them too much of their daughter, "additionally because the child's killer comes precisely from that environment." A spokesman for Vlaams Belang responded that the party already at its Monday management meeting had decided to remove the banner.
A week after the killings, the polling site De Stemmenkampioen asked its panel: "Is there a connection between the murders committed by Hans Van Themsche and Vlaams Belang?", with response 36% yes, 59% no, 5% unsure.
On 19 May on Canvas
TV, foreign minister Karel De Gucht
held "not only the extreme right Vlaams Belang party" but "also the voters of this party" responsible "for the climate of racism" in which the murders took place.
and several hundred locals followed the family of Oulemata Niangadou and representatives of African and Turkish organisations in a silent march towards the spots of the shootings on the morning thereafter. Amongst speeches held, the president of the city's Council for the Policy regarding Ethnical and Cultural Minorities, Georges Kamanayo, accused "the leaders of extreme right parties" of moral complicity.
An impromptu peaceful protest against Vlaams Belang organized on 15 May at Brussels held the traditional minute of silence for Van Themsche's victims.
During the night of 16–17 May 2006, a Molotov cocktail
was thrown into the head office of the Flemish nationalist youth organisation Vlaams Nationaal Jeugdverbond (VNJ) in Berchem
that has links to the Vlaams Belang. A Turkish
courier could quickly extinguish the fire, especially as the apartment above the office was inhabited (as it turned out, by the mother of New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) president Bart De Wever
).
In the wake of the murders, the government tried to take action against Flemish entries on websites where it judged hate and racism to be spread, such as Stormfront
. This proved difficult, because the sites are American and protected by the First Amendment
.
The case expedited a law that halted the possibility of weapon buys on impulse.
In July 2007, a municipal decree came in effect that forbids the display of weapons in Antwerp shop windows. The Governor of the Province rejected the appeal filed by arms dealer Lang, who had sold Van Themsche the murder weapon.
On 10 May 2008, the Standaard Uitgeverij
published justice reporter Gust Verwerft's book De Zaak Hans Van Themsche (The Case of Hans Van Themsche) (ISBN 9789002223617).
The highly mediatized event drew major public and political attention to responsibilities regarding political presentation of immigrant and racial issues and its possible effects on individuals.
Course of events
Van Themsche had been caught smoking at his boarding school on 9 May 2006, and was facing likely expulsion.He travelled from Roeselare
Roeselare
Roeselare is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Roeselare proper and the towns of Beveren, Oekene and Rumbeke....
to Antwerp where, on the morning of the eleventh, he had his long hair cut and shaven off (apart from a ponytail) before legally purchasing a Marlin
Marlin
Marlin, family Istiophoridae, are fish with an elongated body, a spear-like snout or bill, and a long rigid dorsal fin, which extends forward to form a crest. Its common name is thought to derive from its resemblance to a sailor's marlinspike...
hunting rifle in .30-30 Winchester
.30-30 Winchester
The .30-30 Winchester/.30 Winchester Center Fire/7.62×51mmR cartridge was first marketed in early 1895 for the Winchester Model 1894 lever-action rifle. The .30-30 , as it is most commonly known, was the USA's first small-bore, sporting rifle cartridge designed for smokeless powder. The .30-30 is...
and ammunition from a local weapons merchant. About ten minutes before noon, dressed in a Gothic fashion
Gothic fashion
Gothic fashion is a clothing style worn by members of the Goth subculture; a dark, sometimes morbid, eroticized fashion and style of dress. Typical Gothic fashion includes dyed black hair, black lips and black clothes. Both male and female goths wear dark eyeliner and dark fingernails. Styles are...
, he began his rampage in the city centre with a shot in the breast of a woman of Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
descent who was seated six metres away on a bench reading a book; Songul Koç was severely wounded. He chambered another round and passed a pregnant Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
an nanny, Oulemata Niangadou, and her two-year-old European
European ethnic groups
The ethnic groups in Europe are the various ethnic groups that reside in the nations of Europe. European ethnology is the field of anthropology focusing on Europe....
charge, Luna Drowart. He turned and shot each of them in the back at close range, killing both instantly. While he moved on (presumably looking for more victims) Van Themsche was intercepted by a passing police officer, who held him at gunpoint and ordered him to surrender the rifle. After Van Themsche's refusal to put his weapon down and upon a suspicious movement, the officer fired once, neutralizing him with a shot to the stomach. Later on, the father of the killer would comment: "In my eyes, the policeman who shot down my son is a hero. I'm glad the man had so much courage, or else even more victims would have fallen."
Van Themsche, while being treated in hospital, described himself as a skinhead
Skinhead
A skinhead is a member of a subculture that originated among working class youths in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, and then spread to other parts of the world. Named for their close-cropped or shaven heads, the first skinheads were greatly influenced by West Indian rude boys and British mods,...
and admitted to police – as he had before the murders to boarding school friends – to specifically targeting non-whites. Of the 2-year old (white) child, Van Themsche said she was "in the wrong place at the wrong time". Her death, however, was not incidental, since he had to chamber a new round before each shot. He told his interrogators "the presence near a black was sufficient reason" to kill the toddler. According to his statement, his reason for targeting coloured people is that youths of foreign descent used to bully him at school; that would have been at least three years earlier. A farewell letter found in his room – as he may not have expected to survive – did not declare the premeditated murderous intent to which he confessed but did reveal that he wanted to take action against chaos in society.
On 11 October, a jury of 12 citizens found Van Themsche guilty on all charges pressed against him, including the murder of Oulemata Niangadou and Luna Drowart. They also judged that the murders were motivated by racism. The next day, the jury and the three professional judges of the Court of Assize
Court of Assize (Belgium)
The Court of Assize, in Belgium is very similar to the French court of the same name. It has jurisdiction over all felonies that haven't been correctionalised, over political offences and press-related offences, except those inspired by racism or xenophobia, and over crimes of international law,...
sentenced him to 'lifelong incarceration', which by Belgian Penal Law warrants an effective imprisonment exceeding one third of the conviction with longest defined duration (30 years) before an early release and its conditions can be considered. The Court of Cassation
Court of Cassation (Belgium)
The Court of Cassation is the main court of last resort in Belgium.It was originally modelled after the French Cour de cassation. Its jurisdiction and powers are similar to those of its French counterpart....
rejected Van Themsche's appeal in February 2008. By June 2009, civil lawsuits at Antwerp had recognized a total of nearly 325,000 euro for damages to victims' families and Songul Koç whom he had caused a permanent professional disability of 55 percent; further treatment costs would add to his dues.
Early declarations
The King and the Prime Minister reacted within hours: Albert IIAlbert II of Belgium
Albert II is the current reigning King of the Belgians, a constitutional monarch. He is a member of the royal house "of Belgium"; formerly this house was named Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...
sent a message to the victims' families; the Royal Palace press service explicitly reminded on the King's well-known perspective on racism and violence to have been illuminated in his January speech before the several Institutions of the country. Guy Verhofstadt
Guy Verhofstadt
Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :...
was quoted as saying: "These horrific, cowardly murders are a form of extreme racism. It should be clear to everyone now where extreme right can lead to." The president of the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
, Josep Borrell
Josep Borrell
Josep Borrell Fontelles is a Spanish politician. He was nominated President of the European University Institute on 12 December 2008, and assumed this position in January 2010. Borrell was President of the European Parliament from 20 July 2004 until 16 January 2007...
, noted that the succession of attacks "shows that the step from xenophobic talk to crime is, unfortunately, possible".
Murderer's background and alleged responsibility of Vlaams Belang and its voters
Though the Antwerp public prosecutors said "on first investigation of his environment and family [Hans] seems not to be brought up in a racialist or violent setting" and the family became described as "well-behaved" and as having an "impeccable Flemish-nationalist pedigree" — the fact that the gunman's aunt, Frieda Van ThemscheFrieda Van Themsche
Frieda Leontine Mauritia Van Themsche has been a member of the Belgian federal parliament.-1955-2003:Her father and his brother fought together in the Second World War on the Eastern Front on the side of the Germans against the Soviet Union. The brother has never been retrieved, but her father...
, was a member of parliament for the large far right
Far right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
party with anti-immigrant rhetoric Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang is a Belgian far-right political party in the Flemish Region and Brussels that advocates the independence of Flanders and strict limits on immigration, whereby immigrants would be obliged to adopt Flemish culture and language...
, immediately brought press attention to the murderer's family background. In World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the twin brothers Van Themsche voluntarily fought on the side of their country's occupier, Nazi Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, in Waffen SS uniform against the Soviets
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
, costing one brother's life and Hans' grandfather Karel a leg; in the sixties he joined the Volksunie, in 1978 following Karel Dillen
Karel Dillen
Karel Cornelia Constentijn Dillen was a Flemish politician and a Flemish nationalist. In 1977 he established the Vlaams Nationale Partij , which became Vlaams Blok at the elections of 1978...
into its hard right split-off Vlaams Blok
Vlaams Blok
The Vlaams Blok was a Belgian far-right and secessionist political party with an anti-immigration platform. Its ideologies embraced Flemish nationalism, calling for the independence of Flanders. From its creation in 1978, it was the most notable militant right wing of the Flemish movement. Vlaams...
. Also his children Frieda and Peter, who would about ten years later father Hans, were earliest day members and became militants.
On 12 April, Vlaams Belang MP Alexandra Colen
Alexandra Colen
Alexandra Maria Catherine Colen is a Belgian politician. She is member of the Belgian Federal Parliament for the Vlaams Belang party since 21 May 1995...
's husband Paul Beliën
Paul Belien
Paul Belien, born 1959, is a Flemish journalist and founder of the conservative-libertarian blog The Brussels Journal.Belien is both known as both a pro-American and a prolific writer and author...
, named a Vlaams Belang ideologist and a publicist, reportedly had called upon the Flemish people to get rid of people of Arab origin in a pamphlet titled 'Give us weapons'. That title referred to a 1963 –then obviously figurative– outcry refutedly ascribed to the later Prime Minister Martens
Wilfried Martens
Wilfried Martens is a Belgian politician. He was born in Sleidinge . Martens was the 44th Prime Minister of Belgium from 3 April 1979 to 6 April 1981 and 17 December 1981 to 7 March 1992....
that was related to disputes between Belgian speakers of Dutch and of French. Beliën withdrew his text upon an official complaint by the Centre for Equal Opportunities and Fight against Racism (CEOFR or CGKR)
Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism
The Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism , also referred to as Centre for Equal Opportunities and Fight against Racism or translated as Centre for Equal Opportunities and Struggle against Racism The Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism (CEOOR), also referred...
.
Public debate targeted the Vlaams Belang party with claims that it was partly morally responsible for the murderous shooting at Antwerp. In addition to their decade-long calls for a tighter immigration policy – including in its previous incarnation as the Vlaams Blok, the removal of Belgian citizens of foreign ethnicity – this party is in favour of armed self defence; except for its principle public figure, Filip Dewinter
Filip Dewinter
Philip Michel Frans "Filip" Dewinter is a Flemish politician in Belgium. He is one of the leading members of Vlaams Belang, a right-wing Flemish nationalist and secessionist political party...
, who has specifically distanced himself from this notion in the aftermath of this murder spree
Spree killer
A spree killer is someone who embarks on a murderous assault on two or more victims in a short time in multiple locations. The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics defines a spree killing as "killings at two or more locations with almost no time break between murders."-Definition:According to the...
. One month before the latter on the other hand, he had published: "We've had enough of serving as autochthonous chased game. Instead of going through life as scaredy-hares, we should rather become foresters." The used Dutch term for a scaredy-cat refers to the often hunted animal, for a forester to a patrol officer often against poachers and then typically armed with a shotgun (and possibly the less easily perceived 9 mm semiautomatic handgun).
Carl Devos, a political scientist at Ghent University
Ghent University
Ghent University is a Dutch-speaking public university located in Ghent, Belgium. It is one of the larger Flemish universities, consisting of 32,000 students and 7,100 staff members. The current rector is Paul Van Cauwenberge.It was established in 1817 by King William I of the Netherlands...
, reportedly stated: "It's intellectually unfair to blame the act of a lunatic on a political party, whatever his family ties to the Vlaams Belang, but the VB is responsible for creating an atmosphere and popularizing the theme of racial tension."
In a press release on 12 May, the Belgian Movement against Racism, Anti-Semitism, and Xenophobia (MRAX) stated: "This violence does not come from nowhere. It is the result of years of ambiguous or openly racist discourse, which aims to make 'foreigners' responsible for individual frustrations and social misery" and questioned Belgium's continued public financing of political parties such as Vlaams Belang, which, according to MRAX, encouraged the stigmatization of ethnic minorities in Belgium. Four days later the European Network Against Racism
European Network Against Racism
The European Network Against Racism is a coalition of over 600 EU NGOs working to promote equality of treatment within the member states...
cited that press release and added "Europe must act to address the reality of racism in its societies".
Four days after the murder, Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
' main commercial TV station VTM
Vlaamse Televisie Maatschappij
vtm or Vlaamse Televisie Maatschappij is the main commercial television station in Flanders, the Dutch-speaking north of Belgium.It went live in 1989 and quickly became the Flemish market leader...
conducted a poll among 700 Flemings, concerning the political consequences of the murders:
- Is Vlaams Belang morally responsible for the murders? 24% yes, 46% no, 30% unsure
- Will Vlaams Belang suffer in the next election? 37% yes, 34% no, 28% unsure
- Should government funding to Vlaams Belang be cut? 30% yes, 50% no, 30% unsure // 30+50+30 = 110% !!!
On 18 May, the political parties ocialistische Partij Anders|Socialist Party - Different], Spirit
Spirit (Belgium)
' was a Belgian Flemish political party formed after dissolution of the moderate nationalist People's Union party. Prior to 19 April 2008 it was known as Spirit, and intermediately as Flemish Progressives...
, Socialist Party
Socialist Party (francophone Belgium)
The Socialist Party is a Francophone social-democratic political party in Belgium. As of the 2010 elections, it is the second largest party in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and the largest Francophone party...
, Reformist Movement and Humanist Democratic Centre filed a complaint against Vlaams Belang with the Belgian Council of State
Council of State (Belgium)
Council of State , in Belgium, is an organ of the Belgian government: it is the Supreme Administrative Court of Belgium. Its functions include assisting the executive with legal advice and being the supreme court for administrative justice...
, attempting to decrease the party's state funding (dotation).
The family of Luna denounced a letter of sympathy from Vlaams Belang, and asked to be left in peace until after the funeral. The African nanny was buried in Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
, repatriated at the expense of the city of Antwerp. After Luna's funeral, her parents' advocate
Advocate
An advocate is a term for a professional lawyer used in several different legal systems. These include Scotland, South Africa, India, Scandinavian jurisdictions, Israel, and the British Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man...
asked Vlaams Belang to withdraw a campaign banner that displays a little blond girl, reminding them too much of their daughter, "additionally because the child's killer comes precisely from that environment." A spokesman for Vlaams Belang responded that the party already at its Monday management meeting had decided to remove the banner.
A week after the killings, the polling site De Stemmenkampioen asked its panel: "Is there a connection between the murders committed by Hans Van Themsche and Vlaams Belang?", with response 36% yes, 59% no, 5% unsure.
On 19 May on Canvas
Canvas TV Station
Canvas is a Belgian television channel, which forms part of the Flemish public broadcasting organisation Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep . Specialising in both original and adaptations from western Europe and North America, the channel offers: in-depth news and current affairs, non-mainstream...
TV, foreign minister Karel De Gucht
Karel De Gucht
Karel Lodewijk Georgette Emmerence De Gucht is a Belgian politician who has been the European Commissioner for Trade since 2010...
held "not only the extreme right Vlaams Belang party" but "also the voters of this party" responsible "for the climate of racism" in which the murders took place.
Aftermath
Mayor Patrick JanssensPatrick Janssens
Patrick Janssens is a Belgian politician, born on 19 September 1956. He is a member of the SP.a and currently mayor of the port city Antwerp.- Career :...
and several hundred locals followed the family of Oulemata Niangadou and representatives of African and Turkish organisations in a silent march towards the spots of the shootings on the morning thereafter. Amongst speeches held, the president of the city's Council for the Policy regarding Ethnical and Cultural Minorities, Georges Kamanayo, accused "the leaders of extreme right parties" of moral complicity.
An impromptu peaceful protest against Vlaams Belang organized on 15 May at Brussels held the traditional minute of silence for Van Themsche's victims.
During the night of 16–17 May 2006, a Molotov cocktail
Molotov cocktail
The Molotov cocktail, also known as the petrol bomb, gasoline bomb, Molotov bomb, fire bottle, fire bomb, or simply Molotov, is a generic name used for a variety of improvised incendiary weapons...
was thrown into the head office of the Flemish nationalist youth organisation Vlaams Nationaal Jeugdverbond (VNJ) in Berchem
Berchem
The 'Ring', Antwerp's circular motorway which follows the track of the former city defense walls, cuts Berchem in two parts, separating the urban inner city area of Oud-Berchem from the more residential and suburban areas Groenenhoek en Nieuw Kwartier .-Demography:Berchem's total surface is over ,...
that has links to the Vlaams Belang. A Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
courier could quickly extinguish the fire, especially as the apartment above the office was inhabited (as it turned out, by the mother of New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) president Bart De Wever
Bart De Wever
Bart Albert Liliane De Wever is a Belgian politician and since 2004 has been the president of the New Flemish Alliance , a Flemish party that strives for an independent Flanders in a united Europe. He has also been a member of the Flemish parliament since 2004...
).
In the wake of the murders, the government tried to take action against Flemish entries on websites where it judged hate and racism to be spread, such as Stormfront
Stormfront (website)
Stormfront is a white nationalist and supremacist neo-Nazi Internet forum that has been described as the Internet's first major hate site.Stormfront began as an online bulletin board system in the early 1990s before being established as a website in 1995 by former Ku Klux Klan leader and white...
. This proved difficult, because the sites are American and protected by the First Amendment
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
.
The case expedited a law that halted the possibility of weapon buys on impulse.
In July 2007, a municipal decree came in effect that forbids the display of weapons in Antwerp shop windows. The Governor of the Province rejected the appeal filed by arms dealer Lang, who had sold Van Themsche the murder weapon.
On 10 May 2008, the Standaard Uitgeverij
Standaard Uitgeverij
Standaard Uitgeverij is a Belgian publisher, and the leading publisher in the Dutch language market of Flanders.-History:In 1919, the Standaard group was created, mainly consisting of a chain of bookshops , a newspaper and a publishing house, the Standaard Uitgeverij...
published justice reporter Gust Verwerft's book De Zaak Hans Van Themsche (The Case of Hans Van Themsche) (ISBN 9789002223617).
External links
- 'Antwerp Massacre: Turning the World into Hell', P. Beliën (see also this WP article), The Brussels JournalThe Brussels JournalThe Brussels Journal is a conservative blog, founded by the Flemish journalist Paul Beliën. It was founded in 2005, and has both an English language section with various international contributions, and a Dutch section...
, 12 May 2006 - 'Terror in the park', Al Ahram Weekly, 18 May 2006, article by Khaled Diab on the political exchange of fire that took place in the wake of the shootings.
- Media technologies and democracy in an enlarged Europe (The intellectual work of the 2007 European media and communication doctoral Summer school) (Programme supported by the Socrates Erasmus IP project, the European Communication Research and Education Association, the University of TartuUniversity of TartuThe University of Tartu is a classical university in the city of Tartu, Estonia. University of Tartu is the national university of Estonia; it is the biggest and highest-ranked university in Estonia...
and a consortium of 19 universities) chapter: '4. Case-study: Blogs, online forums, public spaces and the extreme right in North Belgium' (including '4.2.2. The murder of Oulematou Niangadou and Luna Drowart'), Bart Cammaerts, Tartu University PressTartu University PressTartu University Press is a university press publishing house that is part of Tartu University, Estonia.The press was founded in 1632. It is the largest university press in Estonia....
2007, ISSN 1736-3918 (print) ISBN 9789949117444 (print) ISSN 1736-4752 (PDF) ISBN 9789949117451 (PDF)