Brussels, Belgium, 22 September, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Climate campaigners targeted the opening of the Brussels Parliament’s new session on Monday, with dozens of Klimaatzaak supporters standing in the public gallery to demand implementation of Belgium’s landmark climate judgment. The action by Brussels climate activists launched a wider campaign aimed at increasing political pressure on authorities over emissions policy.
Brussels climate activists launch All Rise campaign
The demonstration took place as regional MPs returned for the new parliamentary year. Bertin Mampaka Mankamba was re-elected president of the Brussels Parliament during Monday’s opening session.
Klimaatzaak said the parliamentary action marked the start of its All Rise campaign, which is focused on turning the existing court judgment into government action. The organisation’s campaign page says it intends to demonstrate at the Flemish, Brussels and Federal parliaments.
Sarah Tak, director of Klimaatzaak, told BRUZZ: “Citizens have taken their responsibility and gone to court. The judge has spoken. Now it is up to politics to do its part.”
Activists demand implementation of 2023 ruling
The campaign centres on a November 2023 judgment by the Brussels Court of Appeal.
The court required Belgium’s federal government, Flanders and the Brussels-Capital Region to take measures aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 compared with 1990 levels.
Klimaatzaak argues that the authorities have still not adequately implemented that judgment. Its All Rise campaign states that Belgian authorities were ordered to pursue more ambitious climate policies but says the ruling is not being enforced.
Tak stressed the organisation’s legal argument, telling BRUZZ: “The climate judgment is not a non-binding recommendation, but a legal obligation.” She said respecting judicial decisions was a fundamental principle of the democratic rule of law.
Climate protests coincide with parliamentary return
Monday’s action came only days after Greenpeace Belgium targeted the reopening of the federal parliament on 17 September.
Greenpeace activists unfurled a 22-metre banner reading “Our house is on fire, start acting like it”, while other campaigners staged an action inside the parliament. Greenpeace said the demonstration was intended to push climate policy back onto the political agenda following the summer.
The two demonstrations show environmental organisations using the start of Belgium’s parliamentary year to renew pressure on elected representatives, although the groups organised separate campaigns.
What happens next?
Klimaatzaak says All Rise will extend beyond the parliamentary opening. Its campaign material confirms participation in the 11 October climate march, where it plans to organise its own campaign bloc.
The group is also calling on Brussels MPs to scrutinise ministers over implementation of the climate judgment and seek clarity about how and when the required measures will be delivered.
