Leopoldsburg (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The Vlaams Belang party witnessed four municipal councillors step down from their membership to remain independent in political matters. The four municipal councillors who decided to leave Vlaams Belang are Daisy Vandeplas and Chantal Nagels, representing Leopoldsburg, and Mike Corneille and Wendy Hill, serving Beringen.
The Limburg-based municipal councillors Daisy Vandeplas and Chantal Nagels, together with Mike Corneille and Wendy Hill, made a decision to leave Vlaams Belang and go independent.
The municipal councillors Daisy Vandeplas and Chantal Nagels, representing Leopoldsburg, together with Mike Corneille and Wendy Hill from Beringen, made their decision to leave the party because they encountered misogyny and uncooperative behaviour within Vlaams Belang.
Nagels intends to keep her position as a provincial council member by serving independently. Internal conflicts between Vlaams Belang members caused four councillors to resign after they accused the party leadership of bullying members and making sexist remarks without proper support.
This afternoon, more clarity came during a press conference.
“It has been a fierce election battle, and this is a result of it,”
says Nagels.
“We feel wronged as women,”
says Nagels.
“Vlaams Belang Leopoldsburg has long been known as misogynistic and unfortunately that is true.”
“Since last year, when we were chosen to be on the national list and some men were not, we as women have received a lot of trash and sexist comments,”
Vandeplas adds.
“We have raised this several times with the party leadership, but only a few poor mediations have taken place. We as women were not supported. The bullying went very far, even to the point of blackmail and threats.”
“The cooperation in Beringen is simply zero,”
Says Mike Corneille of Vlaams Beringen.
“I am not allowed to participate in faction meetings, we are not informed of anything, it just does not work.”
“I really didn’t know anything about this,”
Saeren responds.
“I will discuss this further internally. I have asked Mike from the beginning to give up his mandate to people who do have the right motivation to sit. We will continue with people who are truly committed to our party and our residents.”
“It’s a shame that they’re leaving in this way, despite the mediation attempts. We’re certainly not misogynistic. I even gave up my seat to a woman,”
Says chairman Ronald Peeters of Vlaams Belang Leopoldsburg.
“This is unprecedented for Leopoldsburg, but we are moving forward as a united party. We can now continue to work constructively on our work in Leopoldsburg. It is a pity that Vlaams Belang is being portrayed in a bad light.”
What is the background behind the Vlaams Belang resignations in Limburg?
The right-wing Flemish nationalist Vlaams Belang party previously dealt with internal conflicts throughout Limburg territory. The party obtained 11.8% of the vote share across Limburg in 2022 while collecting seats in various municipalities. The situation has become more tense, especially regarding leadership positions and gender roles. Last year, a democratic group from Vlaams Belang, known as DSA, formally separated from Vlaams Belang in Hechtel-Eksel because of similar party disputes, which shows persistent internal strife.
Vlaams Belang lost one-third of its council seats in Leopoldsburg after the departure of Nagels and Vandeplas from their council positions. The council seats controlled by Beringen Vlaams Belang decreased to five after Corneille and Hill left their positions. Among Vlaams Belang officials who took office in 2023, only 28% were women, while the total Belgian female elected officials reached 42%.
Internal plantation challenges have hit Vlaams Belang through resignations, while these party members confront gender and teamwork issues.
The party faces increased instability in the upcoming 2024 local elections because further organisational disputes may occur between different branches. Support from the DSA for departing councillors reduces Vlaams Belang’s ability to project a unified political stance because it indicates future political shifts.
