Brussels: Stop the eviction of the Zone Neutre collective

This Friday, October 17, we expect more than 100 police officers on the sidewalk of the building of the Zone Neutre collective to put its 70 residents, including 18 children, on the street when the sun rises. The building was empty and will remain empty for a long time. We will not accept this! Show your solidarity and come to Brussels to stop the deportations.

Since March, a group of undocumented people has been occupying a former building of the liberal union. The group of people is united behind the collective Zone Neutre and fights for the regularization of all, against racism and against closed borders and closed centers. Since the arrival of the collective, they have been organizing activities, film screenings, language lessons, lectures and more on the square in front of the building. A place that previously struggled with many social problems comes alive in the presence of the collective and becomes a place of encounter and solidarity.

The current owner of the building, Morad El Aisaoui, is a Dutch businessman and owner of several hotels in Amsterdam. He also plans to turn this building into a hotel, but does not yet have a permit or building plans for it. There are already three hotels on the square, one more luxurious than the other, while the district has barely 4% social housing. A new hotel is therefore far from what the residents of the district need, so the neighborhood decides to oppose gentrification and in solidarity with the struggle of the Zone Neutre. [Read More]

Brussels: new eviction postponed for the Collectif Zone Neutre

On Wednesday, August 27, the mobilization paid off! The police and the bailiff were unable to pass the tight ranks of people present in front of the building at Square de l’Aviation in Anderlecht. Thank you and congratulations to all. It’s a victory in a long battle for dignity and housing: we remain mobilized for the future. The day before, the mayor had refused to take part in preventing this eviction on the pretext that a complaint had been filed by the owner for non-execution of police orders, even though the hearing has been postponed to November 3 and there has therefore been no judgment.

Nordin Amrabat involved in eviction of 70 people in Brussels

Collective Zone Neutre, a collective of 70 people in Brussels, has been threatened with another eviction on August 27. The Dutch owners of the building refuse to enter into talks with the collective to reach an agreement. Brussels is therefore reaching out to the Netherlands for international solidarity to put pressure on the footballer Nordin Amrabat, the business partner of the company FMM Holding BV. [Read More]