European Parliament Vice-President arrested in Belgium

“Influencing Economic and Political Decisions in the European Parliament”

Four people were arrested in the morning; Parliamentary assistant Eva Caille is Francesco Giorgi’s deputy, as well as an NGO director, Italian trade union leader Luca Vicentini and former MEP Pier-Antonio Panzeri, who sat from 2004 to 2019.

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The Belgian Federal Prosecutor’s Office announced the police operation without identifying or naming the suspects “Gulf StatesWeighing in on these suspicions of corruption. But the same source familiar with the matter confirmed to AFP that it was Qatar, the French-language newspaper said in a joint investigation. the evening and the Flemish Weekly Skill.

The four-month investigation by a Brussels fiscal judge is targeting the facts.Corruption“and”Financial fraudA press release outlined the federal case against organized gangs. It is suspected that this Gulf country “.Influencing the economic and political decisions of the European Parliament, paying large sums or giving important gifts“, he continues. As for the beneficiaries, they “A significant political and/or strategic positionIn Parliament.

Half a million in cash

The police operation led to a total of sixteen searches in various municipalities of the Belgian capital, where the headquarters of the European Parliament are located. During the operation, the police had in their hands “About 600,000 euros in cash“, as well as”Computer equipment and mobile phoneswhose contents will be analyzed. Gifts or benefits offered may be linked to a desire to improve Qatar’s notorious reputation for human rights and its treatment of foreign workers.

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Among those arrested was Luca Visentini, general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC or Ituc in English), who spoke again this week about the situation of workers in Qatar in an interview broadcast by AFP on Friday. This Italian official specifically “Keep up the pressure on officials and employersBetter pay and more job mobility.

In a brief message on its website, the ITUC said “He is aware of the information spread in the press“, but declined to comment.”At this point“. The Socialist Party of Greece (Pazok-Kinal), of which Eva Kaili was a member, he announced that evening in Athens.Waived».

“Historical Change”

The 44-year-old former TV presenter, who is one of the fourteen vice-presidents of the European Parliament, met Qatar’s Labor Minister Ali bin Samik Al Marri in Qatar shortly before the start of the World Cup. On this occasion, the elected representative of Greece, on behalf of the European Union, praised the commitment of Qatar.To pursue labor reformsAccording to a tweet by Union Ambassador to Doha, Christian Tudor.

«Today, the FIFA World Cup in Qatar is concrete evidence of how sports diplomacy can lead to a country’s historic transformation, the reforms that inspired the Arab world.On November 22, Eva Kylie was also announced in the European Parliament’s tribunal. “Qatar is a leader in labor rights“, she said.