2023-12-15 08:28:00
In 2019, Theo Francken had the best penetration rate in the Chamber. The N-VA deputy still benefited from the popularity acquired during his time at the federal level as Secretary of State in charge of Asylum and Migration. Four years later, its visibility is no longer the same but its popularity remains significant. In the Senate smoking room, this room in which one could still sip a cognac and enjoy a cigar at the time when he made his debut as a deputy, Brabançon takes stock of his career.
N-VA lists in Wallonia: “Theo Francken is popular in Hainaut, but a party can only rely on one person”
Do you think you can achieve the same penetration rate in 2024 as in 2019?
“No. Bart (De Wever, Editor’s note) will win now. In the last elections he was on the list of the Flemish Parliament. That’s the only reason I won this championship. In 2019, I was Secretary of State. Today, I am much more in the shadows. I am no longer in the newspapers every day. I worked on Defense, published a book on NATO and became vice-president of the NATO parliamentary assembly. This is the first time in 70 years that a Belgian has this honor. Will it benefit me? In the polls, I remain very popular in any case. What I observe, on the other hand, is that the liberal electorate is super disappointed with Open VLD.”
Is this interesting for the N-VA?
”Yes, because there is a lot of pressure coming from Vlaams Belang on our electorate. It is important to be clear. Giving your vote to Vlaams Belang, at the federal level, is useless because the French-speaking parties will never agree to negotiate with them. A voice for them is a lost voice.”
For Theo Francken, Vlaams Belang has many points in common with the N-VA. ©cameriere ennio
On certain subjects, is the VB on the same line as the N-VA? On migration, for example?
“Of course. We are center-right, they are very, very right-wing. But on some points we say pretty much the same thing. When they say that we must work on irregular migration, they say the same thing as me. When the VB says we need an Australian model…that’s what I’ve been saying for years. I see that Vlaams Belang follows our line on many issues. The big difference is that they are ethnic nationalists while we are civic nationalists. Filip Dewinter uses a metaphor: “A cat born in a fish market remains a cat”. For them, a person whose family is from Africa who was born here remains an African. That’s not what we’re saying. For someone born here, their history, background, origin or ethnicity are irrelevant. What matters is the future he wants to build with us.”
How do you judge the migration policy pursued by the De Croo government?
”It’s a total disaster. The PS attacked me for four years when I was Secretary of State. Three years later, what do we see? 23,000 people are waiting for a response to their asylum request. They have to wait more than two years for a response to their asylum application. This is the longest waiting list in Belgian history. Vivaldi has received more than 8,000 convictions from the Court for non-compliance with the right to asylum. They have been convicted more than 100 times by the Human Rights Court in Strasbourg. Me, zero. These parties which came to give us moral lessons have shown that their policy is absolutely not humane.”
Vivaldi is counting heavily on the Belgian presidency of the European Union to bring the migration pact to fruition. Do you think this could bring change?
“The migration pact is like mopping the floor while the tap remains completely open. We will never address the problem of massive irregular immigration in the Mediterranean in this way. What’s happening now is like the Hunger Games. For those who arrive, it’s like winning the lottery. But those who don’t make it die in the Mediterranean. It’s super cynical. I don’t understand how someone on the left can defend such an inhumane model. Thousands of people drown in the Mediterranean. And it’s only increasing. This is why I am pleading for an Australian model, with a military blockade in the Mediterranean which will no longer allow traffickers to pass. If we don’t resolve this problem now, we will have substantial problems in the European Union over the next few years.”
Do you think this situation will get worse?
“When we see the demographic explosion in Africa, it is absolutely certain that migratory pressure on our external borders will increase.”
The migration crisis will only get worse, announces Theo Francken. And this will have a decisive impact on politics in the years to come. ©cameriere ennio
If you join a federal coalition in 2024, will you make migration an object of negotiation?
”Of course it is necessary.”
Would you be ready to join a government with the PS?
”First, it is obvious that we need a “reset” of the country. We need a confederal model where we decide together what we still want to do together and all other skills will go to the regional or community level. Diplomacy and defense remain matters for the federal government. The country remains Belgium, but we must stop having heterogeneous skill sets. Second, the migration challenges are immense. In Flanders, there is a great consensus on the issue. Even Vooruit has changed his position. The Flemish socialists are on the Scandinavian line, they do not want total chaos. The PS is something else. Already, there is the Brussels PS and the Walloon PS. These are two separate elements. The questions that arise within the Brussels PS – secularism, integration – are interesting. With Ecolo, it’s more difficult. Ecolo has a super naive, unreal worldview. But the dream is over in Europe. In Flanders, there is a great desire to do something about migration. Talking about socio-economic reforms with the PS remains difficult. The visions are fundamentally different. However, if we do not obtain a big agreement in 2024, we will miss the last opportunity to do so. Vlaams Belang and the PTB take a lot of votes. In 2029, we may no longer even have the opportunity to compromise. So I absolutely want to appeal to everyone’s responsibility. We must vote for serious parties who still want to work together. The N-VA is one of these parties.”
Projections give more than 30 seats for Vlaams Belang in the Flemish Parliament…
”Even in the House, it is possible. In 2014, the N-VA obtained 34 seats. The VB could approach this result. And we, in the center, could have 20 or 25.”
Is this why your president, Bart De Wever, announced that he was going to launch lists in Wallonia? Do we already know more? Do you already have names for this list?
”I defend this project because I am sure that many Walloons and Brussels residents are sensitive to our discourse on migration, on security, on correct justice, on communitarianism… We have a lot in common with Wallonia. But I can’t reveal the name yet. Bart De Wever is currently working on this script. What I can tell you is that a lot of people have sent us their CVs. We received a lot of emails saying, ‘Hey, I’m interested’.”
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We will have to sort…
“We have to be vigilant because there are a lot of opportunists and that’s not what we need. We need people who believe in our project and who really want to take a step forward with the N-VA and not just with their personal career. It’s not the same thing.”
Are your projects federal or international?
”The federal government. I will draw the list in Flemish Brabant. For me, creating a federal government is necessary, but not at any cost. We will negotiate, we will be statesmen and we will seek a compromise with the French speakers. French speakers must understand that it is better to have an agreement with the N-VA rather than continuing to follow the current trajectory. Otherwise, it will end very badly. And in 2029, it’s going to be a total clash.”
So Vivaldi’s record is so bad?
“Disastrous. Where is the tax reform? Zero. Migration reform? Not ready. Community reform? Zero. Pension reform? Zero. Employment reform? Zero. We cannot say that the expansion of flexijobs is a reform of the labor market. They have done nothing on the major challenges. This is what the European Commission says. All reports point to the lack of structural reforms. We have the worst budget in the European Union after Slovakia. We will have to be very responsible and vigilant with the next government because there is no longer any support in Flanders for the current government. Look at all the Flemish party presidents who played Vivaldi: they all jumped. It’s incredible !”
This is a fairly pessimistic observation for 2024.
”This is a realistic observation. The world has changed. We have a conflict in Ukraine for which there is no short-term solution. There is a conflict in the Middle East which is extremely polarizing our society. There is the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Wagner’s militias are growing in the Sahel. And we left Mali and Niger. The presence of the West in Africa is decreasing drastically. The borders of Europe are surrounded by flames. The geopolitical situation is extremely urgent and problematic. We must not be pessimistic, but realistic. We must never lose hope, but we must be vigilant and increase our resilience, that’s for sure.”
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