How Belgium split into two camps

Belgium, like many other countries, was divided into anti-axers and supporters of vaccination.

New pre-Christmas measures against coronavirus, which are introduced in some European countries, caused massive protests population. Especially actively, with clashes with the police, they took place in the Netherlands and Belgium. However, many demonstrators are not at all opposed to vaccination, as such – they want freedom of choice. Alexandre de Crewe, Prime Minister of Belgium, responded to the demands of the protesters:

Of course, we are a free country with free thinking and the right to demonstrate. But if such a demonstration ends in a wave of violence, this is unacceptable. It is especially unacceptable when this wave of violence is directed against the police.

Correspondent Euronews visited the Brussels vaccination center. Ana Lazaro tried to find out the opinion of ordinary people about the vaccination and the third dose. In this center, citizens over 65 years of age, on a voluntary basis, get the third vaccination. After revaccination reaches the elderly, in the spring it will be offered to all other residents of the country. When asked by a reporter about whether it is necessary to make vaccinations mandatory, as in Austria, opinions were divided:

“At the moment there is a global pandemic, and those who do not want to get sick and infect others should be vaccinated. And if we see that this does not work out, then we will have to make vaccines mandatory.” “Not obligatory, but by agreement, so that people themselves can get out of this difficult period.”

Yves Copieter, an epidemiologist at the Free University of Brussels, notes the apparent ideological division of society:

“We are in a situation where the population is divided into those who support the vaccines and those who are against them, into supporters of vaccines and antivaxers. We know that taking these restrictive steps by all residents will limit the damage from the current outbreak. the most vulnerable people first, but everyone needs to be convinced of the need for vaccination. It is difficult to find the right balance at the political level, but we know that additional measures are needed at the health system level. These measures should take into account the sensitivity of the population to gestures that they consider unnecessarily harsh. ” …

A local doctor working at the center said that while he was convinced that the vaccine was harmless, he was not yet ready to support mandatory vaccinations and awaited strong evidence of its long-term effectiveness. Euronews interlocutors supported the idea of ​​launching a comprehensive public discussion to find out if everyone in Belgium is ready to receive regular Covid-19 vaccinations.

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