A first Belgian repatriation flight took place Friday afternoon from Morocco, on which 264 compatriots were able to take their places, said Saturday the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defense Philippe Goffin (MR). Another plane will leave Casablanca this Saturday afternoon to land at Brussels Airport in the evening. Three more flights are still planned for next week. For its part, the platform “Belgian-Moroccans stranded in Morocco“said that he had received several alerts from citizens who had received a negative response regarding their repatriation to Belgium.
Repatriations take place in several phases from Casablanca, given the closure of other airports, specify the Foreign Affairs. Buses have therefore been specially chartered to allow Belgians across the country to reach this city.
Agreement with the Moroccan authorities
The Belgian embassy in Rabat was contacted by around 4,500 people, including 3,400 Belgians who wanted to return to Belgium. To take into account this repatriation of a humanitarian nature, however, one must be resident in Belgium and be able to demonstrate this humanitarian, either medical or social, points out Minister Goffin. The Moroccan authorities, who closed the airspace more than a month ago and established a curfew, accepted this repatriation as long as these conditions were met.
About 1,500 Belgians had such evidence, which was submitted to the Moroccan authorities for approval. Some 1,200 compatriots had also returned from Morocco in March.
Many people on the floor
It is a complex issue that needs to be treated calmly and with mutual respect, insist Foreign Affairs, stressing that diplomacy is part of a legal framework and that Belgium must respect international agreements.
For its part, the platform “Belgian-Moroccans stranded in Morocco“said he received several alerts from citizens who received a negative response regarding their repatriation to Belgium.”More than 1,000 negative emails were sent this morning revealing the identity of more than 1,000 people. It’s a sign of amateurism and an invasion of the privacy of the people we condemn“, say the leaders of the collective.
The collective also claims that people repatriated to Brussels on Friday May 1 received a negative repatriation email, while they are already in Belgium.
The organization said it received an apology from Minister Goffin on Saturday morning, saying it was “a human error in handling emails“.
The collective also points to others “muddles“, like children stranded in Morocco, while one of the parents was repatriated. The platform reiterated its request for a general repatriation for the date of May 10, 2020.
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