King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the Belgians visited an emergency shelter for Ukrainian refugees managed by FEDASIL, the Belgian Federal Agency for the reception of asylum seekers.
Their Majesties arrived in the structure on Wednesday, 9th March 2022, after making the short journey from Brussels to Sint-Jans-Molenbeek, a small municipality on the outskirts of the Belgian Capital.
The King and Queen first met with members of the organisation working in the structure under the umbrella of FEDASIL, including the Belgian branch of the Red Cross and volunteers, as well as officials from various government entities. During the visit, they were also accompanied by the Secretary of State, Sammy Mahdi.
The royal couple then got a chance to speak with the refugees hosted in the structure, who are fleeing in ever increasing numbers from conflict zones in Ukraine.
The King and Queen were so touched by the stories they heard that, once the visit was concluded, they used their social media accounts to release a statement in four languages (Dutch, French, German and English) to express their feelings about what they witnessed.
The statement reads: “The war in Ukraine is a humanitarian crisis on a scale not seen in Europe since the Second World War. The anguish of the families we met today is very tangible. Their stories are heartbreaking. We are deeply moved by the solidarity of our fellow citizens in welcoming refugees from Ukraine. We express out support for the Ukrainian people and hope that this war will end as soon as possible”.
While the statement makes no mention of the aggressor, it is clear that Belgium knows where things stand. The Russian Federation has recently passed a law restricting media coverage of what they want referred to as “special military operation”. Calling it a war or an invasion can warrant a sentence of up to 15 years in prison for the journalist and their superiors, so to read the word “war” in a Royal statement makes it even more powerful.
Queen Mathilde has always been closely interested in helping those affected by conflict and the humanitarian crises that derive from that. She has made countless trips to promote Belgian humanitarian efforts, and she is an Ambassador for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, one of which is to reduce conflict around the globe to allow safe access to essential services, such as food and clean water, and medical care.
