Emir Kir, member of the Parti Socialiste (PS) [Socialist Party] and bourgmestre [mayor] of Saint-Josse, may have threatened other candidates to get them to withdraw from electoral lists.
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A new polemic is surrounding the bourgmestre [mayor] of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode (Brussels), Emir Kir, who has Turkish origins and is a member of the Socialist Party. According to some people, he may have pressured and threatened other candidates to stop them from running for the upcoming communal celebrations, taking place in October 2018. These pressures and threats would go as far as calling the candidates to the mayor’s office, as well as calls to the families of some candidates.
Known by some as the “Erdogan of Saint-Josse”, due to backing the Turkish president Erdogan, we could say we are dealing with an example of the “multiculturalism” so appreciated by some people in our society. It is true that foreigners finish by adapting to local customs, up to a certain point, but they do not forget the traditions and customs of their country of origin.
In this case, the cultural enrichment is quite particular, importing the ways of countries that face big problems when it comes down to democracy, problems that we do not face here. But, as with everything that enriches our culture, this means that other candidates could apply the… Turkish method. Or the method from mafias. Up to them to pick one.
The mayor has defended himself, stating that it is time to stop acting as a victim and that the accusations were ridiculous.
Kir has already been accused in the past of using questionable methods to win the elections, such as, for example, by catering differently to the Turkish population, as well as denying the Armenian genocide.
