The activists of the Code Rood collective have left the site of e-commerce giant Alibaba at Liège airport. The collective said this in a press release on Sunday afternoon. The federal police reports that 62 people have been judicially arrested.
Sunday, December 17, 2023 at 11:41 AM
Since Saturday afternoon, 600 Code Rood activists have been blocking the activities of the e-commerce giant. They criticize the expansion of Liège airport. On Saturday evening around 10 p.m., 200 of them penetrated deeper into the depot to “peacefully occupy” the site, Code Rood said in an earlier press release.
The security forces intervened and evacuated activists around 2 a.m. 62 people have been judicially arrested. Code Rood criticizes the fact that the police acted harshly.
“About 150 activists had entered the depot and, among other things, damaged packages. There was also a risk of intrusion into the airport area where aircraft take off,” the federal police said on Sunday morning.
Damage has been found in Alibaba’s offices. As a result, the police made about seventy judicial arrests.
One activist suffered a broken arm as a result of the intervention. The collective reports violence and even strangulation. “We condemn this new disproportionate use of force by the police,” said Ruth-Marie Henckes of Code Rood in the press release. However, the federal police denies this.
Liège airport spoke on Sunday of “significant” damage after the occupation of the depot. The airport also reserves the right to file a complaint. The airport condemns the damage caused, but did not want to provide precise details about the extent.
Laurent Jossart, the airport’s CEO, thanked the security forces for their good cooperation and their quick intervention when the activists entered the company. The airport’s CEO also stated that the airport is indeed committed to green measures: for example, a budget of 60 million euros was made available to triple the solar energy capacity, adapt the buildings to the strictest rules and deploy on a synergy with the railway.