For a social, ecological and democratic Europe!
Rally on Thursday 19 March from 18:00 to 19:30 at the Schuman roundabout in Brussels
European Summit: “Stop the chainsaw!” rally organised by Rise for Climate Belgium with the support of some European NGOs and trade unions, on Thursday 19 March from 6 pm to 7.30 pm at the Schuman roundabout in Brussels (rue Archimède, access via rue Stévin).
On Thursday 19 March, the 27 heads of state or government will meet for the European Council in Brussels. Under the guise of “simplification” of regulations (the Omnibus Directives) and in the name of “competitiveness” of European industry, the 27 are calling into question many social and environmental protection standards after having already voted for a return to austerity in 2024.
The European Green Deal that the mobilization of youth and citizens had won in 2019 is being dismantled piece by piece: weakening of the Nature Restoration Law and the due diligence directive (CSDDD), withdrawal of the Sustainable Use Regulation on pesticides, shelving of the Green Claims Directive, deregulation of new GMOs, continued reliance on fossil fuels in the form of massive imports of American LNG, lifting of the ban on new combustion cars in 2035, adoption of the EU-MERCOSUR free trade agreement which threatens the climate and the survival of European farmers.
In the face of attacks by lobbies and the rise of the far right in many EU countries, the rule of law and checks and balances (media, trade unions, justice) are weakened, as well as respect for human rights, women and minorities.
Europe must avoid a new arms race and refuse to participate in conflicts whose main victims are the civilian population. As the war against Iran has sent oil and gas prices skyrocketing, Europe must seek to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels by investing heavily in renewables, energy efficiency and sufficiency.
We recall that in October 2025 the European Council endorsed the conclusions on the EU’s preparations for COP 30, stressing the need to triple global renewable energy capacity and double the annual rate of energy efficiency improvement by 2030, and calling for the phasing out of fossil fuel subsidies and a just and equitable transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems.
We call on the European Council to adopt the position of the European Parliament, which for the third consecutive year voted on a resolution on COP30, calling on all Parties “to engage in the development of a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty”.
We invite all member states to follow the example of Spain, which benefits from the lowest electricity price in Europe thanks to its development of solar and wind energy, and of the Netherlands, which is co-organizing the international Conference on Transitioning Away from fossil fuels in Colombia at the end of April.
Programme
Rue Archimède, opposite the Schuman roundabout
6.00 pm: Olivier Hoedeman, introduction on EU deregulation, Corporate Europe Observatory
6.05 pm: Thomas Miessen, CSC, and Sozak ( Social Academy of Austrian trade union)
6.10 pm: Larry Moffett, Rise for Climate, Transitioning Away from fossil fuels in EU
6.15 pm Laetitia Sedou, European Network
Against Arms Trade : How EU ‘simplification’ fuels a global arms race
- 20 Espirito Mundo, Aline Yasmin’s view on the impact of the EU-Mercosur Treaty on the people and forest in Brazil
6.25 pm Mathieu Verhaegen,President of CGSP ALR, the Belgian public services trade union
Artistic programme
Die Bürokratiemonster visual action against deregulation
Doux rêveur: belgian singer
Contact: riseforclimatebelgium@gmail.com
Larry Moffett: 0495 53.43.40 En Fr
Kim Lê Quang 0499.43.93.50 Fr
https://corporateeurope.org/sites/default/files/2025-09/English.pdf
www.fossilfueltreaty.org https://transitionawayconference.com/
https://www.kettensaege-stoppen.at/