Action group claims painting

23 July 2007

BRUSSELS – The action group Noordrand (Northern edge), an action group protesting the night flights to or from Zaventem airport wants the painting ‘The fall of Icarus’ to be seized. The action group announced this in a press release today Monday.

In this way Noordrand wants to cash in the first EUR 50,000 of the EUR 5 million in claims, which the judge has awarded the action group.

If the federal government does not make the payment at once, the bailiff will confiscate the painting by Pieter Brueghel the Elder. The painting is owned by the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Brussels.

The Brussels action group Air Libre had already threatened to claim the painting earlier, whereupon the Minister of Mobility Renaat Landuyt paid EUR 50,000 into the action group’s account.

The Noordrand demands the same compensation for all those living close to the airport, taking into account the distance to the airport and the flight paths of the aircraft taking off and landing. The Appeal court ruled in favour of the action group on 21 March 2006.

Subject: Belgian news