On Sunday, a Belgian judge charged and detained five prominent Europeans, including a vice president of the European Parliament (EP) and an MEP, for illegally receiving money and gifts from Gulf states to influence the parliament.
The Belgian prosecutor’s office said that the Federal Judicial Police suspected that Gulf countries had been bribing individuals with significant political and strategic positions in the EP for several months. The police said they received “consequential sums of money” and “important gifts.”
On Friday, prosecutors raided 16 houses in Brussels and seized $631,800 during their investigation into money laundering and corruption. The raids continued on Saturday.
The police initially detained six individuals and had 48 hours to file charges. Authorities released two of the six people and charged four officials.
The Socialists and Democrats group in the European Parliament has taken the decision to suspend MEP Eva Kaili’s membership of the S&D Group with immediate effect, in response to the ongoing investigations.
— S&D Group (@TheProgressives) December 9, 2022
One of those arrested was Greek MEP and Vice President (VP) of the European Parliament Eva Kaili, who was arrested on Friday. Belgian daily, L’Echo, said on Saturday authorities found “several bags of [cash]” at her house during a raid.
EP President Roberta Metsola suspended Kaili from all her powers and duties as VP on Saturday. Her party, the Greek Socialist Pasok-Movement for Change, also expelled Kaili. The centrist Socialists and Democrats group of the European Parliament suspended her as well, saying that they have “zero tolerance for corruption” and would support an investigation into the accusations.
According to sources cited by The Guardian, the four other detainees are Italian, including former MEP Pier-Antonio Panzeri.
The New York Times revealed that Francesco Giorgi, Kaili’s husband, who also works as an advisor on the Middle East and North Africa in the office of an Italian MEP, and Luca Visentini, the general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation and the former general secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation, were also arrested. The fifth detainee is believed to be Niccolò Figà-Talamanca, the director of the NGO No Peace Without Justice.
Greek MEP Eva Kaili has been arrested by Belgian police as part of an investigation into lobbying by #Qatar in the European Parliament.
— Jorge Liboreiro (@JorgeLiboreiro) December 10, 2022
During last month's plenary, Kaili delivered a highly rosy speech about Qatar and attacked its critics in Europe. Watch ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/37D0sMch4E
Belgian Socialist party member Marc Tarabella confirmed that while the police searched his house on Saturday, they did not detain anyone at his residence. However, he admitted that the authorities confiscated his computer and mobile.
In a statement, Tarabella noted, “The justice system is doing its work of gathering information and investigating, which I find totally normal. I have absolutely nothing to hide and I will respond to all questions of the investigators.”
While authorities have not officially confirmed which Gulf countries were involved, an official source quoted by Reuters said one of the countries was World Cup 2022 host Qatar.
Meanwhile, the warrant against Panzeri seen by Politico said he was intervening politically with MEPs “for the benefit of Qatar and Morocco.”
However, a Qatari official denied the “baseless” and “gravely misinformed” accusations, underscoring that Doha complies with international regulations and laws.
In November, Kaili lauded Qatar’s hosting of the World Cup when she met with Qatari Labour Minister Ali bin Samikh Al Marri, celebrating “sports diplomacy.” Despite evidence to the contrary, she also said “Qatar is a frontrunner in labour rights.”
Our @Europarl_EN stands firmly against corruption.
— Roberta Metsola (@EP_President) December 10, 2022
At this stage, we cannot comment on any ongoing investigations except to confirm that we have & will cooperate fully with all relevant law enforcement & judicial authorities.
We'll do all we can to assist the course of justice.
The scandal will likely further erode Qatar’s reputation in the international community. It has faced allegations of corruption in securing the hosting rights, exploitation in its treatment of migrant workers (with upwards of 6,000 having died building World Cup infrastructure, and rights abuses due to its treatment of the LGBTQ community.
The European Parliament is also preparing to conduct a vote on a proposal to allow visa-free travel to the EU from Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, and Ecuador during Monday’s plenary session. Legislators are calling for the vote to be postponed owing to the recent corruption allegations.
European Economic Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni said the issue is “very serious.” He remarked that if the allegations are true, they will be one of the “most dramatic stories of corruption” in the European Parliament in recent years.
Anti-corruption group Transparency International, however, has said this is not “an isolated event.” The group’s director, Michiel van Hulten, said the EP has a “culture of impunity” and “lax financial rules and controls.” To this end, he called for a “root and branch reform” of the Parliament.
The Parliament’s Greens group has demanded an independent investigation into the allegations and called for rules to be strengthened to prevent such incidents again. The group’s co-president, Philippe Lamberts, said the Greens “strongly condemn corruption and bribery, cash and precious gifts cannot draw the political lines in this house.” He noted that the group would vote against the proposal to allow visa-free travel to Qatar during this week’s plenary session.