By Bart Biesemans and Charlotte Van Campenhout
LIEGE, Oct 7 (Reuters) – Hundreds of students, inspired in part by student unrest in neighbouring France, have taken to the streets of the eastern Belgian city of Liège, with local media reporting 107 arrests in recent days.
Authorities have advised shopkeepers to close their businesses early, warning of riots.
“Major unrest is underway. Close your businesses”, Belgium’s official government warning system BE-Alert said on Thursday.
Liège’s main train station was also closed but later reopened, local media reported, and police urged people to avoid the city centre.
“Due to the ongoing demonstration, avoid the city centre. Traffic there is severely disrupted”, the police said on social media platforms.
Local authorities could not immediately be reached to confirm the arrests, which the Belga news agency reported were linked to offences including property damage and arson.
Students have protested over Belgium’s French-language education system, citing rising education costs, overcrowded classrooms and difficulties accessing study materials.
They held signs with slogans including “It’s a mess, we are fighting for a right! Not a privilege!” and “I chose education, not the hunger games!!”.
The unrest follows June clashes between protesters and police in Brussels over education reforms, including a tuition increase for most students in Belgium’s French-speaking Community to €1,194 ($1,280) from €835.
Videos circulating on social media in recent days showed shattered glass, fires and hundreds of mostly young protesters in Liège, while other footage showed police blocking roads.
During Wednesday’s protest, police were seen checking students for weapons.
IN TOUCH WITH FRENCH STUDENTS
Some students told Reuters they were in touch with French counterparts.
“We support each other because we’re facing pretty much the same issues,” 19-year-old student Alfred said.
Amelia Di Salve, also 19, who is studying to become a teacher, said Belgium’s student movement began earlier this year and was reignited after students saw the demonstrations in France.
“When we saw nothing was changing without protests, we decided we would start … France did influence us a little,” she said.
Liège mayor Willy Demeyer told Belgian broadcaster RTBF he hoped calm would return and “that dialogue can be established and that the young people can express their grievances in a peaceful way and, if possible, have those concerns heard”.
(Reporting by Bart Biesemans from Liege, Writing by Charlotte Van Campenhout, Amina Ismail, Editing by Barbara Lewis)
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