Disgruntled voter puts Belgium on eBay
Hidden among the porcelain fox hounds and Burberry tablecloths on sale at eBay.be this week was an unusual item: “For sale: Belgium.”
The odd ad was posted by one disgruntled Belgian in protest at his country’s political crisis which reached a 100-day landmark today with no end in sight to the squabbling between Flemish and Walloon politicians.
“I wanted to attract attention,” said Gerrit Six, the teacher and former journalist who posted the ad. “You almost have to throw a rock through a window to get attention for Belgium.”
Six placed the advertisement on Saturday, offering free delivery, but pointing out that the country was coming second-hand and that potential buyers would have to take on more than €216bn in national debt.
Like many of Belgium’s 10 million citizens, Six is exasperated that the power struggle between the county’s French or Dutch-speaking political parties has left Belgium in political limbo since June 10 elections.
