Hide Article Text (OCR)
Vol. LV, No. 212PoliceKilWound MayorLiege RiotFire On Meeting OfAnti-King StrikersDuring Civil StrifeBULLETIN!Brussels, Belgium, Monday, July 31 (/P)—Belgian Premier Jean Duvieusart and three other cabinet ministers went to see King Leopold III early today at Laeken palace. They were reported to have asked the king to make his own decision regarding his abdication.Liege, Belgium, July 30 (#) Gendarmes fired on a meetingof anti-Leopoldist strikers ina Liege suburb tonight, killing three men and wounding two others. One of the wounded was the suburb's mayor.A Socialist leader warned in Brussels that a civil war might start in Belgium tomorrow morning * if something is not done.Premier Jean Duvieusart left his office late tonight to confer with the King LeopoldIII at Laeken palace after meeting with leaders of the anti-Leopold group for an hour and a half. Ihe premier called an emergency session of the cabinet for earlytomorrow.Tension which has gripped many areas of Belgium since the return of Leopold from exile eignt days ago reached a peak in this industrial city, metropolis of the French - spaking Walloon provinces where opposition to Leopold is hottest.Wallonia Flag RaisedAn open instance of a separatist movement in the divided nation also occuried in Liege. Demonstrators against the king ripped down the national tri-colors and hoisted the yellow flag and red rooster ofWallonia. A Walloon separatist leader said his group is considering setting up a “constituent assembly” to press demands for Leopold’s abdication. The bulk of the king’s support comes from the Flemish-speaking provinces of northern Belgium.The rest of the country appeared relatively quiet today, but anti-LeopoldisU were busy preparing for their greate3t show of strength in a march on Brussels Tuesday.Government officials were making plans to cope with this march.The governor of Brabant, in which Brussels is situated, issued drastic orders tonight forbiddingconcentrated movements of vehicles of any kind toward theheart of the capital. Gendarmes, local police and other law enforcement officers were ordered to give all automobile, motorcycle and bicycle traffic the closest supervision Tuesday. Violators will face fines and imprisonment.Shooting In SuburbToday’s shooting occurred insuburban Grace Berleur. One version said it followed a meeting of striking metal workers, *one of many categories of labor, businessand professional groups whichhave staged walkouts for nearly a week to protest King Leopold’s return from exile in Switzerland.When the metal workers wanted, to march through the suburb they were forbidden to do so. One gendarme was reported to have drawn his pistol. Six of his comrades followed suit, and the shooting began.Two of those killed were married men; the third was single.Another VersionAnother version gave this account: the shooting occurred while Socialist parliamentary deputy, Simon Paque, was addressing the strikers from the balcony of a house overlooking an open space called “The Square of the Underground Martyrs.” About a dozen gendarmes arrived in a truck. Paque broke off the meeting andcame down to the street. The gendarmes arrested him on the sidewalk and tried to push him intotheir truck.Arthur Sanson, mayor of Grace(Turn To Page 3. Column 4)
Newspaper Details
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
Bluefield, West Virginia, US
Mon, Jul 31, 1950
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
CA, USA 28 Jul 2019
Other Publications Near Bluefield, West Virginia
Bluefield Evening Leader
Bluefield Daily Leader
Bluefield Sunset News
Bluefield Sunday Telegraph
The New Daily Telegraph
