Black EU lawmaker reports Belgian police violence

Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana, a German Green party deputy who was born in Mali, told the European Parliament on Wednesday that she was a victim of "extremely traumatic" police violence outside a Brussels railway station.

Olivia Chan reports.

A black European Union lawmaker says she was a victim of police violence in Brussels.

This is German Green party deputy Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana in the European Parliament on Wednesday (June 17).

"I would like to inform you and the colleagues that I have been the victim of police violence by Belgian police.

I consider this a discriminatory act with a racist tendency.

Yesterday, while leaving the (Brussels) North train station, I saw nine police officers harassing two young black people.

I had my phone in hand.

I took a photo of the scene with my phone, which is legal.

The police headed towards me.

They grabbed my phone from my hands.

Four of these nine armed police officers brutally pushed me against the wall, they violently grabbed my handbag away, they pushed me against the wall, spread my legs and a police officer wanted to frisk me.

They dealt with me in a humiliating way." The Mali-born lawmaker said police did not react when she told them she was a member of the European parliament and showed them relevant identification documents.

She has now lodged a complaint against Belgian police.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the parliament that "there is no place for racism" in the EU after listening to the German MEP.

A Belgian police spokeswoman says an investigation into the incident was under way but denied violence had been used.