QATARGATE
Investigation and Revelations into the scandal that has rocked Europe
Thursday 14 March from 12.45 pm to 2.30 pm
with
Louis COLART & Joël MATRICHE
Le Soir journalists and authors of the book on the QATARGATE investigation
Since the publication of our special edition of Renard Déchainé Qatargate (link), many of you have expressed your full support for our initiatives and proposals, as well as your anger, while confirming that our staff are not prepared to pay the price for these new scandals, for which we are in no way responsible, but which have also damaged our credibility and reputation among the people of Europe.
As we promised, we have followed developments in this case very closely, including the decisions taken by the institutions to strengthen the ethical framework and the work to set up the independent ethics committee that R&D was one of the first to call for, following the “Not in our name” petition launched by R&D and a group of colleagues in response to “Barrosogate”, which was signed by 152,000 people, including thousands of members of staff.
True to our commitments, we will be organising a series of conferences to keep you fully informed of developments on this issue, which is so fundamental to the reputation of our institutions, on the eve of the forthcoming European elections, which promise to be decisive for the future of the European project.
In the face of the growing confusion surrounding the Belgian authorities’ investigation and the obvious attempts to trivialise the seriousness of the events, we invite you to a discussion with Le Soir journalists Louis Colart and Joël Matriche, authors of the book :
ISBN :9791033916802 – Nombre de pages :208 -Publication :24 janvier 2024
Format :Livre numérique – Éditeur :HarperCollins – Langue :Français
Auteur :Louis Colart, Joël Matriche
Au cœur du plus gros scandale politico-financier européen
9 décembre 2022, alors que la Coupe du monde de football bat son plein, un scandale d’envergure éclate au grand jour : le Parlement européen est-il gangrené par la corruption ?
Au départ, l’enquête se focalise sur un agent de renseignement marocain surnommé « Jason Bourne » mais très vite, il apparaît que le Qatar est lui aussi à la manœuvre. Le choc est gigantesque : un État du golfe Persique cherche à influencer les décisions européennes et déploie tous les moyens pour y parvenir. Des parlementaires de différents bords politiques et diverses nationalités, à tous les niveaux de l’institution européenne, sont impliqués dans cette affaire rocambolesque : valises de billets qui circulent, arrestations surprises, voyages tous frais payés par des États tiers…
Deux journalistes, Louis Colart et Joël Matriche, divulguent les dessous de ce « QatarGate » dans une enquête exclusive s’appuyant sur plus de 5 000 pages du dossier d’instruction, des dizaines d’écoutes pour certaines jamais dévoilées auparavant et plusieurs rapports des services secrets belges.
Dans un récit palpitant émaillé de révélations inédites, ils montrent les rouages de cette organisation clandestine en plein cœur de l’Europe, ce trafic d’influence majeur qui fait vaciller notre démocratie.
Louis COLLART
Journalist at Le Soir and deputy head of investigations. His main subjects are terrorism, financial and organised crime, and the monitoring of intelligence services. Louis Colart coordinates the European Investigative Collaborations (EIC) – the investigative network behind the Football Leaks and Congo Hold-up, among others – for Le Soir.
Joël MATRICHE
Journalist at Le Soir and member of the investigation team. As such, he has taken part in numerous Belgian (Nethys, Avrox masks, Walloon Parliament trips, etc.) and international investigations (Panama Papers with the ICIJ network, Football Leaks with the EIC collective, Pegasus with Forbidden Stories, etc.).
During this conference, Louis and Joël have presented their work and answered your questions about the results of their exclusive investigation based on more than 5,000 pages of the investigation file, dozens of wiretaps, some never before revealed, and several reports from the Belgian secret services.
Chair