Willem Engel, foreman of Virus Truth, is taking the well-known Belgian virologist Marc Van Ranst to court. The case was brought before the criminal court in Mechelen on Wednesday, but immediately moved to August 11 for the substantive hearing. Engel is suing Van Ranst for defamation and ‘defamation of honor’.
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Engel and Van Ranst regularly argue publicly via Twitter. According to Engel, the virologist too often dismisses him as a virus denier and fantasist and Van Ranst insults him by mockingly about ‘dance teacher’ and ‘salsa pandemic’. He wants the court to determine to what extent free speech can be used in the discussions between the two.
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Van Ranst believes that Engel is abusing procedural law. “Anyone can file a complaint against anyone. This has to stop. He has called me a communist, extremist, rascal, Holle Bolle Gijs and not a scientist and has gone much further than I have. He denies being a virus denier but also the existence of the epidemic, the pandemic, the efficacy of vaccines, the usefulness of PCR tests. They are very happy to have me in court. They have been challenging me to a debate for a very long time, but I will not engage with them debate. Now that is happening in court.”
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