Liège Parents Win Court Order to Lift School Strike Pickets

Five parents of students at Centre scolaire Sainte-Véronique in Liège have obtained a court order from the Liège Court of First Instance requiring the immediate removal of picket lines set up by striking teachers, according to RTBF. The ruling, effective until July 3, imposes a penalty of €1,000 per infraction for anyone blocking access to the school, which houses over 2,000 students.

Background: The Education Reform Dispute

The strike is part of a broader protest movement against the Décret-Programme 2 (DP2), an education reform package passed by the MR-Les Engagés majority government of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles on June 5, 2026, after approximately 14 hours of heated debate. As L’Post reported, the reform includes a 10% increase in teaching hours for secondary upper-level teachers without salary compensation, higher tuition fees rising from €835 to €1,194 for higher education students, stricter sick leave conditions, and tougher end-of-career arrangements.

The reform also includes a 5% salary increase for future teachers, who will now train for four years instead of three, and higher pay for school directors. Teachers across the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles have opposed the measures, which they view as an attack on the quality of public education.

The Court Order and Its Execution

Represented by lawyer Maître Hervé Deckers, the five parents sought the court order after a majority of Sainte-Véronique’s own teachers voted to return to work, but teachers from other schools maintained the picket lines. “What we obtained is an order from the president of the Court of First Instance that actually prohibits people in front of the school from preventing access for teachers and students, under penalty of €1,000 per infraction,” Deckers told RTBF. “This order runs until July 3, that is, until the end of the school year, to allow not only classes to resume but also exams, particularly certificative exams, to take place normally.”

Two bailiffs executed the order peacefully on the morning of June 11. About 40 teachers from a dozen Liège schools were present at the scene. L’Avenir reported that the school was already closed for classes until Friday, June 12, with reopening planned for Monday, June 15.

Reactions and Implications

School director Mathias Tyssen called for calm, expressing hope that the reopening would proceed without confrontation. “As director, I do not want my students and teachers to return here on Monday surrounded by police cordons because there is a crowd that would make them uncomfortable,” he said, as quoted by RTBF. “Since we are truly in a situation of respect for both a democratic decision within the school and a court decision, I hope that those who oppose the minister’s decree will not come to oppose the return of students and teachers who have decided to come back to school.”

RTL Info reported that teachers described the use of bailiffs as “an exaggeration in the use of justice.” The order applies only to Sainte-Véronique, but legal experts suggest it could set a precedent for other schools. L’Avenir noted that “other parents are ready to introduce the same request” if their children’s schools remain blocked.

Broader Context and Outlook

The strike movement, which began in mid-May 2026, has affected at least 40 schools in Liège province. RTBF reported in May that teachers warned of potential disruption to end-of-year certificative exams (CEB, CE1D, CESS), with some schools already canceling internal exams. Education Minister Valérie Glatigny has refused calls to cancel the exams, stating that the reforms were necessary given the “gravity of the budgetary situation.”

The DP2 reform faces potential legal challenges. A crowdfunding campaign has been launched to fund a constitutional court challenge, and the opposition parties — PS, PTB, and Ecolo — have denounced both the content of the reform and the accelerated voting procedure as undemocratic. Notably, Mathilde Vandorpe (Les Engagés), a teacher by profession, abstained from the vote and resigned as group leader in March.

What’s Next

The Sainte-Véronique ruling marks a significant development in the ongoing education crisis in French-speaking Belgium. With the court order in place until July 3, the school plans to reopen on June 15. However, the broader strike movement shows no signs of abating, and the end of the 2025-2026 school year remains uncertain for thousands of students across the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles. The coming weeks will determine whether the court order serves as a template for other parents seeking to restore access to schools, or whether it further escalates tensions between parents, teachers, and the government.