Involvement in Corruption Scandal
In December 2006, Laurent's name surfaced in a corruption scandal in which funds of the Belgian Navy were spent on the Prince's villa (Villa Clémentine) in Tervuren. Although the investigating magistrates deny that Laurent was personally implicated, some of the accused have implicated the Prince in the press.
On 5 January 2007, it became known that the King Albert II had signed a special Royal Decree, making it possible for Laurent to be called up as a witness in the corruption trial which was to start January 8. One of the defendants immediately used this to subpoena the Prince. During the evening of 8 January, the Prince was interrogated by the federal police and appeared in court the following day, where he testified at the corruption trial that he had no reason to suspect the funding of his renovations could be illegal.
Media reports in March 2007 suggested that Laurent was no longer welcome at the Royal Palace, possibly due to his role in the corruption scandal.
Against this, defenders claim that there is some tradition in the Belgian press and among politicians to focus on shortcomings among members of the Belgian Royal Family. For example, Laurent's elder brother, Prince Philippe, Duke of Brabant has been pursued for what may be no more than lack of dexterity among some of his advisers; and the Princess de Réthy (d. 2002) had in her younger days been pursued by some deputies who turned parliamentary sessions into debates about her necklines.
In March 2011, the prince visited the former Belgian colony of the Congo without receiving the necessary permissions; the reported purpose of the visit was the promotion of deforestation. As a result, on 9 April he accepted conditions laid down by the Belgian Prime Minister, Yves Leterme regarding his future activities; had he not done so, the matter of his annual apanage would have been in question.
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