Ferdinand Hardijns Explained

Ferdinandus Carolus Hardijns (16 September 1864  - 13 May 1927) was a Belgian trade unionist and politician.

Born in Ghent, Hardijns worked in a factory and was a founding member of the Belgian Labour Party, in 1885. The following year, he became the editor of Vooruit, a socialist newspaper.[1] In it, he printed an appeal for the police not to shoot striking workers, and when he refused to print a response to the article, he was sentenced to two months in prison or a 200 franc fine.[2]

In 1895, Hardijns became the general secretary of the International Federation of Textile Workers' Associations, serving for two years.[3] Also in 1895, he was elected as a city councillor in Ghent, serving until 1926.

References

  1. Web site: Ferdinandus Hardijns . ODIS . 30 March 2022.
  2. Book: Strikwerda . Carl . A House Divided: Catholics, Socialists, and Flemish Nationalists in Nineteenth-Century Belgium . 2000 . Rowman & Littlefield Publishers . 9780585114149.
  3. Book: Yearbook of the International Free Trade Union Movement . 1957–1958 . Lincolns-Prager . London . 577 - 578.