Wednesday 29 August 2018 14:26, UK
Charlton fans have set up a political party in the hometown of Belgium-based owner Roland Duchatelet in an effort to put pressure on him to sell the club.
The party, named 'Roland Out Today' (ROT), plans to stand in municipal elections in Sint-Truiden where Duchatelet has lived and run companies for many years.
ROT aim to highlight Duchatelet's past record as a local politician, as well as some of his business activities with the aim of causing embarrassment to him locally.
The party has sent out flyers to local households in Sint-Truiden, which is home to a high proportion of fans of Standard Liege, where Duchatelet spent a troubled spell as owner until he sold the club in early 2015.
"We will continue to spread our message to the good people of Sint-Truiden: for sport, for respect and for transparency," said party secretary John Barnes.
Barnes believes the movement is in the best traditions of political activism from Charlton fans, who successfully used local elections in London in the early 1990s to help return the club to The Valley after a six-year exile.
Protest group Charlton Against Roland Duchatelet (CARD) toured Belgium in 2016 in a branded cab with the message 'Taxi for Roland' on the bodywork of the car.
ROT intends to stand in municipal elections in Sint-Truiden on October 14.
Duchatelet, 71, bought Charlton in 2014 while they were a Championship club. They were relegated to League One two years later.
