Drug violence in Brussels: a spiral of deadly violence and political incapacity

Twelve shootings in ten months in Molenbeek. That is the sad tally since the beginning of the school year. But not only Molenbeek is affected by escalating street violence between drug gangs. Take, for example, the retaliation between Albanian crime gangs a few weeks ago on the De Brouckèreplein and shootings in Vorst, Sint-Gillis, Anderlecht, etc. “We are on the brink of disaster in Brussels. The situation is deadly serious. It is high time that the Brussels government and the municipalities realise this and treat the fight against organised crime as a priority,” says Brussels MP Mathias Vanden Borre.

Brussels has become a central hub for crime gangs in recent years. “The fact that the criminal networks have so far managed to remain largely inconspicuous is partly due to the fragmentation between the Brussels-Capital Region, the municipality and the six police zones. That is to the advantage of criminal gangs,” says Mathias Vanden Borre. “This is also confirmed by experts and police forces. Without it being noticed, Brussels has become an international hub for organised crime.”

Organised crime infiltrated everywhere

Brussels policymakers invariably minimise the existence of urban gangs and drug gangs in Brussels. It is a “perception problem” or Antwerp’s fault. Meanwhile, people are being liquidated on the pavements of Brussels, and organised crime has penetrated deep into the fabric of society unhindered.

Vervoort living in a parallel world

Prime Minister Vervoort’s response to the problems also remains laconic. Before the summer holidays, he said that violent crime is generally decreasing, and that there is no objective evidence of an increase in organised gangs in the Brussels area. “What nonsense. That man just lives in a parallel world in which he does, in fact, implement policy. I don’t see any.” In the meantime, the Region is “investing” in injection sites and a drug centre with money intended for security.

Urgent action

The N-VA thinks Brussels must focus more on a permanent police presence in problem neighbourhoods and on administrative enforcement, giving local authorities more scope to fight crime. Organised crime is often anchored at the local level: drug production and trafficking, human trafficking and laundering of criminal money in real estate and hospitality activities. “It is up to the administrative authorities to prevent criminal organisations from gaining a foothold, for example, through an integrity investigation. Unfortunately, Brussels is nowhere in that respect. I am calling on the Minister-President once again to convene the Regional Security Council as a matter of urgency and to draw up an action plan. I have already submitted several questions about this to parliament, but the backlog of work has prevented them from being put on the agenda for months. Yet another signal that political leaders are not taking these facts seriously enough,” Mathias Vanden Borre concludes.