The N-VA wants a firmer approach to transmigration: “Time for VIP patrols in Zeebrugge”

“We thus need to shift up a gear to tackle transmigration.” Flemish MP Maaike De Vreese and MPs Darya Safai and Theo Francken argue for VIP patrols, where VIP stands for Very Irritating Police, in the approach to transmigrants in West Flanders. “The figures show that human smuggling remains a pressing problem in West Flanders.”

Last Saturday, six transmigrants were found in a refrigerated truck in Zeebrugge. The previous Wednesday, there were eight. Last year, the police in West Flanders arrested 1,866 transmigrants. That is 44% of the total number of transmigrants arrested in our country. “The figures show once again that West Flanders is the most affected province and Bruges the most affected city. The human smuggling problem therefore remains pressing. That is why we must shift up a gear to tackle transmigration,” say Maaike De Vreese and Theo Francken.

4,238 interceptions, most of which in Bruges

The figures show the number of intercepted illegal transmigrants who went through the entire administrative handling procedure with the police. Of the 4,238 interceptions, a total of 3,075 unique individuals were involved. So some people were arrested multiple times. This mainly concerns people from Eritrea (41%), Algeria (12.7%) and Sudan (10.4%). “In Bruges alone, 1,254 transmigrants were registered. In Ostend, there were 123, and in Blankenberge, 81. In reality, there are many more, because the police have not been able to check as much due to the coronavirus measures, or they have regularly shortened the processing times by not taking the illegal migrants to the police station,” Maaike De Vreese says.

Avoiding tent camps

The police also had to clear out several camps of transmigrants in the marshalling yard in Zeebrugge, where freight trains are loaded and unloaded. Infrabel reported an increase in incidents involving unwanted visitors on their sites in Zeebrugge. “In December 2020, an estimated 65 transmigrants were found in and around the marshalling yard, four times as many as in the previous month. In January, there were another 44,” MP Darya Safai says.

“The marshalling yard appears to be a hole in the security of our port. This weak link must be tackled structurally immediately. In the first place, the NMBS must carry out infrastructure adjustments to ensure that climbing into the marshalling yard stops. We must avoid tent camps being set up in Zeebrugge at all costs,” Maaike De Vreese adds.

Stricter with “Very Irritating Police”

In Zeebrugge, a total of no fewer than 1,141 transmigrants were registered in 2020. The persistent problematic situation has been causing unrest and a feeling of insecurity in Zeebrugge for quite some time. Maaike De Vreese is therefore arguing for a stricter and dissuasive approach with VIP patrols in Zeebrugge. VIP stands for “Very Irritating Police”. This is a persistent approach in which the police carry out frequent checks and enforce very strict regulations. “Check the illegal transmigrants ad nauseam. Speak to them, check their papers, register them and repeat all this for as long and as often as necessary. Make everyone realise that every report of nuisance, violence, intimidation, etc., will be followed up immediately and firmly,” Maaike De Vreese explains. “That requires the police to have a permanent and highly visible presence on the streets. Our local police can also request assistance from the federal police for this. To give this on-the-spot policy a chance, we are asking State Secretary for Asylum and Migration Mahdi and Interior Minister Verlinden to dramatically increase the capacity in the closed centres and efforts at the federal level.”

Fighting a losing battle

The transmigrants intercepted last week had been put into refrigerated trucks in France. That’s life-threatening, Theo Francken says. “There needs to be urgent consultation with the French authorities on this situation that has got out of control. “In addition, we must ensure that we properly guard and secure the port of Zeebrugge so that it is not the weakest link and does not compare poorly with the Port of Calais. To this end, a decisive agreement must be concluded with the British. This agreement must make it possible to carry out more inspections, to ensure more surveillance and security for our port and to invest more in our motorway car parks. Trucks are still being climbed into on our motorway car parks without penalties being imposed. This leads to full loads having to be destroyed. Our businesses suffer economic damage as a result. Our bill to make climbing into trucks a criminal offence must finally be approved. Finally, we must continue to work towards readmission agreements with countries of origin and a new European asylum and migration policy based on the Australian model. Otherwise, we’ll be fighting a losing battle.”