An internal investigation is being launched into the conduct of several police officers during the recent protests against cuts to French-language education in Brussels, after footage appeared on social media showing an officer wearing a banned symbol and officers making inappropriate comments. Footage shows an officer wearing the symbol “Deus Vult” on his uniform, a battle cry of the Crusaders that today is often used to signal affiliation with nationalist and far-right groups. Another officer is reported to have been smoking a cigar while on
duty and others are said to have levied sexist and transphobic insults at demonstrators. “The behaviour of a very small number of staff must not be allowed to bring this extremely difficult profession into disrepute, nor those who carry it out with professionalism,” Victor Kanyanzira, spokesperson for Mayor Philippe Close (PS), told Bruzz. “This profession, too, deserves respect. On Saturday, the police seized a jerrycan of petrol from a group of young people who were planning to set the city centre on fire. The police
responded quickly and very appropriately. Overall, tensions eased.” While the official student protests took place on Thursday and Friday, calls were made on social media for further protests over the weekend and some minor incidents occurred. Police made 14 judicial arrests and one administrative arrest in the wake of the violence that broke out during the official protest, involving six adults and eight minors. The French-speaking Human Rights League condemned the “disproportionate violence” used by police against minors during that protest, saying officers should have
acted with greater restraint. “The police used water cannons, tear gas and indiscriminately beat demonstrators with batons,” the organisation stated. “In response to this violence, teachers had to form a human chain to protect their pupils.” Police said that the use of water cannons was necessary to extinguish small fires after emergency services attempting to put out the fires had been attacked. “During the fire brigade’s intervention, firefighters had to leave the scene immediately because they were being targeted by fireworks and other projectiles,” police
said in their response to the criticism from the Human Rights League. “The scale of the fire at Central Station, where dozens of electric bikes and scooters caught fire, reached dangerous proportions, and police intervention was therefore necessary to extinguish the fire with a water cannon. “The surrounding buildings, as well as the people inside and in the vicinity, were clearly under threat.” Other organisations echoed the condemnation of police brutality, including the collectives “Mars Attacks”, “Parents Attacks” and “Ecole en Lutte”, which called for
another, more peaceful, demonstration this week. “We want a peaceful demonstration with the widest possible support against any form of violence towards young people,” Mars Attacks announced. “We refuse to accept that young people are treated as a threat when they exercise their democratic rights. We refuse to accept that pupils are silenced by fear.” Sofie De Kimpe, professor of criminology at the VUB, connects the violence that broke out during the protests to the interplay of various factors. “We must not underestimate the fundamental
emotion felt by young people. They are genuinely angry about the cuts to their education,” De Kimpe told Bruzz. “It’s typical of young people to test boundaries, which means they may dare to go further than adult protesters. Group dynamics and the amplifying power of social media cause the situation to escalate further. “Add to that the tensions that have long existed between young people in Brussels in particular and the police, and it doesn’t take much to light the fuse. “The police are, however,
the professional party here, and you would expect them to be the most astute in their approach.” De Kimpe noted that the Brussels police seemed taken by surprise, suggesting that the usual negotiations with the organisers prior to a demonstration had failed to have the desired effect. Another factor was the use of heavy-duty riot gear, which set the tone and signalled an expectation of violence. “The police were struggling and didn’t always know quite what stance to take,” said De Kimpe. “For me, it’s
important to recognise that these are young people who behave differently and whom the police need to deal with differently.” De Kimpe called the investigation being launched into police conduct during the protest a “good response”, adding that it was clear some officers “overstepped the mark” and that both literature and reports from the police’s own regulatory body have long shown that the far right is drawn to police jobs. “You have to tackle this sort of excess immediately and remove those people from the
force, otherwise you send the message that it’s acceptable,” De Kimpe warned. “This is a missed opportunity for public confidence in the police, yet another dent in their image.”
Brussels police investigation, student protests, French-language education cuts, Deus Vult symbol, Central Station fire, water cannons, tear gas, Human Rights League, sexist and transphobic insults, VUB criminology professor Sofie De Kimpe