900 protest against police violence in Brussels

An estimated 900 people took part in a Brussels march against police violence over the weekend, marking the International Day against Police Violence and Repression on 15 March.

Carrying banners with slogans such as "justice and truth for all", participants marched in solidarity "against racism and for the human dignity of victims, justice and respect for the rights of everyone", according to the collective Outils solidaires contre les violences policières (OSVP), which organised the action.

“Police violence in Belgium is still largely invisible because of the government's unwillingness to produce statistics,” said the collective.

“In 2023 alone, grassroots censuses counted no fewer than 10 deaths linked to police intervention.”

OSVP said the number was only the tip of the iceberg. It is demanding “systemic change, justice and truth” for victims of police abuse, calling for disciplinary procedures to be automated in the event of deaths involving police officers, and for the offences of contempt and rebellion to be abolished “to protect the right to freedom of expression”.

On Friday evening the protestors gathered at Place du Congrès, a stone's throw from the police station where Ilyes Abeddou, Mohamed Amine and Sourour Abouda died while in custody.

Speeches were made before the march carried on to the Nouveau Marché aux Grains. OSVP put the number of demonstrators at 2,500, but police reported less than 1,000.