Antwerp investigating judge warns of 'narco-state' threat
An investigating judge at the Antwerp court has issued a stark warning in an open letter to members of the Justice Committee, saying Belgium is “evolving into a narco-state” and that organised crime is undermining the country’s institutions.
The judge, who was forced to go into hiding for several months due to threats, is calling for a comprehensive master plan to ensure the justice system can operate safely.
“What is happening today in our jurisdiction and beyond is no longer a classic criminal issue. We are facing an organised threat that is undermining our institutions,” the judge wrote. “Extensive mafia structures have become entrenched, becoming a parallel force that challenges not only the police, but also the judiciary.”
“The consequences are serious: are we evolving into a narco-state? No way, you think? Exaggerated? According to our Drugs Commissioner, this evolution has begun. My colleagues and I share this sentiment.”
A narco-state is defined by an illegal economy, corruption and violence, elements that the Belgian system is increasingly encountering, the judge wrote.
Threats and lack of protection
The judge noted that members of the judiciary are being intimidated and receive little institutional support. “Several investigating judges have had to live under permanent police protection for extended periods due to an imminent, tangible threat to their person, their family and their home. I myself spent four months in a safe house," they wrote.
“In those circumstances, no government contacts us, no government actively offers support, there is no compensation, no shelter for family and colleagues, no insurance for all damages. And then you just pick up where you left off. ‘It just comes with the job,’ my government seems to be saying.”
Despite the risks, the author vowed not to yield to intimidation. “If the judiciary begins to function poorly, that is a dangerous attack on our democracy,” they wrote. Recruiting judges willing to handle organised crime cases is becoming increasingly difficult, with some being targeted personally through requests for recusal or public harassment.
Call for master plan
The judge urged the government to adopt a sustainable strategy to safeguard the justice system.
“This requires a master plan, a sustainable strategy,” he wrote, while proposing several short-term measures, including legal provisions for anonymous working, a designated contact point within the ministries of Justice and Interior for threatened magistrates, insurance and compensation for physical or material damage and shielding magistrates’ addresses in official databases such as the National Register.
"The question is how our state will defend itself"
He also called for tighter control over mobile phone use in prisons, saying it continues to enable criminal operations. “Nearly all inmates appear to be able to use them, and in virtually all devices seized and read, we encounter new or continuing crimes,” the letter said.
“Despite all the efforts of the police and the judiciary, we are no longer able to protect our citizens and ourselves,” the author concluded. “We call on you to make this fight a structural priority. Not temporary, not project-based, but sustainable and systemic. Because the question is not whether the rule of law is threatened — it already is. The question is how our state will defend itself.”
#FlandersNewsService | © BELGA PHOTO TAMARA VAN HASSELT
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