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Belgium: Asylum bill nearly law

01 May 1996

The lower house of the Belgian parliament has approved a controversial new asylum bill designed to further restrict asylum rights. Although the bill must now be taken to the senate its passage is virtually inevitable. It will restrict the rights of asylum seekers in three main areas. Firstly it increases the powers of the Belgian state to hold asylum seekers from two months to six months, while allowing for two renewals enabling asylum seekers to be held in custody for up to 18 months. Those asylum seekers who are granted asylum will no longer be entitled to Belgian social security, instead they will be held in so-called open centres where there basic needs will be taken care of, but they will lose entitlement to benefit. Students will also be caught in the new legislation. Non-EU students who are no longer able to financially support themselves will be ejected from the country after three months. This measure has aroused the opposition of academics, who have pointed out that many students through no fault of their own will find themselves in temporary cashflow difficulties and face the threat of deportation. The bill also proposes to restrict the help that Belgian citizens are allowed to provide to illegal immigrants. If someone knowingly allows an illegal immigrant to enter the country then they will face either prison or a fine. However, the planned control on transport companies that would have forced them to check whether any individual entering the Schengen area posed a "threat to public order" has been watered down following protests from the national airline company Sabena and others. The airlines will now only have to prove that they followed the guidelines agreed in international conventions before issuing tickets. Parliamentary debate Belgian House of representatives, 3.4.96.