Background

In February, a new federal government took office and announced that it would pursue “the strictest migration policy ever”.

Freedom of expression, association and assembly

In July, the Council of Ministers approved a preliminary draft bill giving the government powers to disband and prohibit “radical” or “extremist” organizations, undermining freedom of association and expression. In November, parliamentarians submitted a draft law aimed at allowing judges to impose a temporary general prohibition on participation in public assemblies, as a complementary penalty for people convicted of protest-related criminal offences. Such a provision would undermine freedom of peaceful assembly.

Refugees’ and migrants’ rights

Authorities continued to leave thousands of asylum seekers – mostly single and male – homeless and destitute by denying them access to reception facilities. In August, parliament adopted a new law excluding certain groups from accessing reception facilities, which meant that even some families with children were forced to sleep on the streets.

Despite the severity of the human rights crisis in Afghanistan, the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons continued to deny international protection to the majority of Afghan asylum seekers. Between January and November, only 43.5% of those applying were granted protection.

Rights at work

In January, the Belgian Official Gazette published an appeal by organizations advocating for the annulment of the law on sex work under employment contract. The law contained specific provisions protecting sex workers’ employment rights including the need for employers to engage with sex workers’ trade unions and organizations.

Sexual and reproductive rights

Political parties continued to block a parliamentary vote on proposed improvements to abortion access that would bring the law into compliance with the 2022 WHO Abortion Care Guidelines. Amnesty International and Médecins du Monde Belgium raised concerns about access to abortion care for specific groups, including people experiencing homelessness and people without legal status. Despite the legal entitlement to healthcare services, welfare services continued to delay or deny care, compelling some people to seek abortion care abroad.

Detainees’ rights

Overcrowding in dilapidated prisons continued, with insufficient access for people deprived of their liberty to basic services, including healthcare and sanitary facilities. In July, parliament approved the Emergency Law, temporarily introducing measures to reduce overcrowding. However, by year’s end, these measures had not resolved the problem.

Irresponsible arms transfers

In January, the Council of State suspended three licences for the export of arms to the United Arab Emirates. In July, the Brussels Court of First Instance ordered the Flemish government to prohibit any further transit of military equipment to Israel. In September, the government supported the extension of the arms export and transit ban on military goods to Israel and advocated a European embargo on arms and dual-use goods when the end user is military.

Corporate accountability

In December, the National Society of Belgian Railways awarded a contract to purchase hundreds of new train carriages to Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) and placed an initial order worth EUR 1.7 billion. In September, OHCHR, the UN human rights office, named CAF in its updated database of companies involved in unlawful Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

Right to a healthy environment

In June, the government reported that in 2022 the state spent more than EUR 17.8 billion in fossil fuels subsidies.

Right to life and security of the person

In August, the USA transferred Tunisian footballer Nizar Trabelsi back to Belgium after his unlawful extradition to the USA in 2013. He was held in immigration detention and Belgium’s Immigration Office immediately ordered him to return to Tunisia, but the Council for Alien Law Litigation suspended this decision. Following court orders, the authorities released Trabelsi in October.