Two young women from Brussels are set to appear in court after allegedly assaulting police officers who informed them it was forbidden to walk through the centre of Blankenberge wearing bikinis.
According to the West Flanders public prosecutor’s office, the incident happened on Monday afternoon when two women aged 19 and 21, accompanied by a minor, were stopped by police enforcing the coastal town’s dress code. Local regulations prohibit beachwear, including bikinis, from being worn in the city centre or shopping areas.
The rule, formally adopted by the Blankenberge council, is rooted in Article 385 of the Belgian Penal Code, which criminalises "outrages to public decency". While the national law carries a fine of €26 to €500, Blankenberge, like neighbouring Knokke-Heist, applies a far stiffer fixed penalty of €350 for breaches. Ostend’s fines range from €59 to €250.
The prosecutor added that the women reacted defiantly to the officers’ reminder of the rules. They were taken to the police station, where they allegedly assaulted one officer and slightly injured another.
The two Brussels residents, one from Woluwe-Saint-Lambert and the other from Schaerbeek, were arrested and questioned. Prosecutors have ordered an immediate appearance before the Bruges criminal court on charges of resisting arrest and assault causing injury.
The minor was released without charge.
