The President of the Order of French and German-speaking Lawyers (Avocats.be), Me Jean-Pierre Buyle is concerned by a number of “judicial” plans and statements currently emanating from the federal government. La Libre Belgique is reporting on Monday that he has referred the issue to the Prime Minister, Charles Michel (MR).
The President of Avocats.be has spoken to the Prime Minister regarding the bill, which permits home visits by the police to undocumented immigrants. The aim of the bill is to uncover such individuals who are refusing to leave Belgium. The President has also raised the issue of Minister Jambon’s questioning of Me Sven Mary’s arguments, during the trial of Salah Abdeslam.
Buyle told La Libre Belgique, “We realise that Mr Michel has taken up the issue of home visits, such initiative in itself not being a regular occurrence. The President of OVB (the Flemish counterpart of Avocats.be, editor’s note) and I have met with him. We firmly told [Mr Michel] that if he persists against our wishes, to push forward this bill, we will request that migrants being thus sought have legal representation, and that the investigating judge has flexibility to determine both the role of the police in such cases and the scope of visits to migrants’ homes. The visits in reality amount to a police search.”
He stated angrily, “This proposal is wholly unconstitutional. It is a clear violation of two non-negotiable principles, the inviolability of the home and the right to respect for privacy, neither of which we are prepared to compromise upon.”
Specifically in the Jambon-Mary matter, Me Buyle requested that the Prime Minister meets with representives from both the judiciary and the Belgian Bar and confirms “his understanding of the separation of powers. We currently await this positive gesture which will permit all stakeholders to emerge from this awful impasse.”
He went on, “When Jan Jambon talks of his views regarding Me Mary, he appears to hold them as a citizen and not as a minister. He is lying and mocking people, and he is also insulting the judiciary.”
The Brussels
