"I would prefer not to create a Belgian Guantanamo"

"I would prefer not to create a Belgian Guantanamo"

Justice minister Koen Geens (CD&V) has said it wouldn't be fair to keep terrorists or radicalised people in prison until the ISIS terrorist threat no longer exists. The N-VA president spoke about the issue while appearing on VTMNIEUWS on Friday, saying "I would prefer not to create a Belgian Guantanamo". 

"The penal code says we can't keep people in custody once they have served their sentence", Koen Geens explained. "We could consider administrative custody, which would let us retain them as a preventative measure. However, the European Court of Human Rights still has to look into whether this is actually possible". 

The Justice minister has said authorities don't just forget about convicted terrorists or radicalised prisoners once they have been released. "We check up on these people regularly once they have served their sentence, via local task forces, police, national security forces and the courts. Every country in the world has come across this issue and dealt with it in a similar way. I haven't heard anyone mention administrative custody. I am just trying to understand Mr De Wever's idea and let him know whether it is possible. But I would prefer not to create a Belgian Guantanamo". 


The Brussels Times


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