The Council of State has ruled that the police order imposing a curfew on under 16s on New Year's Eve in Cureghem may go ahead as planned. Anderlecht Mayor Fabrice Cumps (PS) says the "exceptional" measure will "protect young people."
Unless accompanied by a parent or guardian, under 16s must adhere to an overnight curfew from 19:00 on Tuesday until 05:00 on Wednesday in the Cureghem district of Anderlecht in Brussels. Human rights activist Nordine Saïdi and his family had requested that the order be suspended. However, the Council of State ruled on Monday that the curfew may go ahead, Le Soir reported.
"The Council of State considers that the requesting parties have not concretely demonstrated the existence of a sufficiently serious issue on their part to justify suspension of this order," it stated on Monday evening, following the opinion issued earlier in the day by the auditor.
The mayor's measure against certain residents of Cureghem – one of the municipality's most "difficult" neighbourhoods – has come under fire. The decision was deemed illegal by the Council of State because it was made in an unjustified emergency.
"The mayor did not have the authority to take this decision alone," said auditor Benoit Cuvelier. "He based his decision on events which occurred on New Year's Eve 2022 and 2023. New Year's Eve 2024 is therefore not an unforeseeable event, and it was up to the local council to take action in this area." The court ruled that the mayor had therefore "exceeded his powers."
The measure allows for the immediate arrest of any minor under the age of 16 who is not accompanied by a parent or guardian. While the auditor raised concerns of violating the International Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Council of State rejected any "discrimination" found in the text.
The Council of State found that critics had failed to demonstrate that they had suffered any real "serious" harm as a result of the measure. As a result, the Council of State did not suspend the order, despite criticism of its legality.
'Urban guerrilla warfare'
Cumps fiercely backed the reasons for his decision, emphasising his aim to protect young people and children. "The firecrackers we are talking about – 5,000 of which were found in a car on Saturday – have a high explosive charge. Children, young people, passers-by, police and firefighters are at risk. It's happened in previous years, and that's why I wanted to take action: to avoid a repeat of the scenes of urban guerrilla warfare we have already witnessed."
The socialist mayor reiterated the "exceptional" nature of the measure but stressed his duty of "protecting the people of Anderlecht, and particularly young people whose physical integrity is at risk."
"I am providing the police with an administrative tool so that they can intervene to prevent things getting out of hand if necessary. In Anderlecht, we are also developing positive prevention policies, for example with officers on the ground."
