The Flemish right-wing separatist party N-VA has called on an amendment to the language law, as it claims the current system results in months of delays – as it allows people in Flanders who break the law to request a language change during the trial.
The party's MPs Jeroen Tiebout and MP Wouter Raskin argued that the language law should not allow criminals to avoid a sentence or fine, specifically pointing to traffic-related cases in the Brussels periphery. They noted that people who drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol should be immediately removed from traffic, but can instead keep their driving licence for many months if they apply for a language change.
"In practice, this creates absurd situations and even life-threatening situations. It is incomprehensible they can keep driving around until the French-speaking court finds time to deal with the case," the MPs wrote in a statement on Tuesday.
Break law in Flanders, tried in Dutch
While in Brussels, which is a bi-lingual region, Dutch and French are equivalent as administrative languages, in the municipalities bordering the capital region but located in Flanders, many residents are French-speaking, while Dutch is the only administrative language, which complicates judicial matters.
For example, when a French-speaking traffic offender requests a language change during his trial, the file has to be translated. "Both the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court interpret the language law strictly. The entire case must then first be translated, or it moves to a French-speaking court with a lengthy legal backlog."
The MPs argued this quickly results in many months of "completely unnecessary and avoidable delays," and prevents the system from applying so-called "safety measures," such as ensuring repeat offenders or drug addicts can't drive when under the influence by depriving the driver's licence.
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The party, therefore, wants to amend the language law. "Anyone who breaks the law in Flanders should be tried in Dutch. The place of the offence must be the language of the proceedings."
N-VA is investigating at the federal level, where the party is in opposition, how best to adapt the language law and will then turn it into a legislative initiative.
