Belgian Justice Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne has commented on the many protests following the trial of the death of KU Leuven student Sanda Dia.
All 18 members of the Reuzegom student club who forced Sanda Dia to complete extreme tasks, which included ingesting things not fit for human consumption avoided prison sentences.
Instead, they were given between 200 and 300 hours of community service for manslaughter, degrading treatment and breaches of animal welfare legislation, and ordered to pay a €400 fine.
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Interviewed on VRT’s ‘De Zevende Dag’ programme, Van Quickenborne said he is ready for an open debate on sentencing in Belgium, but is urging for a balanced discussion. “It’s not just about revenge, it’s also about how you put people back on the right track.”
The minister said he understood the youth protests following the trial and takes them seriously.
A large mural of Sanda Dia, the student who lost his life during a hazing ritual, seen on the facade of the Pieter De Somer aula in Leuven, Wednesday 21 September 2022. Credit: Belga / Ine Gillis
A meeting will be held on Thursday with KU Leuven representatives, including the University’s rector Luc Sels.
Van Quickenborne pointed out that in a similar trial in Liège, which also involved the death of student during a student hazing, community service had also been handed down.
“The laws are what they are and 300 hours of community service is the maximum. But I am prepared to have a debate,” the Minister said.
In the coming weeks, the debate on the new penal code will take place in the House. “I am prepared to discuss it openly. However, it must not only be about fines and guilt, but also about how we make criminals better.”
The minister also noted that the family always has the option of lodging an appeal at the Court of Cassation, Belgium’s highest court.
The Justice Minister also reiterated that it is not for politicians to comment on the judges work. “I have heard from judges who fear for themselves and their families,” he said, referring to a “slippery slope”. “I am concerned about a climate in which judges are being targeted by certain people and seeing their names and addresses published.”
