Suicide and neglect: Schaerbeek squat evacuation deemed 'total failure'

The clearing of the Schaerbeek squat has been a success according to official communication, however, organisations on the ground have argued it has simply created more problems.

One week ago, a person who had been refused shelter, in an act of desperation, survived a suicide attempt. "The consequences of this situation are dramatic. On Thursday, a desperate patient tried to end his own life by jumping out the window of the Humanitarian Hub, in front of teams already exhausted by the situation," a statement from Doctors Without Borders (MSF) read.

After setting up an urgent medical healthcare point near the Immigration Office last year, MSF is now focusing on providing medical care to people sleeping rough near the Petit Château (Fedasil's registration centre) at the Molenbeek canal, many of whom were removed from the so-called Schaerbeek squat.

"The living conditions here are unworthy", MSF said. "Despite the extreme vulnerability of certain profiles, Fedasil is no longer able to follow up and support them, and they are thus left on the streets."

Vulnerable people left in the cold

Since the screening of people occupying the squat was carried out, the derelict building was emptied of its inhabitants. Officials said that vulnerable profiles would be systematically taken care of and that only single men considered to be in good health would sleep on the streets (which in itself is illegal).

"However, the MSF medical team identified an LGBTQI+ person in the camp. Considered a vulnerable profile by Fedasil, who in principle would systematically gain access housing, this person was instead left on the street," the organisation noted.

It argued that, contrary to official claims that every person from the squat has been rehoused, the clearing operation of the squat in Schaerbeek is turning out to be a "total failure."

Today, some 110 tents, each with between two and three occupants, have been set up at the camp near the canal. While around 100 people have been resettled by NGOs, empty tents were immediately taken by new people in need. "The camp seems to be growing by the day, and disturbingly, people on the street see the camp as a gateway to the shelter network."

Number of squats multiplying

The reception crisis, in combination with the growing issue of homelessness in general, has also resulted in the number of squats in Brussels multiplying, Samusocial, social emergency services in the region, noted.

In the past eight months, Samusocial has intervened in 13 precarious occupations where between 1,500 and 2,000 people lived, "without counting the multitude of other small squats".

"The challenge is immense when we see the growing number of building occupations, often in hygienic conditions that present an immediate health risk for the people living there," Samusocial's director general, Sébastien Roy, told Belga News Agency.

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Bedbugs, scabies and other skin conditions were recorded here, while many of the occupants also have drug addictions and suffer from poor mental health. MSF has once again called on the Federal Government to honour its commitments and "immediately relocate all asylum seekers."