Prison staff will resign on Friday in protest against aggression
© Bert de Deken
From Thursday to Friday evening, strike actions take place in all prisons of the country. The campaigners denounce the intimidation and violence against staff members and want to bring the need for « a fast and decisive approach to the terror » to the attention of the policy makers.
Source: Belga
Yesterday at 4:18 PM
The trade unions submitted in common front notice for a 24 -hour strike from Thursday 27 March at 10 p.m. The promotion was announced after a heavy foot seeker was thrown to the private vehicle of a jailer from Haren’s prison earlier this month. On Saturday evening a jailer in Andenne was still attacked by a prisoner with a psychiatric problem. Also in the prison of Haren last weekend, according to Federal Secretary of the Socialist Trade Union ACOD Robby De Kaey, an incident was once again reported.
During the strike, a static manifestation is also organized for the office of the Minister of Justice Annelies Verlinden in Brussels. The trade unions have asked the minister to receive a limited trade union delegation to discuss the complaints of the striking staff members during a personal maintenance.
Great willingness to strike
The consultation with the employer yields too little, says the Kaey, who expects that stricter action will be taken against aggression, drugs and smartphones in prison. « As a trade union, we believe that steps can be taken that do not require budgetary resources and for which the Director General does not depend on external partners. » According to the federal secretary, the willingness to strike is great.
Earlier on Monday, the Flemish Minister for Justice Zuhal Demir (N-VA) announced that she is willing to place 4,000 extra convicts who are currently running around freely in the next 2.5 years under electronic supervision. Due to the « disastrous » overcrowding in prisons, 3,400 criminals convicted are currently on a waiting list to go to prison.
