Belgium: seen in the press

News

May 11, 2026

Belgium: prison staff strike over overcrowding

Prison staff across Belgium began a nationwide strike at 6am on Monday, protesting against severe overcrowding, rising violence and heavy workloads.

News

April 15, 2026

Belgium: 750 incarcerated people forced to sleep on floor

A record number of incarcerated people in Belgium are sleeping on the floor as prison overcrowding worsens, with 750 people currently without a bed, according to the ACOD Prisons trade union.

News

March 24, 2026

Belgium: 147 incarcerated people sleeping on floor as Haren prison overcrowding persists

Public sector union ACOD and the Federal Prison Service are once again sounding the alarm as the number of incarcerated people in Brussels prisons continues to rise significantly.

News

February 2, 2026

Belgium: prison overcrowding, Ministers explore possible cooperation with Estonia

Renting capacity abroad is one of the avenues the Belgian government is exploring to tackle overcrowding in the country’s prisons. Exploratory visits have already taken place to Kosovo and Albania.

News

January 3, 2026

Belgium: Nivelles prison overcrowding breaches Human Rights Convention

The prison oversight commission has declared the Nivelles prison no longer compliant with the European Convention on Human Rights due to overcrowding and poor conditions.

News

November 13, 2025

Belgium: bunk beds offered as "emergency" solution to prison overcrowding

Bunk beds instead of single beds are being touted as the solution to prison overcrowding in Haren prison, on the outskirts of Brussels.

News

October 8, 2025

Belgium: escaping from prison is not illegal - yet

Due to an old interpretation of an 1867 criminal law in Belgium, it is not yet illegal for an incarcerated person to escape from prison, so long as they do not commit any other offence in the process.

News

September 30, 2025

Belgium: prison staff to protest overcrowding

Staff and management at all Belgian prisons will protest against overcrowding in front of prison buildings. “The prison crisis is unprecedented, and prisons are crying out for help,” said the prison administration.

News

August 21, 2025

Belgium: 48-hour strike at Haren prison

The joint union action aims to denounce these, along with staff shortages and a lack of action from government when it comes to addressing the overcrowding issues in Belgian prisons, said Grégory Wallez, secretary general of the CGSP union.

News

August 1, 2025

Belgium: country plans to create over 2,000 additional prison spaces as overcrowding peaks

Minister of Justice Annelies Verlinden has announced plans to create 2,037 new prison spaces by 2030. Figures showed that overcrowding in prisons had reached peak levels, with many incarcerated people having to sleep on the floor.

News

May 12, 2025

Belgium: doctor denounces poor healthcare in Brussels prison

A doctor has filed a complaint with the Order of Physicians highlighting significant shortcomings in healthcare at Haren Prison in Brussels. Verbrugghe’s document reveals problematic situations, which he describes as structural.

News

April 22, 2025

Belgium: overcrowding reaches alarming levels in Ghent prison

Overcrowding in Ghent prison reached alarming proportions in 2024, according to a new report by the Inspection Committee. The number of complaints from incarcerated people about living conditions in the prison has risen sharply.

News

April 13, 2025

Belgium: the country must change its prison policy, says new report

The state of prisons - notably overcrowding, poor staff working conditions and inadequate access to support for imprisoned people - are not conducive to rehabilitation, according to a new report by the Brussels Federation of Institutions for Inmates and Former Prisoners (Fidex).

News

March 13, 2024

Belgium: unions blame overcrowding and understaffing for torture in Antwerp prison

The incident in which a prisoner in Antwerp was tortured for several days by cellmates is the result of “scandalous working conditions” for staff and prison overcrowding, unions said on Wednesday.

News

January 12, 2024

Belgium: prison staff hold 24-hour strike

Belgian prison staff walked out on strike for 24 hours as part of a joint trade union front, citing overcrowding and “deplorable conditions” for prisoners.

News

January 25, 2023

Belgium: seen in the press / 2023

Violence, acts of protest, prison conditions, justice reforms: find out what is new about prisons and justice in this country. Prison Insider monitors the press on a regular basis. Change the language setting to French or Spanish to read other articles.

News

January 10, 2022

Belgium: seen in the press / 2022

Violence, acts of protest, prison conditions, justice reforms: find out what is new about prisons and justice in this country. Prison Insider monitors the press on a regular basis.

News

November 23, 2021

Belgium: seen in the press / 2021

Violence, acts of protest, prison conditions, justice reforms: find out what is new about prisons and justice in this country. Prison Insider monitors the press on a regular basis.