The unions that represent the county’s police officers have reacted with anger and shock at the attack that resulted in the death of a 20-year-old police officer in Brussels on Thursday evening.
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Police unions “angry and disappointed” after young police officer’s murder
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The Chairman of the police union NSPV Carlo Medo told VRT News that "This is unbelievable. We are angry, sorrowful, and very disappointed. We demand that finally decent measures are put in place. We simply just can’t carry on living with the things that have been happening in the country during the past few years. Violence against police officers has reached unprecedented levels. It really must stop”.
"The police are being seen as society’s punch balls where people can work off their frustration. The police are there to serve the public and not to be slaughtered. Because that is what has happened here”.
Mr Medo added that he expects "clear choices to be made on the part of politicians. "Our police officers are given very little protection by the Justice Department. When the Justice Minister was threatened half a platoon was deployed to protect him and quite rightly so. But who comes to the assistance of our police officers when the are subjected to pointless violence? It is high time that politicians started to talk the talk and walk the walk to ensure that these kinds of things can’t happen anymore”.
Liberal police union to take action
The liberal police union VSOA says that Thursday evening’s incident was “the umpteenth incident of violence against police officers in the Brussels-Capital Region. Politicians will as usual condemn what has happened in the strongest terms and then tomorrow once again look the other way like they have been doing for decades”.
VSOA’s press statement goes on to say that "Years of impunity for criminals in Brussels and other big cities has meant that those that attack police officers and emergency services workers feel that they have little to fear”.
VSOA’s Vincent Houssin told VRT News that "Since 2009 all kinds of promises have been made by various government with the current Justice Minister at the forefront for tougher measures for those that use violence against the police. But in practice we see that nothing is done. This is the straw that broke the camel’s back. Politicians bear a great responsibility for this”. VSOA is calling on its members to take action.
NSPV also says that its members will also take action as “a clear signal needs to be given” that things can’t continue as they are.