Torture in prison: “Horrifying and repulsive, if it's true”

Mr Van Tigchelt said the torture was horrifying and repulsive if it really happened.  He added that the incident will be thoroughly investigated by the judicial authorities and the prison service. He said blaming the incident on prison overcrowding and the shortage of prison guards was 'premature'. That is exactly what the prison guard unions have done.  They see a clear link between continued prison overcrowding and this abuse.

"Unfortunately, in recent years we have seen that heinous acts of violence are committed by criminals identified thanks to the police hacking of encryted messages between criminals" justice minister Van Tigchelt said. "This happens not only outside prison walls, but apparently also inside prison. This is not the first act of violence inside the prison walls that we have faced."

Unions blame overcrowding

"The dramatic events that took place in Antwerp prison were allowed to unfold because of the difficult conditions in which staff have to work and detainees are housed," Mario Heylen, a guard at Antwerp prison and representative of the socialist trade union ACOD, says.

The victim was staying in a cell meant for only three people, but where six people had been put together. The perpetrators managed to hide their torture from the guards for days by placing a blanket over the victim every time someone entered and by forcing the victim to remain silent.

"When is it enough?"

Heylen stresses that - due to overcrowding - prison guards limit their checks to seeing if someone "shows signs of life". "You can blame that entirely on the appalling and scandalous conditions in which staff have to work. People are stacked like animals. In order to provide the current number of detainees with the most humane detention possible, staff have to work their socks off and deal with 1,001 different issues, while we are often understaffed."