In the prisons of Ypres and Bruges together, about 80 detainees now sleep on a mattress on the floor or on the windowsill. The Antwerp governor wants a law that prohibits this, but she cannot enforce it herself. The West Flemish governor Carl Decaluwé also has no authority.
“I have the impression that the matter is being passed on, from the syndicates and the regulators, to the governors and mayors,” says Governor Carl Decaluwé. “But the responsibility lies primarily with the Minister of Justice.