Flemish first: camera safari in Ypres city centre

The camera as part of the street furniture

If you take a good look around, you will quickly notice that today it is not so easy to move around without walking past the lens of a camera. There is nothing wrong with this in itself. The images can be useful in identifying the perpetrator of a crime or for directing traffic flows in the right direction.
However, it is striking how quickly and easily the camera has become part of the streetscape. Few question the how and why and there is no public debate: who manages all these devices? Who views the images and what are they used for? Has installing a camera actually solved anything? Are there alternatives and if so, why are they not used? However, according to Beweging.net, these are valid questions.

According to the network, security and privacy are indispensable in a democratic society. However, they are often placed opposite each other: ‘How much privacy are we willing to give up as a society for more security?’

That is why Beweging.net wants to make cameras visible and discussable in the street scene in a fun and accessible way. Eg. via a camera safari in the city. By noticing the number of cameras, one can ask questions about their usefulness and look for additional information.

Ypres as a Flemish first

Beweging.net has devised a plan to start working on this in various cities and municipalities. The Ypres department was the first to develop such a camera safari and is the pilot for the rest of Flanders.

It’s premiering today. “With a walk of about 2.5 km. we map out the number of cameras tailored to our own city”, says Patrick Vandermeersch, chairman of Beweging.net Ypres. “Participants learn a lot in a fun way, including via QR codes that you can scan throughout the walk. Where are all those cameras? What is the legislation and who can use the images? We were actually quite shocked by the number of cameras on that short walking route.”
“We will make the camera safari available to everyone after today. Anyone who wants to can do the walk themselves, all summer long,” adds Beweging.net board member and city council member Stefaan Williams.

“On Tuesday, September 26, we are organizing an information and debate evening with professor-criminologist Jelle Janssens (UGent). We will also announce the prize winners of the safari on that evening. In addition, I will also take the theme to the city council: it is important that the debate on, among other things, the access and use of camera images is also held there.”