Date: The complaint was registered on 1 December 2023.
Jurisdiction: Council of Europe – European Committee of Social Rights
Country: Belgium
Legal basis: It relates to Article 16 (the right of the family to social, legal and economic protection), Article 30 (the right to protection against poverty and social exclusion) and Article E (non-discrimination) in conjunction with the relevant provisions of the revised European Social Charter.
Subject: The complaint concerns the increasing number of municipal regulations prohibiting begging or restricting the right to beg in Belgium, which particularly stigmatise persons belonging to the Roma community. The complainant organisations allege that, in the absence of any constitutional or legal provision enshrining the right to beg, Belgium has failed to fulfil its obligation to implement a comprehensive and coordinated approach to people forced to resort to begging and their families, who are in or at risk of being in a situation of persistent social exclusion or poverty, in violation of the above-mentioned provisions of the Charter.
More information here.
The complaint follows a report by the Federal Institute for Human Rights (IFDH) and the Service for the Fight against Poverty and Social Exclusion, which found that 253 Belgian cities and municipalities apply begging bans that violate human rights. (May 2023)
This complaint has elements in common with that of FEANTSA and FIDH versus France, and we understand that the European Committee must give a coherent ruling on the various issues raised.
