The minibus from Athens had just crossed into Belgium when the blue lights flashed. Officers demanded papers from all 12 passengers—including a Syrian family already granted asylum in Germany. 'We were visiting cousins in Brussels,' the father protested, holding up his EU residence permit. By midnight, two were detained for 'irregular secondary movement.'
The Summer of Suspicion
Belgium's new controls target what Interior Minister Bernard Quintin calls 'migration pressure points'—highways, international buses, and select flights from Italy and Greece. The goal? To stop 'asylum shopping,' where refugees apply in multiple EU nations. But the real message is political: Flanders' nationalist N-VA party, leading Belgium's fragile coalition, is flexing its anti-migration muscles.
The 10-Meter Problem
'Will they install checks every 10 meters?' scoffed Green MP Matti Vandemaele, noting Belgium's 1,445 km of Schengen borders. Critics argue the plan is logistically impossible and legally dubious—Schengen rules allow temporary internal checks only for terrorism threats, not routine migration management.
- Targeted flights: Random document checks on Brussels Airlines domestic routes from Athens/Thessaloniki
- Highway stops: Federal police collaborating with local forces at 18 strategic rest areas
- Data dilemma: No system to instantly verify asylum claims made in other EU states
The Human Calculus
Behind the policy lies a darker reality: Van Bossuyt's ministry admits over 60% of last year's 'secondary movers' were ultimately permitted to stay. For every denied claim, families face prolonged separation—like the Afghan teen stuck in Belgium while his parents await processing in Austria. 'This isn't security,' whispers a border officer. 'It's performative cruelty.'
The question isn't whether Belgium can police Schengen's seams. It's whether trading trust for control will unravel the very system Europe relies on—one bus stop at a time.