Police protest marches through Brussels

Thousands of police officers are expected to march through the streets of Brussels today, Thursday, in protest at the lack of a solution concerning early retirement pensions for police officers. Unions say that nearly 10,000 officers will take part in the march, a number not seen since the demonstrations which took place over the reform of the police force in 2001.

The demonstration will take place from 10.00 until 14.00. It will start at Brussels North Station and end at Cinquantenaire/Jubelpark. The tunnels of Brussels inner ring are due to be closed and the police expect significant traffic disruption, primarily in the area around Rue de la Loi and Rue Belliard.

The police unions are angry at a ruling by the Constitutional Court earlier this year which forbids former officers of local constabularies to take early retirement earlier than their colleagues from the main police force, who have to wait until the age of 62 to be entitled to their pension. This decision extends the careers of some officers by up to eight years.

The unions insist that normal police services will not be compromised. "We have not appealed to officers to stop working, we have called on officers who are not at work or who can swap shifts to attend to come along to protest," said Vincent Houssin of VSOA/SLFP police union on Wednesday.