The European Court of Human Rights has found that Belgium violated multiple provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights after four international protection applicants were left homeless for prolonged periods despite court orders requiring the State to provide accommodation and material support.
The applicants, who arrived in Belgium in 2022 and applied for international protection, were forced to live on the streets in Brussels in conditions of extreme destitution for periods ranging from 111 to 338 days. Each had obtained final decisions from the Brussels French-Language Employment Tribunal directing the Belgian authorities to provide accommodation and support, yet those decisions were not promptly enforced.
The Court noted that while Article 3 (prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment) does not impose a general obligation on States to provide housing, Belgian law implementing EU reception standards required the provision of material support to asylum seekers. The applicants’ accounts of their living conditions were supported by evidence of a broader crisis affecting asylum reception in Belgium at the time, as well as findings relating to the execution of the Camara v. Belgium judgment.
Although the Belgian authorities had taken steps to address capacity issues, including increasing accommodation and funding support services, the Court held that systemic pressures could not justify the failure to meet basic obligations. The applicants had lived for months without shelter, resources or access to sanitary facilities, including during winter, and in constant insecurity. These conditions reached the threshold of severity required to engage Article 3, amounting to degrading treatment in violation of their dignity.
The Court also found a violation of Article 6 § 1 (right to a fair hearing), as the domestic court decisions in the applicants’ favour had not been enforced within a reasonable time. Accommodation was only provided after significant delays (ranging from 67 to 262 days) and only following the indication of interim measures by the Strasbourg court. The authorities had also failed to pay coercive fines ordered by the domestic courts.
In addition, the Court held that Belgium breached Article 34 (right of individual application) due to delays in complying with interim measures. While some delay may be acceptable in implementing measures requiring positive action, the Court found that the authorities had not acted with the necessary urgency. The applicants had not contributed to the delay, and the measures merely reinforced existing domestic court orders, yet implementation still took between 21 and 261 days.
The Court concluded that Belgium had failed to take all reasonable steps to comply promptly with its obligations, resulting in violations of Articles 3, 6 and 34 of the Convention. It awarded damages for non-pecuniary loss ranging from €5,070 to €12,350 to the applicants.