NCJ Number
120920
Date Published
1988
Length
33 pages
Annotation
Although domestic terrorism in Belgium, as manifested in the Cellules Communistes Combattantes (CCC), is a latent phenomenon, Belgium must act to prevent a recurrence of such terrorism by defusing political and social dissent much as it has relieved religious and ethnic tensions.
Abstract
In acknowledging its reliance on the example of the Red Brigades for a diagnosis of Belgium's problems, the CCC has also affirmed its solution: the creation of a new international communist organization spearheaded by revolutionary urban guerilla structures. The CCC has aimed to establish a phase of civil war by bombing targets it believes will ally it with worker militancy in Belgium. Although four self-professed CCC terrorists and at least two suspected terrorists are now imprisoned, the Belgian government has acted to better prepare itself for combatting terrorist activity. Belgian legislation on extradition has been brought more into line with the standards of the European conventions. The use of electronic surveillance has been authorized, and the legal rationale for police use of force has been expanded. Belgium has also taken steps to align itself with the efforts of other Western European States to combat international terrorism. Appended chronology of CCC attacks, 40 notes.