Parliament urges investigation into Sanda Dia case

Last month the Antwerp court of appeal passed sentence on 18 members of the former student fraternity Reuzegom. The 18 were all actively involved in a hazing ceremony in which a fellow student died. Sanda Dia was a 20-year-old student at Leuven University (KU Leuven). In late 2018 he died after the hazing ritual organised by the now defunct Reuzegom student fraternity. The 18 defendants were acquitted on charges of administering harmful substances and criminal negligence, but found guilty of accidental killing, degrading treatment and breaches of animal welfare legislation. The court sentenced them to between 200- and 300-hours of community service. They were also issued with 400-euro fines and ordered to pay compensation to the family of the student that lost his life, Sanda Dia.  

Flemish Christian democrat lawmaker and former justice minister Koen Geens translated the feelings felt by all members of the parliamentary justice committee: the signal from society cannot be ignored:

"We cannot delay tackling this issue, society is not going to forgive us. Society's discontent is great. Perhaps opposition and majority can find common ground in organising the debate."

Since the ruling in the Sanda Dia case, many people have shown their displeasure, on social media and through demonstrations. They disagree with the punishment meted out to the members of the Reuzegom student fraternity involved in the hazing preceding Sanda Dia’s death and speak of class justice.

Enquiry into malfunctioning of the judicial system

Parliament is urging the high council for justice to conduct an investigation into the Sanda Dia case. It can investigate whether there were any errors by the judiciary in the conduct of the judicial process. It cannot judge the substance of a court decision. Next Thursday, the high court will decide whether or not to launch an enquiry.

The high council for justice also conducted an enquiry into the case of Julie Van Espen, who was killed by someone at liberty pending his trial by the appeal court. There was a lot of controversy about that at the time. The supreme court ruled that there had been several irregularities in the case file and reprimanded the Antwerp court.

Debate on class justice

Parliament is also taking up an offer from court representatives that are proposing coming to parliament to explain the sentences so that politicians can discuss them.

Parliament does not want only to debate the specific Sanda Dia case. Stefaan Van Hecke (Flemish green) stressed that worries about class justice also deserve attention. "We are not going to be able to answer or analyse these concerns right away. We need to think about how to conduct structural research into mechanisms that are in our legal system that can give rise to class justice or a feeling of it."