State Security Service (Belgium)
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The State Security Service (VSSE) (known in Dutch as Veiligheid van de Staat; French: Sûreté de l'État) is a Belgian intelligence and security agency. Established in 1830, it is the oldest intelligence service except for the Vatican's. The State Security is a civilian agency under the authority of the Ministry of Justice, while the other federal intelligence agency, the General Information and Security Service, operates under the authority of the Ministry of Defense. The current Administrator-General is Jaak Raes, after his predecessor Alain Winants occupied the position for about two years ad-interim. Before him, Administrator-General Koen Dassen resigned amidst the controversy over State Security losing sight of suspected Kurdish militant Fehriye Erdal.
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Tasks
The main objective of State Security is the collection, analyzing and processing of all intelligence that might prove relevant to the prevention of any activity that might be a threat against the internal or external security of the state, the democratic and constitutional order and international relations, to carry out security inquiries, and to perform tasks in relation to the protection of certain people. The State Security is also one of the main providers of threat intelligence to Belgium's threat analysis fusion centre, the Coordination Unit for Threat Analysis (CUTA/OCAD/OCAM). In recent years the State Security's activities have focused on the terror threat emanating from Daesh.
Directors
Since the Second World War, the Belgian Security Service has had the following directors (called 'administrateur général'):
- Robert de Foy (1933–1940, 1947–1958)
- Template:Interlanguage link multi (1940–1944) (for the Belgian government in exile in London)
- Pol Bihin (1944–1947)
- Template:Interlanguage link multi (1958–1977)
- Albert Raes (1977 – June 1990)
- Stephane Schewebach (1990–1993, ad interim)
- Template:Interlanguage link multi (1994 – September 1999)
- Godelieve Timmermans (June 2000 – August 2002)
- Koen Dassen (September 2002 – February 2006)
- Alain Winants (October 27, 2006 – March 2014)
- Jaak Raes (March 2014–present)
Parliamentary supervision
During the 1980s, a number of incidents including the Brabant supermarket killings, the activities of terrorist groups such as the Combatant Communist Cells and the neo-Nazist Westland New Post brought attention and criticism to the activities and ineffectiveness of the nation's police and intelligence agencies.
In 1991, following two government enquiries, a permanent parliamentary committee, Committee I, was established to bring these agencies, not previously subject to any outside control, under the authority of Belgium's federal parliament. Legislation governing the missions and methods of these agencies was put in place in 1998.
Entitlement
The entitlements of the Security Service were expanded in 2006. Before, they did not have much police power, and were only able to gather and analyse information. The agency was allowed to surveil people, but not to interfere. This has changed now with what are called the Special Inquiry Methods (Bijzondere Inlichtingenmethodes). Federal lawmakers have given significantly more power to the Service, enabling them to work more efficiently. These powers are, among others: the possibility to put taps on phones, to enter homes of people suspected of being involved in terrorist activities without them knowing, or to detain and question people. This all under the supervision of specially appointed judges, much like the system already in place in the policing system with what are called examining magistrates. This adjustment of the system has made the Security Service more like its kins in other countries. They are, however, not yet as strong as the services in Britain or France. The change in policy had been in the loop since several years, but recent events gave the final impulse for change. One of these was the escape of Fehriye Erdal.
Literature and sources
- F. Caestecker, Alien Police in Belgium 1840-1940. The creation of guest workers, New York - Oxford, 2000.
- C. Carpentier & F. Moser, La Sûreté de l'État: histoire d'une déstabilisation, Ottignies, 1993.
- L. Caymaex, L'administration de la Sûreté Publique, Brussels, 1965.
- M. Cools, K. Dassen, R. Libert, P. Ponsaerts (eds.), La Sûreté. Essais sur les 175 ans de la Sûreté de l'État, Brussels, Politeia, 2005.
- J. Gotovitch & J. Gerard-Libois, L'An 40. La Belgique occupée, Bruxelles, 1973.
- L. Keunings, The Secret Police in nineteenth century Brussels, in: Intelligence and National Security, 1989.
- K. Lasoen, '185 Years of Belgian Security Service', in: Journal of Intelligence History 15 (2016)
- K. Lasoen, 'Indications and Warning in Belgium. Brussels is not Delphi', in: Journal of Strategic Studies 40 (2017). DOI: 10.1080/01402390.2017.1288111
- K. Lasoen, 'For Belgian Eyes Only. Intelligence Cooperation in Belgium.' in: International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence 30 (2017). DOI: 10.1080/08850607.2017.1297110
- K. Lasoen, 'Plan B(ruxelles): Belgian Intelligence and the Terror Attacks of 2015-16' in: Terrorism and Political Violence (2018)
- L. Van Outryve, Les services de renseignement et de sécurité, Bruxelles, Courier du CRISP, 1999.
- S. Vervaeck, Inventaire des archives du Ministère de la justice, administration de la sûreté publique, police des étrangers, dossier généraux, Bruxelles, Archives générales du royaume, 1968.
See also
