Rule of law “ad Acta”
On January 7, the Mayor of the City of Luxembourg, Lydie Polfer, was a guest of the RTL editorial team. As so often in recent decades, when Ms. Polfer has been a guest on radio or television for a question and answer session, the topic was security and crime in the City of Luxembourg. As so often, the conclusion remains the same: there is a lack of police officers and now also a lack of staff in the courts.
In 2023, 1,500 out of 2,177 cases were closed immediately. Only a third of the cases would be prosecuted, with the focus now almost exclusively on important and serious cases, according to Ms. Polfer.
Two thirds of cases without criminal consequences? A slap in the face for police officers on the ground, who are still too few and far between doing their best to bring criminals to justice. For years, we have heard from police circles that there is great frustration because a whole series of cases are not followed up properly and some criminals are back on the streets faster than they can be arrested. But it is also a slap in the face for the victims and complainants and indeed for the many citizens of the country who rely on an effective rule of law. And last but not least, a fatal signal to that minority who flout the law and get away without prosecution.
The great weakness of politics is particularly evident in the area of security. The major parties have been struggling with the same problems for what feels like 30 years. They have made little improvement and are now just as far behind the criminals as the population. A situation that is also familiar from other policy areas, such as housing.
When you then hear in 2025 that the situation is “dramatic”, you wonder who has not taken their political responsibility in recent years. Prospects for improvement: not really. Why? Because politicians prefer short-term patchwork to long-term measures. Because developments in various neighborhoods in Esch, Ettelbrück, the city and many other places have been observed for far too long. Because the issue of crime committed by people with a migration background was and still is a taboo subject.
We could certainly spend hours analyzing the causes of the current situation. However, no one will feel responsible for it. It is therefore high time to stop talking and start acting.
FOKUS. therefore demands:
- Further recruitment in the police force, but above all in the judiciary. There is an urgent need for our courts to be able to make faster and more effective decisions.
- In order to compensate for the acute shortage of judges, experienced lawyers or even specialists in certain areas of law must be able to act as judges without this being associated with a considerable administrative burden. The necessary financial framework must therefore also be created.
- More investigating magistrates are fundamentally needed so that cases are followed up and people are not left in limbo and never hear about their case again.
- There must be much more scope for “Jugement sur Accord” between the public prosecutor’s office, the victim and the offender, which would relieve the burden on the courts enormously, especially in major drug cases.
- After all, even we in Luxembourg cannot avoid the discussion about how we should deal with people who have recently immigrated and committed crimes. The following principle applies here more than ever: “Non-compliance with the rules” must be punished consistently and quickly. In the event of repeat offenses, this punishment must also include swift repatriation to the country of origin.
For Fokus, the rule of law with clear rules and effective functioning is the foundation of our free democracy. The rule of law has been neglected long enough.
Luxembourg, 08.01.2025
