“MOLENBEEK IN BRUSSELS IS FINE”

A lot of talks recently again about the problems in Molenbeek in Brussels.

So it’s time to take another look now that supposedly calm has returned despite the fact that last Friday, June 17, a day after my visit, raids took place again to track down terror suspects.

As soon as I park my car on the Duchess of Brabantplein in the middle of Molenbeek, I actually get a bit of an uncanny feeling. I don’t belong here.

Pretty crazy, I’m in Brussels, just a little more than an hour away from my house in Eindhoven. You don’t expect this feeling here. Because I must have parking money, I buy a few bananas in an Alimentation (small supermarket), a colorful shop run by an Arab. Within this I was surprised by the very pleasant atmosphere and friendliness of the owner. Fortunately, you think.

I prepare my DSLR camera and mount my zoom lens. Actually, way too big this camera. Trying to photograph as invisibly as possible today is the credo.

My route goes straight to the Vierwindenstraat where Salah Abdeslam was arrested after storming the house there. You immediately pass some desolate flats of 14 floors. The mess on the balconies and satellite dishes is immediately noticeable.The door in the Vierwindenstraat is still intact, but with big dents and holes. Basically like so many doors here.

After a few photos shot from the hip, I am already approached by an aggressive man. He wants to see the pictures I took. I’ll show you a few and delete some misses. After supposedly showing understanding, I’m done with it, since this is public territory. But I don’t want to create attention and a riot. There are already 5 people around me. So, I quickly walk on and say ‘au revoir’.

In the meantime, I can move relatively quietly. A boy of about 10 years haunts me. Out of curiosity, I hope. Molenbeek does not radiate anything European. I’m pretty much the only white person walking around here. The people you speak to, especially for the schools, try to show the positive. That there is togetherness and safety. I don’t see it that way myself. The decay and impoverishment is everywhere. In addition, the ghettoization is enormous. I have yet to meet the first woman without a headscarf. Personally, I see a big problem. The segmentation and isolation of the rest of Brussels could not be greater. The expensive Laeken district is located next door. The contrast couldn’t be greater.

Even though many people try to give a positive image of Molenbeek, I do not see it. Anti-terror actions take place for a reason. Comments from the white Brussels residents that I hear: ‘it is not cozy here, there is no interference, people distance themselves from Belgian society, it is a mess and dirty’.

I see no reason not to be able to justify those comments.

The Belgian government has failed, from my perspective, thoroughly here. Just like the French ones. I knew the banlieus, the Parisian suburbs, well. I lived there for two years.

A very similar, pretty hopeless, situation.

Maurits van Linder (freelance photojournalist)