© Picture: Ivan Put for Bruzz
Yassine is a law student at our university. This sporty VUB student tries to unite young people in the city with the police through dialogue. He talks passionately about the projects he is involved in and how he tries to play his part. After graduating Yassine dreams of specialising in law of war. He wants to do fieldwork in conflict areas all over the world. We had a nice conversation with him about VUB and his passions.
Strengthen the bond between young people and the police
Hello Yassine, what does an ideal day look like for you?
My ideal day is always very structured. I get up early and start off the day with a run or some exercise. Then I’ll work on projects or help some people out. I like to end my ideal day with a good movie.
What makes you happy?
Sport is my thing. It keeps me sain and makes me happy. That means going for a run or using the free fitness machines you can find in the Brussels parks. Positive social contacts with others can also make me happy, even if it’s something small like someone who greets me when I walk into a shop. Perhaps this is typical of a Covid year.
Are there things that frustrate you?
In general, the fact that we as activists move too fast for society. That can get me down. We as an organisation can have have prepared everything, these kinds of things and activities already exist abroad and when we want to do the same thing in Belgium we get so much opposition.
On the one hand, we are lucky that things go faster abroad. Lucky in the sense that we don't have to invent the wheel over here. We can see what can and can’t work. On the other hand, the misfortune is that although we have those good examples, it is difficult to apply them in our own society.
What would you like to experience again?
I miss a period in my youth. I used to be a free runner, or no I am still a free runner, but we used to do it every day. My friends and I trained before and after school and it’s this unique atmosphere I miss.
Are there any films you can recommend?
Ah, there are so many, but I especially enjoy the classics from the 80s and 90s. Those are still my favourites, e.g. The Godfather, Carlito's Way or Once Upon a Time in the West. You can see a lot of time and effort has gone into these films. The focus isn’t only on spectacular car chases and frequent explosions, but really on the story. Film has always been one of my interests. The art of telling stories and how they can make them come to life. I really admire that craftsmanship.
Who would you like to share a drink with?
I don’t really tend to admirer people, but if I had to choose someone it would be Malcom X. I can understand his philosophy, I admire his life, but I still find it difficult to have a strong admiration for certain individuals.
The idea is to get to know each other better and to be able to focus more on real neighbourhood involvement
You are active in a number of projects. Can you tell us why this is important and what you do?
There is a distinction between what I do as an individual and what I do in various projects. I am involved in a number of projects, and one of them is 'Zo geflikt'. This is a project by 'Uit de marge', a youth organisation. With this project, we try to bring young people and the police closer together. So, local police forces with local youth. We organise a course which lasts about a year, for both the police officers and the young people, so they can meet each other a number of times and enter into a dialogue at the end of that course. For the time being, we have only been able to organise one meeting because of Corona. This was in Ghent and it was quite a positive experience. We certainly want to be able to do this more often. Fortunately, the courses still continue despite the pandemic. We talk about their rights and obligations towards the police and society. We also give them tools on what the best ways are to communicate with the police. On the other hand, we teach the police about the world these young people live in and the context in which they grow up. This way, they both have an idea of who they are going to meet at the end of the programme and with whom they can enter into a dialogue. We do this in close cooperation with the youth centres. The idea is to get to know each other better and to be able to focus more on real neighbourhood involvement.
I am also working on a similar project by 'Capital vzw'. We want to organise ten events where young people, youth workers and police meet each other. This can range from going on a police bike patrol together to taking joint boxing classes or organising a football match. During these activities we try to stimulate dialogue between these groups. This is a similar project, but on a shorter timeline. So the groups meet each other earlier. We also want to strengthen the bond between young people and the police.
With our platform 'Stop ethnic profiling', we are also working on the campaign 'Not normal'. We continue to lobby, and this runs at a more academic level. With this project, we make recommendations to politicians, police and others to bring about a change when it comes to ethnic profiling. We also actively make people aware this problem exists.
These are the projects, but I also do consultations for victims. They mainly reach me through social media. I sit down with these people, they tell me their story and I try to guide them in their complaint, in their search for a lawyer or in the entire legal procedure. My law studies are certainly an advantage here, but also my knowledge of the issues and of how the various police departments work. There are still many lawyers who do not know exactly how the police work. Of course, this also helps when counselling these people as I can also let them know what the consequences of their actions might be.
Finally, I also speak at events etc. Like the trainings I give on police brutality and on rights and duties. I also often take part in debates. This way, I can make the problem known to the world.
After your training, will you work as a lawyer or is your intention to use your law degree in the projects you are currently involved in?
Actually, I want something completely different. Currently, I don’t see myself working as a criminal defence lawyer, but maybe I’ll do the internship just to have done it. My goal is still to work on war crimes and law of war. That is still what really interests me and what I want to do later on. Not necessarily at the 'International Criminal Court' in The Hague, because I would prefer to do fieldwork. I want to go to conflict areas and perform valuable work from there. It doesn’t matter where in the world. Wherever people suffer because of war, I want to make a contribution.
I currently study criminal law because, on the one hand, it’s very interesting and, on the other hand, because it makes it easier for me to help people. My intention is to study abroad after my studies at VUB. There are a number of options in international criminal law in the Netherlands that interest me.
If you could change one thing in the world, what would it be?
If I could change one thing, it would be the climate. I am not a big climate activist, I have never been to a climate strike for example, but I do realise that it is a real problem and I also know that it is urgent. We can try to help as many people as we want in Brussels, but if we cannot save the planet, there is not much point in trying to save people in other aspects of life. So that would be the first thing I would change.
I know VUB is working on a diversity policy which is positive, but I would like to put even more effort into this
Imagine you have just been elected rector of VUB. What would your first policy change be?
What has bothered me for years and what I also hear from fellow students and alumni is the lack of diversity at VUB. There is little ethnic diversity among both students and staff. Many students also complain about being dropped into a white world without being able to retain their individuality. An example of this is the lack of access to a quiet room where people can reflect, but also possibly pray. Many students also travel for miles to find something halal for their lunch or dinner. These are easy fixes, but the only reason they are blocked is for ideological reasons. For the sake of liberty, but then I think: apparently thinking does submit itself. I know VUB is working on a diversity policy which is positive, but as rector I would like to put even more effort into this. And this leads us back to what frustrates me, which is that it often doesn't go fast enough.
What can a VUB student mean to the world?
I think we are the future and the world. The interesting thing about VUB is that you get to study in a big city, and that city is also a real melting pot. But also on-campus you have a lot of international students and a lot of local residents who use and traverse our campus. That makes VUB unique. We really study at a world university. The mentality you create is open-minded and cosmopolitan. You learn to think beyond national borders or protectionist and nationalist ideas. I think the world needs that from our students, that open-mindedness VUB stands for. You learn to think outside your own frame of reference and bubble. Also, the partnerships VUB has with other universities and organisations are really an added value and you need to keep investing in partnerships.
What impact did the pandemic have on you and your projects?
Pretty much everything is online these days, which is extremely frustrating as it also concerns people's lives. Sometimes I talk to families who have lost their child and it is terrible to have to do so online. Everything else has been cancelled or been moved online. Before Corona, I used to attend about two training sessions a week; now it’s more like two a month. The same applies to our projects at the moment. You can’t meet other people and it’s difficult to start a dialogue. The youth centres are also closed, so there is nothing for those young people who sometimes live in small and crowded apartments. Especially in this Corona period, there is a need for extra dialogue between the police and young people, because the gap has only widened.
Are there any Corona workarounds you would like to keep after the pandemic?
Occasionally online meetings were quite handy, especially when a meeting would usually be held outside of Brussels and it was now done online. This opened up some extra time. To be clear, this is really not a call to organise more video calls. For me, there is actually nothing about this whole Corona saga that I want to keep. The only positive thing is that I have been a little more involved in culture since the start of the pandemic. Ever since the museums have opened again, I’ve tried to visit several of them. Other than that, I am happy to leave everything behind at the end of the pandemic.
Would you like to find your purpose as well and fight injustice? Then take a look at The World Needs You under Peace.