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41. THE – : A LABORATORY FOR POLICE AND JUDICIAL COOPERATION IN THE EUROPEAN UNION*

1. Introduction Over the past few decades, economic and social integration within the European Union (EU) has rapidly gained momentum. This integration has been largely facili- tated by the Schengen Implementation Convention of 1990, which abolished controls between the member states.1 However, this easing of border controls has also improved and expanded the opportunities for criminals to engage in cross-border illegal activities. Therefore, police and judicial cooperation has now become a high priority on the European Union’s agenda. The authorities in urbanized border areas are usually the first to be confronted by new developments in cross-border crime. As a result, opportunities for law- enforcement cooperation are quickly grasped, and practical innovations are devised as far as the conventions permit. Hence, border areas often serve as ‘laboratories’ for police and judicial cooperation. A clear example of this is the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion, located in the border areas of the , and . From a scholarly point of view, jurists have largely dominated the discussion about police and judicial cooperation (Corstens and Pradel 2002; Peers 2000; Sabatier 2001). This is easily explained by the fact that up until now criminologists have con- ducted relatively little empirical research on this topic. However, the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion is an exception to the rule, as several studies about police and judicial cooperation with regard to the area have been published over the years (Hofstede and Faure 1993; Spapens 2002, 2008a; Spapens and Fijnaut 2005). Here, we will first address developments in cross-border crime and safety in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion, as well as examine questions with regard to police and judicial cooperation, and discuss the practical solutions devised to enhance law-enforcement cooperation. Second, we will outline developments considering the legal framework for police and judicial cooperation in the broad context of the European Union on the one hand, and specifically in regards to the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany on the other.

* Co-author: A. Spapens. From: F. Lemieux (ed.), International Police Cooperation; Emerging Issues, Theory and Practice, Uffculme, Willan Publishing, 2010, pp. 101-125. 772 the containment of organised crime and terrorism

2. A Portrait of the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion

2.1. History, People and Economy The Meuse-Rhine Euroregion comprises the Belgian provinces of Liège and , as well as the German-speaking part of Belgium (the Ostkantone), the German Landkreise of , , Düren, and Euskirchen, and the southern part of the Dutch province of Limburg. The Meuse-Rhine Euroregion contains several major cities, such as Aachen, Liège and , but there are also very rural areas such as the Hautes-Fagnes Nature Park. On average, the Euroregion is one of the most densely populated border areas within the European Union, with approximately 3.7 million inhabitants. Three official languages (German, Dutch and French) are spoken, as well as a common dialect.2 In the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion, cross-border economic and social mobility has always been substantial. This is due to the mining industry having been a major economic activity in all parts of the border area and a redrawing of the map on several occasions due to conflict. Accordingly, the German-speaking part of Belgium represents a good example of border shifting. It was annexed to Belgium after the First World War but, following its occupation by the Nazi regime, it was returned to Germany in 1940. After the end of the Second World War, the Ostkantone once again became part of Belgium. The pace of economic and social integration in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion increased substantially after 1995, when the Schengen Implementation Convention came into effect. This allowed people to move freely across the , and it also became much easier to live, work or start businesses in a neighbouring . At present, it is fairly common for a Dutchman to live in the Belgian part of the Euroregion and work in the Dutch part of the border area or vice versa. A large number of people cross the border every day for purposes of shopping, recreation, socializing, and so on (Hermans et al. 2007). However, rapid economic and social integration also came with a downside, as problems regarding crime and safety have increasingly come to involve the entire border area.

2.2. Questions of Public Safety, Public Order Policing, and Cross-Border Crime in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion In the past few decades, both public order policing and serious and organized crime involving indigenous groups have rapidly become internationalized in the Meuse- Rhine Euroregion. In particular, the dealing and trafficking in and the production of illicit drugs have developed into a major problem. These questions are scrutinized in more detail in the following sub-sections.