Belgian news in brief, 14 October 2005

Increasing amount of internet fraud

More and more Belgians are falling victim to fraud via the internet. The incidents involve, for example, buying products on auction sites and never receiving the goods. Justice Minister Laurette Onkelinx said 265 cases of fraud were confirmed last year by the Federal Computer Crime Unit. In 2003, there were just 117 incidents and 56 in 2002. Fraud involves goods ranging from cars to jeans.

75pc fall in cot deaths

The number of cot deaths has declined by 75 percent in the past decade. In 1993, some 118 Flemish babies died of cot death. In 2003, the last year from which figures are available, the number of victims had fallen to 30. Family and health support group Kind & Gezin said the decline in deaths is because parents have become more alert due to awareness campaigns.

Asterix conquers Flemish newspapers

Flemish newspapers ‘Het Gazet van Antwerpen’ and ‘Het Belang van Limburg’ replaced every news photo and artwork with matching Asterix images on Friday. The collectors edition layouts were designed to celebrate the publication of the latest, and possibly last, Asterix cartoon book. The book went on sale across Europe on Friday. The Gazet van Antwerpen also ran a large-scale prize contest. For a PDF of the Gazet’s front page, click here.

Subject: Belgian news