The Spirit of 14

In the difficult times of today, with everyone grumbling about austerity measures and having to cut back, some being tempted, as usual, to blame one side or the other based on prejudice, think about the generations before that have had to face much, much worse challenges and did that with great stoic courage and patriotism. Belgium should have a new national campaign to revive the "Spirit of 1914" to be inspired by the heroism and sacrifice of those people who faced the first great invasion of the country with determination, unity, patriotism and loyalty for the King and the country and each other. Everyone remember the "Spirit of 14"!

The King and the New Government

Yesterday, in the presence of the King at Laeken Palace the new government was sworn in. So it is finally over. The bad jokes can stop, politicians wives can stop withholding sex from their husbands, patriotic men can shave their beards off and everyone be glad that the country will not be falling apart right now, at least not because of the deadlock of the parties. One thing that prompted an agreement to finally be made was the inability of the caretaker government to deal with the worsening economic crisis, not just across the European Union but Belgium itself also when agencies downgraded Belgian credit rating from AA+ to AA, which will make borrowing money more expensive (not that I understand economics at all). So, after all this time, even the parties began to realize that if Belgium did not have some kind of government, if even it was not ideal, the two halves of the country would be ruined together. So, finally an agreement was made and the King asked Elio Di Rupo to take the position of Prime Minister. It is one of the smallest governments Belgium ever had with only 13 ministers and 6 secretaries of state. In this case, at this time, maybe smaller is better anyway.

Not everyone of course is happy. That is not going to be surprising but what might be is just what some people are complaining about. One headline said of the new cabinet, “Too few women and too West Flemish”. Is this for a joke? Over five hundred days of deadlock and no government and some people are complaining because only 6 of the 19 are women and 6 of the Flemings are all from West Flanders. Too little diversity? But surely having Elio Di Rupo for Prime Minister should count for a number of different minorities. Limburg has no representative, Antwerp only 3 (hey!) and, for the first Francophone prime minister in decades there is worry for the ability of Elio Di Rupo to speak Dutch (he does not do it very well). The feminists are upset, many Flemings are upset (which should have been expected under the circumstances, by both groups) and one feminist Fleming said there is “no excuse” for this outrage! My apologies for not having all groups represented ideally but really, it was 541 days without any government at all! Obviously not everyone will have everything they want and when this much time has passed by and the situation becomes more and more serious the choices will clearly be worse and worse. This mentality itself is for me what is upsetting. It is no wonder the country seems always on the brink of collapse when everyone is keeping a chart to see if “their” side, group, language, gender, region and everything else is always represented no less than every other one with their own charts.

With everyone talking about the deal that was made, who gets this or that and how many “firsts” this represents for Elio Di Rupo being Prime Minister, the one person the media overlooks in all this is the most important, THE KING! It was all along the King who was the only person involved in the process with no ulterior motives or agenda, no special interest for anything before the nation entire and there was no one like the King who put everything else aside to find an agreement that would be in the best interests of the country. In 2007, 2010 and this year the King had to call off his vacation time because of the crisis and we know how many times he has had to pick new mediators, persuade mediators to stay on and acted himself as a broker between the leading politicians. Before anyone applauds too highly Monsieur Di Rupo, remember the times he was wanting to give up on the process but the King recalled him and persuaded him to stay on and see things through until an agreement was at last reached. While foreign politicians mock Belgium for this impasse and while the media makes a big joke of the inability of the parties to work together it has all the time been the King who has done his duty, ignoring all else, refusing to participate in any festivities so long as the work of the state was left undone because of the deadlock.

Think back to how many mediators resigned over these difficulties. Can I remember them all? Not at all, Bart De Wever, as a courtesy, made the first effort but no one was having anything to do with him. Elio Di Rupo then came in, tried and failed. Danny Pieters and Andre Flahaut took their turn, I remember Johan Vande Lanotte who quit after three months of negotiations (who tried to resign earlier but the King refused him). He was followed by Didier Reynders (who I cannot help find funny, something about him makes me always laugh) then there was Wouter Beke of the Christian Democratic and Flemish Party, also ending in frustration and finally Elio Di Rupo again who has finally emerged as the Prime Minister. Throughout all of these people who tried, grew frustrated and failed in these hundreds of days, the one permanent, reliable and sincere figure who never gave up and who always had only the best interests of his country at heart was King Albert II. He should be given credit for all of his efforts, he is the real hero in this ugly display of partisanship and it is the King who everyone should applaud and be proud of. Vive le Roi! Leve de Koning!

Royals Out of Senate

It has happened that I have found a part of the new compromise already that I do not like, one of the oldest parts of the constitution is to be done away with. That is that Prince Philippe, Prince Laurent and Princess Astrid will no longer be able to have their seats in the Senate according to the new changes. This is a tradition that dates back to the original 1831 constitution which stated that the sons of the King could have seats in the Senate to gain political experience and keep in touch with understanding the will of the people. Later, SM King Leopold II changed this to extend to other royals since he had no children but still wanted his heir, future King Albert I, to sit in the Senate to gain political experience. Of course, they do not count towards a quorum and they cannot vote until they attain legal maturity but now the children of the King will be denied their place in the Senate. I think this is a terrible change. Surely it would be a good idea for the children of Prince Philippe, such as Princesse Elisabeth who will be our Queen someday, to have actual experience in the workings of government? It is probably not so important that Philippe, Astrid and Laurent no longer sit, but it is not good I think to deprive the next generation of this valuable tool in growing their understanding of the political system and how things work.

No Holiday for King Albert

King Albert II cannot get a break! It is true, every time the King tries to go on break and take a holiday his feuding politicians force him to come back home to try to get all the children to behave themselves and play nice with each other. In August of 2007 the King had to leave sunny southern France from vacationing because Prime Minister Yves Leterme (Flemish Christian Democrat) had enough and wanted to quit his position. In July 2010 the King could not even leave on his hoped for vacation because of the politicians fighting, in an argument still unresolved. This year the King tries again but the crisis do not stop. First he had to stop his vacation and return home because of the Pukkelpop music festival tragedy and just after deciding to try again to have a little break the King is now having to fly home from Nice because of the breakdown in government formation talks led by Francophone socialist leader Elio Di Rupo. The King was already being frustrated with them for taking so long to accomplish anything and urged them to at least quickly reach an agreement on state reforms.

What has been happening there? Mr. Di Rupo has been giving the appearance of being ready to quit himself because of the political deadlock but did just finally reach one agreement on the division of Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde which has been the subject of contention for a long time, almost since the start of the great Belgian experiment in federalism. Di Rupo turned up the drama meter and basically told everyone the world would come to an end today if they did not make some agreement about the BHV and the burgomasters of the three Flemish municipalities around Brussels with language facilities, which they have. So, some progress is made on the BHV which has been argued about for 48 years since it was created in 1963. But we know that this does not solve the problem of Belgium having no government. This push to solve the BHV problem was started by the King who has been frustrated watching the conditions for the people growing worse in the face of the economic crisis but with the political deadlock preventing taking new action to deal with the problems. The King hoped getting the BHV problem out of the way would make the negotiators able to deal with the budget and social economic issues that are greatly needed.

Pro Belgica Call to Patriots

Pro Belgica has sent out a message to all members to address the sad state of political stalemate in the country. As they said, to ignore this is to stick our heads in the sand -the situation is not looking good for our country. The radical elements are the ones more happy at this moment, not the good and loyal people who love their country. In their words, "Les flamingants, à ne pas confondre avec nos frères flamands, se font de plus en plus radicaux, de plus en plus pressants pour revendiquer l'autonomie de la Flandre, et certains extrémistes wallons et bruxellois ne sont pas en reste."

However, they hold out hope that the majority of Belgians have not been brain washed by the extremism and support to continue our unity and independence. So, a great patriotic demonstration is being called for Saturday 24 September 2011 to coincide with the 181st anniversary of independence and the 180th anniversary of the Belgian royal dynasty since the battles of 1830. They also ask for arguments, written or oral, to make the case of supporting the country. Let the national colors be waved, let the world see that the Belgians have not given up to the extremists, the sacrifices of past generations will not be brought to ruin. We love our country, we love our King and Family Royal. We reject extremism and separatism. Eendracht maakt macht! L'union fait la force! For more and to show support people are directed to René Lievens, President of the Dynastic Movement.

Constitution of Belgium

The Belgian Constitution. It is a complicated subject. The Constitution in effect today actually is not much the same as the original version of 1831 other than the basic framework that Belgium is a popular monarchy and parliamentary democracy. From 1831 to 1970 the Kingdom of Belgium was a “unitary state” with one government for all people, elected by all the people. However, in 1970 the Belgian Constitution began going through many changes to make the kingdom essentially a federal state. This is not uncommon in the world but it is rather uncommon for a country as small as Belgium. Germany, Canada, the United States, for example, are all federal states. However, in Belgium, rather than states, there are “regions” and “communities” which are based on local differences, not importance. In other words, being a region or a community does not give any privilege over the other, both exist on the same level in terms of government organization.

Article 1 lays out the basic form of government. Article 2 distinguishes the three communities (Flemish, French and German) and Article 3 distinguishes the three regions (Flanders, Wallonie and the Brussels capital region). Article 4 determines what languages are exclusive to these parts of the country (Dutch for Flanders, French for Wallonie, both languages for Brussels and German for the German community). Each of these have their own political establishment and the linguistic borders can only be changed by majorities in the Chamber of Deputies for each region. The regions are then divided into provinces for the management of local issues. This is all part of Title I. Title II deals with the civil rights of all Belgian citizens. In some ways though this has been superseded by the European Convention on Human Rights. Then follows the qualifications for citizenship and the rights and obligations of citizenship. Also there is special provision to account for European Union and non-EU citizens, European voting laws.

There are many more provisions dealing with rights and freedoms, also the limitations of these. There is no death penalty, there is freedom of religion, there is freedom of speech, though some Americans have asked me about Holocaust denial laws in Belgium. I did not know until looking it up but yes, we have them and it is illegal to deny, diminish or sympathize with any of the actions of Nazi Germany. There is freedom of association, freedom of assembly and the usual rights most people today take for granted in the civilized world. The next part is the one probably most people will find confusing because it deals with the delegation of power through all the different levels. There is the European Union level, the federal level, the regional level and it all can be quite complicated to understand.

This is Title III and it is the largest part of the Constitution, very much larger than all the other parts even put together. On the highest level, dealing with European Union, treaties and government agreements handle that. On the federal level it is the King, the Senate and Chamber of Deputies (of course though the King is expected to sign whatever law the government presents to him). The King has, in name, the executive power but it is the federal government together that actually wields that power instead of the King. Finally, Articles 38 and 39 of Title III detail the powers that are held by the regions and the communities and these have naturally been the subject of the most argument and controversy over the years. One area not changing much is that dealing with the King, it is just not tolerated that he have as much influence as in the past. The biggest recent change was the abolition of Salic law so that older girls can take the throne instead of only boys.

I will try to explain this, but even for me it is complicated. The communities and regions each have their own governments with power over certain areas as put in the Constitution. There is the Flemish Parliament, the Parliament of the French Community and the Parliament of the German-Speaking Community. In Flanders, the Flemish Parliament represents both the region and the community. This is not always the case though as in Wallonie there are two different bodies, the Parliament of the French Community and also the Wallonie Parliament. Not everyone in the community parliament is a member of the regional parliament but every member of the regional parliament is a member of the community parliament (keeping up?). Members often serve in more than one so that French-speaking politicians from Brussels can serve in the Brussels capital parliament and also the French community parliament. But, except for senators, one cannot serve in a community or regional parliament at the same time as serving in the federal parliament in Brussels. These are all responsible for cultural and linguistic matters within their areas (outside federal institutions) but there have been long arguments recently over these bodies being given more control over taxes, income distribution and financial things.

Finally the Constitution establishes the judicial system (Constitutional, military, labor and law courts and that stuff) and finally the local governments, which are the provinces and cities to manage their administration. Also I should mention that the German-speaking community does not have quite the same privliges of the other major communities. Their powers can be changed at the federal level without a full majority and that would be pretty impossible since the German-speaking community is so small, consisting of areas formerly of Germany that Belgium was given as compensation after the World War One.

So, is that a sufficient summary of the Belgian Constitution? Many people are probably like me, when government issues of jurisdiction and these things come up I lose interest fast for it being so boring and complicated. When I have been told it is important to understand, I don’t think so because it always seems that all the time something is being changed or at least trying to be changed with one side or the other saying this or that change is just about to happen. So, I justify my laziness saying why learn all the details now when it will just be changing again anyway? I hope I have given some helpful information but I know I cannot explain everything because much of it I do not know or don’t remember from when I was taught. When I came to United States for some education, one of the things I noticed was people carrying the U.S. Constitution in their pocket! It was a little booklet in their pocket and this was a shock to me. As I explained, this we could not do in Belgium since the Constitution would probably be the size of an encyclopedia! That is a little exaggeration but it did make an impression on me, considering especially how big America is, how small Belgium is and how the U.S. government has been around for a century longer than the Belgian government of today.

Light in the Tunnel?

The news I have just heard is that SM Albert II has appointed socialist leader Elio di Rupo to the position of "formateur", which would be significant as those given that position usually go on to be the leaders of the government, the prime minister for Belgium. What I have heard is that Elio di Rupo reached out to the Flemish parties and agreed that the centralized government most Francophone parties have preferred was obviously a thing of the past and that he agreed there should be greater autonomy for the regions. Which maybe, I think, could work but it would have to be done not like it was in the past with no one really giving up any power just spreading it over a wider area, with new departments, making the government system extremely complicated with so many layers most people could never understand and non-Belgians certainly could not. Will the talked-about constitutional changes be possible even if Di Rupo can take the next step and form a government? I do not know.

Elio di Rupo is not my favorite politician, I really don't like him (and not because he is homosexual) he does not seem like the serious type to handle big problems. I also don't think the socialist policies have been good for the country. To me it looks like they make the Walon dependent and the Flamand resentful. However, I would guess the King is just getting very frustrated with this situation and thinks Di Rupo has the best chance to form a government with enough support besides the unspeakable Bart De Wever. If there is to be a new government at last, getting the N-VA to go along with it will surely be the hardest part of it. Those involved have said they know this will be difficult, their views are very divergent but that for the good of the people they must make the effort to try to come to some understanding that will give us a government. Belgium (everyone knows by now) has been without a national government for longer than any other country. Do I think it the best to have Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo? No, I do not, but I support the King and I hope that whoever has the task can succeed and finally form a government to get done some business.

Loyal Flemish Defend King

Flemish nationalist leader Bart De Wever has accused the King of being responsible for holding his party back in the formation of a government and giving them no "opportunities" -the royal policy to ignore again. However, loyal Flemish parties like the Christian democrats and liberals have defended the King and even the socialist party said the nationalists should just ignore the King if he ignores them and take the initiative themselves rather than trying to blame the King for their troubles. Story at Flanders News.

We Are the Champions

Yes, at having the worst politicians who cannot get along with each other, though I have also been reminded the people voted them into their job and keep doing the same. However, we have, yesterday I think, broken the record of Iraq and have now gone longer than any other country witout a government. Nothing to laugh about but you might as well ridicule the situation. There are more efforts, by students, to urge for national reconciliation and bringing together the language communities. Also, there have been new polls that show Elio Di Rupo (a rather ridiculous figure in my opinion) is losing some of his popular support. The socialists still have by far the largest support of the Francophone parties but it has been dropping, partly because, it is assumed, of his failure to reach a compromise with Flemish nationalist Bart de Wever. For my opinion, I would blame Bart for that, he is the far more radical in his extreme position and unwilling to compromise. However, I think it would be good also for Di Rupo to lose more support because I cannot divorce the fact of long-time socialist control in Wallonie from the fact that it is so much poorer than Flanders and has to depend on help from the wealthier neighbors to continue. That is as much to blame for the national hard feelings as the extreme nationalism of some in Flanders community.

The polls say that both the PS and the CDH would fall below their prior results if elections were held again. The MR liberals would remain in second place but climb from 22.2% to 24.4% but perhaps most surprising was the increase in support for the far-right (I would say nationalist but that is Belgian nationalist not Walon nationalist) National Front which made a jump from 1.5% support to 6%. Still very small as always but I was surprised by such a sudden and large increase for so minor a party. That may alarm people but, at least, they want to keep the country together. What I would like to see is not much change in policy for Flanders just a change toward greater national unity. In Wallonie I would like to see national support continue but many policy changes. If Flanders seems to have all the wealth, perhaps the smart thing to do would be to follow the policies economic of Flanders in Wallonie instead of holding resentment. That is just my opinion, loving both regions as I do.

New Mediator for the King

SM King Albert II has appointed another mediator for the on-going political 'crisis' that has made government elude the country for the majority of a year going on now. The choice for "Koninklijk Onderhandelaar" or the royal negotiator is Wouter Beke of the Christian Democratic and Flemish Party, last elected Senator in 2007 and a social sciences doctor. He had previously been a researcher at Leuven University, entered politics in Leopoldsburg where he was from and was first elected senator in 2004. He has also served as temporary chairman of the CD&V party. Will Beke have any greater success than those with the job before him? Apologetically, I cannot be an optimist for it. I have the impression that the CD&V have been very uncompromising in all of this, I suspect because of the electoral success of the radical nationalists is forcing them to take a more uncompromising attitude to draw back support from people who may have voted CD&V in the past last time angrily voted N-VA or even VB. His own personal qualities may not matter as much as the overall will of all involved (that is clear I suppose) but no matter how he tries, from his background and the position recent of CD&V there does not seem reason for me to hope for a change. Happily I can be wrong. What is wrong with a mediator from one of the national parties? The BUB is not extreme, why not them? Just a thought.

Crisis theme video

Britain and Belgium

Last week I was having especially an unpleasant exchange of words with a Briton who was hurling the usual insults against Belgium, 'not a real country', 'base of the EU', 'hypocrits' and sooner Belgium dissolved to nothing the better for him. This really makes me very angry, both because I am not 100% behind EU and it makes no sense to me for those who agree on this to cut each other down and also because I expect the British would be better than that, to insult and wish the demise of the Belgians. Truthfully, there have been tensions between the British and Belgians for a long time but in general the two countries have, in their modern history, always been friends. From the choosing of King Leopold I the kingdoms of Belgium and Great Britain have had the same Royal Family (Saxe-Coburg-Gotha before they changed in the war to "of Belgium" and "Windsor") and during the Great War the British, claimed at least, to be getting involved in order to defend against the invasion of Belgium, a noble way of standing up for the rights of small countries against the aggression of the more powerful countries.

How different it is today from that time when so many in Britain considered it a matter of honor to defend and support Belgium now to have so many cheering on the possible death of the kingdom across the water. It seems also that the British could look at their own situation and know better than to triumph in the misfortune of Belgium because they seem in so many ways to be going down the same destructive path that has Belgium. Consider the sitution: They Belgium is not a "proper country" because the people are divided and speak different languages. But people in Britain used to speak different languages before English was forced on everyone just as French used to be the one official language for Belgium. In fact they had more much than two with some speaks English, Cornish, Welsh, Scots Gaelic and then in Ireland. Today there are more efforts to revive these regional languages so that is making Britain less a proper country? Maybe they dismiss language and say it is about the divisions political. But again they really have more than one government in Britain today. Most of Ireland broke away and is a republic now. The part that did not is "autonomous" with his own government. Scotland now has a parliament of its own and even Wales has its own local government though they have been part of England since hundreds of years.

Just today another Englishman tells me that I must not have understanding of the British government because English still have lots of power in Scotland. Maybe so, but they claimed at least they had no knowledge or control of the Scotland law courts from releasing a convicted terrorist back to Libya and no matter what powers these assemblies have it is obvious, is it not, that the trend lately in Britain, just like it was in Belgium decades past, is being towards division and disunity rather than greater unity. Just like Flemish nationalists want to end Belgium by having independent Flanders the British also have the Scottish National Party that wants to end United Kingdom by having an independent Scotland. It is obvious the situation is not so serious as in Belgium but everything points to the same direction and I would think anyone could see this and Britons who love their United Kingdom would be somewhat concerned for this and not exulting in the problems of the Belgians knowing that there is no reason the same cannot happen to them. Already the British Empire is fallen away and the country has turned more to Europe, more to EU and depend for themselves on allies rather than acting independently in matters economic and military.

I am not total supporter of EU and I do not want to see Great Britain breaking up into pieces either but I am sometimes angered into saying things I later regret because some of them do want that for my country. And why? How did Belgium offend? We did not invent EU and we had no more greater voice in building it or running it than any other country. I hope Britons will stop the insults and consider that they could someday be in the same position and rather than start fights with the Belgians be accepting of any sympathetic to the situation and wanting both countries to survive and prosper.

Royal Mediator Resigns

Now it seems we have to start all over again -again. After an hour of frustrated negotiations with the Flemish representatives on Wednesday the royal mediator Johan Vande Lanotte decided again he had to resign and since this last effort has proven a failure SM King Albert II decided he had no choice but to accept that resignation. The Palace Royal said, "The King accepted and will start consultations tomorrow" to see who can try to begin the process fresh. For three months Vande Lanotte has been trying to bring the two factions together without success, enduring some hardships in his own life while trying to carry on his duties given to him by the King to find an agreement but nothing is able to be accomplished. He told the press afterward that he is not optimistic of prospects for success going forward saying, "There is no real perspective of progress" and that "It was not possible to bring the seven parties around the negotiating table."

Despite the patriotic outrage displayed by tens of thousands of Belgians on Sunday, obviously the party leaders are not really understanding the message. They continue to cling to their narrow, self-serving vision and to recognize the facts that they do not wish to see; that the Belgians love their country, believe in their country and want their leaders to stop bickering and form a government to take care of their laws and obligations. Most parties say they are against new elections and if the frustrating media polls can be believed the public sentiment in terms of party support has not changed a great deal so really they think new elections would be pointless but they also seem to show that appointing a new royal mediator by the King would be pointless because they are being too stubborn to make any sort of agreement! What is the King to do?

Caroline Gennez of the Flemish socialists criticized the hard-line approach of the nationalists in the negotiations, saying that by refusing to compromise they sent a message to the thousands of demonstrators in Brussels on Sunday that they do not hear them or do not care what they have to say. She criticized the Francophone parties as well but also admitted that it was pointless for the Flemish nationalists to attend negotiations with demands they knew no one would ever accept. However, N-VA leaders placed the blame totally on the Francophone parties and their recurrent "non" to Flemish demands. Walons socialist leader Elio Di Rupo has also been criticized for holding too much aloof from the negotiations and not being more involved.

How can we be saved from this frustrating deadlock?
The King advises, he is not listened to.
The People demand, they are ignored.
Everyone needs to wake up to the source of the real problem and drop their electoral support of these parties and leaders, embrace only those that are for national unity and, I think, to really stop this nonsense, go back to the old national organization without dividing everyone up.

This is making me more religious -I went looking for my beads today to pray for the King and the country to come out of this mess.

Vive le Roi! Leve de Koning!

Belgians Send a Message

On Sunday more than 34,000 people attended a demonstration in Brussels to demand that politicians get off their butts and give us a government. Shame! on you politicians, stop behaving like children! This non-political rally was organized by five youths who were disgusted that Belgium has been so long without a government, in fact approaching the record set by war-torn Iraq! This is ridiculous and there is no excuse. As a non-political rally, the organizers asked people not to carry Belgian flags or signs with political slogans or messages -not everyone obeyed that. Black-yellow-red dotted the crowd which was much bigger than expected. From the Facebook and Twitter campaign over 20,000 expressed support so they thought 10,000 to show up for the demonstration but 34,000 came from both language communities, all ages and social backgrounds to support this message: enough is enough! Their slogan was, "Shame. No government, great country". I could get behind that. Also, for a non-political demonstration, which organizers went at lengths to be clear was not aimed at the Flemish nationalist party, some could not resist making their feelings clear abour Bart De Wever.

Speeches heard were mostly just calling for the government to be responsible and stop playing this game of cards with the future of the people, even the life of the country. It was a greater success than anyone expected and it is good encouragement to see so many and diverse people coming around to support government accountability and, I think, the unity of Belgium. I don't think that message can be ignored, political or not, these tens of thousands of people showed up to demonstrate that they love their country and want to preserve it. Some politicians seemed to get the message, others have tried somewhat to downplay the significance. Alexander De Croo of the Flemish liberal party said this was a clear expression of the will for Belgium to continue and that the end of the country is not about to happen. The N-VA yet said that while they share the concerns of the people, they also believe the people want a good government, not just any government and that the recent elections were a strong message too...in other words they interperet this to please them in their goals. The Christian Democrats also said that this should not be taken as an excuse to act hastily.

The people, I think, might like a little haste or at least a little sign of urgency on the part of the elected leaders. After 225 days I doubt anyone is including moving too fast among the things they are most worried about. People at the demonstration said much the same sort of things. They are having to face challenges and make tough decisions in their lives, but the politicians have an all-or-nothing attitude and that they are putting their own interests ahead of the good and welfare of the people and the country. I cannot see there being any argument for that, that is clearly obvious and is also clearly obvious I think where the problem lies. No one wants new elections right now, and I would not say that, I would want new elections if there could be new parties and new leaders (or maybe if the people would vote for some of the smaller unity parties) that could clear out the whole tired mess of these same old names and slogans, clear away the accumulated rubbish and really do the job of governing the country. But, I go on there I will only upset myself and today is a good day, Sunday was a great day of sending a clear signal to the government and shows the people care about politics and the future of Belgium! Vive Belgique Unie! Vive l'roi!

Loss of 10% for Royals

The grants the Belgian royal family earns from the government in the past year fell by 10 percent. This is the first time ever the royals received a cut in their dotations.

The reduction is just not for King Albert II and Queen Paola. All three of their children – Prince Philippe, Princess Astrid and Prince Laurent – were effected by the cut.

Even dowager Queen Fabiola saw the cut, down to €1.4 million. Philippe will get €920,000 while his sister will now earn €320,000. Prince Laurent shall get €306,000.

The cost of Belgium’s royal family is €30 million, or 3 percent per citizen.

Source: Het Laatste Nieuws, Zita.be

The National Front

Since I have in the past months blogged on the Flemish nationalist party I thought it would be only fair to also make mention of the Francophone party most known as the “radical right” example; the National Front. This may offend some people but who really reads this anyway? I cannot have that much of a negative image of the National Front based on what I know. If you please, I must add that I am not very well informed politically because I have been so long out of the country since becoming of age for political concern really. I know the National Front has the reputation of being racists and that the have had leaders get into trouble for that (incorrect speech) but I read through their manifesto (Belgian National Front) and I do not see much that I really have a problem with. Racism is, of course, not good but racism is not the desire to preserve your own people. Every race can and should be doing that. Other countries objected to Europeans colonizing their homeland but the people of Europe cannot do the same?

Already I am not liking how I sound and I realize that is not how people are supposed to talk or think. Really, I just cannot see that trying to preserve your own country for your own people as something hateful. I do not understand that and I do think there should be immigration limits considering the problems we have had in years recent of terrorism and crime. This has been the issue most controversial but the National Front has also many other points to their program. The support the institution of marriage (but still help for single parents) and they oppose abortion. They support lowering taxes, simplifying the tax system and promote ‘popular capitalism’ to encourage a business-friendly environment to bring jobs back to Belgium which has lost almost all the industries we used to have. They are more European-minded than I would find ideal but there is no parties that really are not aside from the radical Flemish nationalists. The National Front is, however, opposed to globalism and trade that works against Belgian workers and products.

Obviously, as mentioned, the National Front is largely a Francophone party (and obviously inspired by the National Front in France made famous by the controversial Jean-Marie La Pen) but the FN is specifically Belgian nationalist and also advocates increased education in languages so that French is taught in Flanders and Dutch is taught in Wallonia and German also not forgotten in that region. That is another reason why I cannot see the FN as negatively as the extreme Flemish nationalists because the FN strongly supports national unity and the Belgian identity rather than the idea of putting regional identity first. It seems to me that is important, particularly now, and I cannot have any problem with that specific position. That also does not mean the FN goes about this the correct way and that they could be more eloquent in explaining their positions. Also, I will say again, I am mostly removed from the political scene, I have never voted for the FN and I would have to see much more to decide if I ever would in the future. I only am going by what they say about themselves and what they are favoring and opposed to. This same standard is how I have looked at the other controversial parties of the past and today.

Most things in the FN program, as I read it, I have to say I would agree with or not be opposed to. That is most and not everything. I am uncomfortable with too much reliance on European Union, and I am uncomfortable with their talk of greater military integration in alliance with others. I prefer Belgium to remain apart and free to act independently as our own interests require. They do not specifically address much the monarchie by what I have seen, and that is very important to me, I assume they are supportive but only because they are taking their inspiration from a French political party makes me think this is something I would have to have well established what their position is before I would think of supporting them. As it is, although mostly unpopular, there seems to be more people with the hesitant support in theory but reservations about the FN since they usually poll more support than they have yet to gain at election time, having only a very few members elected to office even when larger percentages state support for FN positions.

The King Popular and Pro-Belgica Message

SM King Albert II is voted the Belgian of 2010 in an on-line poll. In truth, with the 25,000 participants he was the runaway favorite with 74,7% of the vote, far ahead from the next most popular choice. The previous year winner, former prime minister and European president Herman Van Rompuy was voted only 1.7% of the support. This shows the appreciation the people of Belgium have for their king and their country, which is why the king was chosen surely as this vote was a support for the unity and continuation of the country and that is what the King stands for and symbolize. This was very good news to me. Vive le roi! Leve de koning!

Also, on the topic of national unity, I though this Pro-Belgica post was particularly interesting on "Les étonnantes origines de la querelle linguistique en Belgique" (Jean-Marie Gillet). I suggest to read. And on the topic of Pro-Belgica:

The Reaction of Pro-Belgica of the current political situation:

"La présidente et les membres du conseil d'administration sont très préoccupés par la situation dans laquelle se trouve notre Belgique bien aimée. Voilà plus de six mois qu'ont eu lieu les élections. Depuis lors, le pays est géré par un gouvernement sans pouvoir. Les hommes politiques sont d'accord pour proclamer que les problèmes économiques doivent trouver d'urgence des solutions mais ils butent sur des problèmes de répartitions communautaires qui pourraient être résolus si tous les candidats au pouvoir y mettaient du bon sens et de la bonne volonté. Mais hélas, ils sont sans cesse conditionnés par les prochaines élections, ils agissent en fonction de leur reconduction suivante, et cela compte énormément pour chacun d'eux.

Le manque manifeste de sens de l'État, l'égoïsme et la frilosité de différentes prises de position par les politiciens, les querelles incompréhensibles pour les étrangers, tout cela ne favorise pas le rayonnement de notre pays. Le conseil d'administration est bien résolu à poursuivre son combat pour que le pays demeure et que les Belges ne soient pas contaminés par la maladie de la peste politique. Il veut, sans relâche, que notre devise nationale, "L'union fait la force", soit une réalité, vécue par tous les Belges. Ils soutiennent le Roi qui, bien que sans pouvoir de décision, recherche avec ténacité une possibilité d'entente entre les hommes politiques. Encourageons-le.

Bonne année à tous. Vive la Belgique! Vive le Roi!

King Rejects Resignation

SM Albert II has rejected the resignation of Johan vande Lanotte and urged the mediator to end the political stand-off as quickly as possible. Many people have given up spending energy to care but others have been motivated to stand up for the unity and preserverence of the Kingdom of Belgium. This lunacy must stop and the country come together. La Libre Belgique has said the country is running around like a chicken with its head cut off. It is time to support the King and support unity.

Vive Belgique unie!
Vive l'roi!
Leve de koning!

Royal Mediator Resigns

More than two hundred days without a government and now the King’s mediator between the parties, Johan Van de Lanotte, is ready to quit. This is unfortunate but not expected given the intransigence of the parties and the suffering Vande Lanotte has been through with this. His mother only just died after worse health when she had a fall at home and while dealing with this he had also to deal with the feuding parties. After two of the Flemish parties refused to consider any more compromises the disgusted peacemaker informed His Majeste the King he wishes to resign. The King says he will consider it first and in the interval there had been some minor but hopeful changes. The Flemish Christian Democrats said they support the mediator continuing with his task and some other parties have been in touch, not in an obvious way, to try ensuring the situation does not deteriorate. Most parties support this, even the Flemish nationalists saying they will not make opposition. This is also after some Wallon commentators complained of the Flemish being treated too special in these negotiations. This poor man has the most unenviable job in Brussels today!

The only one with a more unhappy position must be the King himself who cares the most about getting everyone to come to an agreement and get along with each other! He must feel sympathy for his mediator and the King will be asking the leaders of the Flemish nationalists and Walon socialists to work more closely with him which is assuming that the King will not accept his resignation and send him back to work. What should he do? I know the King does not want him to resign and so have to start over again with someone new but also the poor man has been going through a lot of problems and this is not a job free of stress or anxiety. And, pardon I repeat myself, but, OVER 200 DAYS! Is ridiculous! Party leaders, stop acting like over indulged children and think of the country for a difference! Why I do not understand that the King and the Family Royal are not the most beloved people in the entire country, they are the only ones thinking of the country and not self-interest of only one group or one class (the politician-bureaucrat-rulers class).

Another report on this:

De Belgische koning Albert II moet deze week duidelijk maken hoe het verder moet met de moeizame regeringsvorming in zijn land. Hij ontvangt dinsdag bemiddelaar Johan Vande Lanotte, die in opdracht van het staatshoofd sinds 21 oktober probeerde zeven partijen op één lijn te brengen.

Vande Lanotte vroeg donderdag van zijn opdracht te worden verlost, maar Albert ging niet in op het verzoek. Hij nodigde de sociaaldemocratische senator uit voor een nieuwe audiëntie, dinsdag. De koning kan het ontslag alsnog inwilligen, maar hij kan de ervaren politicus ook vragen het nog een keer te proberen.

Vande Lanotte wierp de handdoek in de ring omdat niet alle partijen bereid waren te onderhandelen over een door hem opgestelde nota over een staatshervorming. De grootste Belgische partij, de Vlaams-nationalistische N-VA, en de Vlaamse christendemocraten eisten aanpassingen voor een
hervatting van het overleg.

De Vlamingen willen meer eigen bevoegdheden en verantwoordelijkheid en minder geld afdragen aan het armere, Franstalige Wallonië. Inmiddels zit België ruim 210 dagen zonder nieuwe regering na de
parlementsverkiezingen van 13 juni. © GPD; Bron: ANP

The King in December

Last month, some of us lucky to have a nice vacation but SM the King has been busy all the time and the rest of the Family Royal also. It is surprising how much new was made by Crown Princess Mathilde being interviewed about her efforts to be bilingual. I thought nothing about it was unusual but simply talking about it may be out of the ordinary. She said learning Dutch is very difficult (not many would argue that point who did not grow up speaking it) and that she knows she speaks it with a French accent and has to make an effort to speak it, hear it and converse in it to remain fluent. She also mentioned the children attending a Dutch language school. Back to the King though in December he named former European Affairs Minister Frans Timmermans a Grand Officer of the Crown of Belgium for his career in European cooperation and keeping good relations between Belgium and Nederlands. The Belgian ambassador to Nederlands presented him with his medal.

The story I missed that caused most upset for me was the NVA member Siegfried Bracke wrote on his blog a complaint that the King has too much power in the Belgian government. Of course that is totally outrageous as most media was at least honest enough to mention. The King has a very specific part to play and ministers may take or ignore his advice and on his own he has the power to do nothing. That is true but I also must say that for myself it would be better I think for the King to really have some power in government and be given more authority because the King seems the only person who does not put one community or one party or one ideology before the interests of the whole country. Some actions and statements of the King I have first disagreed with but I also do not see any major political figures who put the country first and only the King seems to really have any interest in that and has a self-interest in the unity of the country. For almost everyone else their self-interest is dis-unity and antagonism between the regions and communities.

De Wever Insults King and Belgium

Wil Bart De Wever nog wel dat de Belgische kabinetsformatie slaagt, of zet hij zijn kaarten op nieuwe verkiezingen? Die vraag rees maandag naar aanleiding van een interview met de leider van de Vlaams-nationalistische N-VA in het Duitse weekblad Der Spiegel.

Door GPD-correspondent Hans de Bruijn

Daarin noemt hij België 'de zieke man van Europa', zijn Walen 'junkies' die verslaafd zijn aan Vlaams geld, krijgen de Waalse socialisten er de schuld van dat er na 183 dagen formeren nog steeds geen regering is, en worden koning Albert II anti-Vlaamse gevoelens toegedicht.

'Onverstandig' is nog de vriendelijkste kwalificatie die de uitlatingen van De Wever ten deel vielen. De politieke instabiliteit ondergraaft de internationale positie van België en de financiële markten zijn na de Griekse en Ierse debacles gevoelig voor termen als 'zieke man'.

,,De Wever speelt met vuur'', zegt de Waalse christendemocratische leidster Joëlle Milquet.
Ook binnenlands maakt hij het er niet makkelijker op. De Waalse partijen reageerden voorspelbaar 'geschokt' op het interview, dat overigens al twee weken geleden afgenomen werd. De socialistische PS zegt niet te zwichten voor 'provocaties' en te willen blijven onderhandelen.

Volgens de Groenen lijkt het alsof De Wever de onderhandelingen wil opblazen. Een krant noemt het in voetbaltermen een aanval 'met beide benen vooruit op Elio Di Rupo', de PS-leider en beoogd premier. Niet dat hij iets nieuws zei, zijn afkeer van de PS is algemeen bekend. Het moment was echter niet slim gekozen. Dat gaf De Wever zelf toe. äMaar men moet wat ik heb gezegd in context zien en zeggen wat er niet aan klopt."

Volgens de N-VA-leider houdt de PS de hervormingen tegen die nodig zijn om België weer financieel gezond te maken. Er wordt al maanden zonder succes gepraat over het overhevelen van bevoegdheden en belastinggeld naar de deelstaten. Maar de Walen, die jaarlijks miljarden uit Vlaanderen krijgen, vrezen zonder die Vlaamse 'solidariteit' te zullen verarmen.

De Franstaligen vinden dat De Wever, de grote winnaar van de verkiezingen van juni, streeft naar splitsing van België. Nu lukt dat nog niet, maar uit een geforceerde nieuwe stembusgang zou de N-VA wel eens nóg sterker tevoorschijn kunnen komen. ,,Als wij in de regering stappen, is het risico groot dat we de volgendeáverkiezingenáverliezen', zegt De Wever.

,,Men heeft op ons gestemd omdat wij radicale veranderingen willen en omdat de kiezer erop vertrouwt dat wij na zes maanden onderhandelen geen concessies doen." Ook de kritiek op koning Albert, met wie vooral de Walen zich verbonden zouden voelen, valt slecht. ,,De koning is niet belangrijk", zegt De Wever.

,,Maar bij een crisis wordt hij belangrijk. Hij voert de regie bij de regeringsvorming. Dat is een nadeel voor de Vlamingen, want hij denkt niet als wij. De Walen voelen zich meer met hem verbonden." Hieruit blijkt volgens de Waalse christendemocraten 'een gebrek aan respect' voor de vorst. © GPD