As yesterday’s reader so perspicaciously noted, a gallimaufry has wandered from its original path of variety and now is dallying in the groves of book reviews and ignoring the rest of the world. In fact, you might not even know that I live in Belgium, so deracinated is this web-log, let alone that Belgium has been in the grip of a constitutional crisis since well before I began writing. The ‘living in belgium’ category is woefully underused.
So. Assuming you aren’t overly familiar with Belgium, here is a very crude summary of the situation (and if any Belgian reads this, please forgive all my mistakes and point them out in the comments). Belgium has three official communities – the Flemish-speaking Flemings in the north, the French-speaking Walloons* in the south and the Germans, who occupy a small area on the German border. Historically the Walloons have been dominant, with the Flemings having to fight to have their language recognised as the equal of French. This has contributed to a tension between the two larger communities, exacerbated by increasing calls (by politicians, rather than the populace it seems) for separation into two nations.
(Sprouts, perhaps contemplating seizing power while the country suffers a power vacuum)
After the last election, the successful parties tried to form a coalition. But nobody could make an alliance big enough to create a government. Parties in Belgium are fragmented along linguistic lines – for example, there’s a Flemish Christian Democrat Party and a Walloon Flemish Christian Democrat party – so assembling a coalition is particularly complicated. Worse, there were Strong Feelings about two particular issues: the long-standing Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde problem and the election of Francophone mayors in three designated Flemish-speaking districts of Brussels.
At present, the nation has been without a government for nearly eighteen months (a world record!). (Strictly speaking, there is an acting government but it is limited in what it may do.) Still, the future was looking rosy as, under the auspices of the chief negotiator, Elio Di Rupo, nine parties had been in talks and both the problems alluded to above had been settled. Hurrah! (Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde has been a bone of contention for forty-eight years!) But then disaster: on Monday Di Rupo handed his resignation in to the king when discussions over economic reform reached a deadlock. Almost immediately, the rate of interest at which the country borrows shot up – dreadful timing since Belgium plans to raise more funds this coming Monday. We have the largest European debt after Spain; previously, nobody was overly bothered since the economy hasn’t been doing too badly, but suddenly financial markets and the rest of the Eurozone are eyeing Belgium in a less friendly way. The situation hasn’t been helped by rumours (denied by all) that Belgium wants to re-negotiate with France the deal they struck over bailing out the failed bank Dexia.
The king, poor man, convalescing after surgery, has not actually accepted Di Rupo’s resignation but is calling in the leaders of the nine parties one by one and, seemingly, administering a good telling-off to each. I think we all hope that Di Rupo is grandstanding in order to force an agreement, and who can blame him, he must have the patience of a saint.
What this all means for us, the ordinary people, is unclear. Events this week have at least galvanised our interest, I suspect most of us were pretty bored and irritated by the inability of our political leaders to organise themselves into government. Interestingly, Belgian impatience with the institution of Europe seems to be rising, not least because we’ll be slapped with a fine of 700 million euros, which we can ill afford, should the country fail to draw up a budget for 2012 which meets the EU’s approval by 15th December (nobody has even started this). With all the pressure the Belgian situation is putting on other European countries, it is just possible that what happens here in the next few weeks will have repercussions for many outside our borders.
Anyone still reading this? Next post: Wuthering Heights: normal book-obsessed service resuming.
(Photograph of Elio Di Rupo from here, (c) Belga; photograph of King Albert II from here)
* A small and childish part of me is still disappointed that my partner is not a ‘Walloon’, such a lovely word! Although ‘Fleming’ is pretty good too, I add quickly.