Dat er überhaupt nog Vlamingen zijn die België willen, gaat mijn verstand te boven. De verkiezingen hebben nóg maar eens duidelijk gemaakt dat Belgie geen land is, maar 2 landen/democratieën in één staat.
Dat je nu 2 aparte, tegengestelde verkiezingsresultaten moet gaan optellen om er één regering van te maken is toch volstrekt absurd!
Vlaanderen heeft maar één regering nodig, en dat is een regering die wij hebben verkozen, een Vlaamse regering. Punt.
The Guardian:
Citaat:
Belgium divide deepens after Flemish separatists win election
The Belgian general election produced a stunning win for a Flemish separatist party that wants Dutch and French-speakers t o end years of acrimonious linguistic disputes, or go their own way and break up Belgium.
The New Flemish Alliance shook up Belgium's political scene yesterday by winning 27 seats, up 19 from the 2007 elections, to become the country's largest party.
Its win was a withering verdict on premier Yves Leterme's outgoing coalition of Christian Democrats, Liberals and Socialists – split into Dutch- and French-speaking factions – whose three years in office were marked by enduring linguistic spats that remained unresolved.
The election outcome was seen as a warning to Francophone politicians that Flanders will bolt if they do not negotiate seriously about granting Dutch- and French-speakers more self-rule.
The reaction in Wallonia was one of shock.
The daily Le Soir said "Flanders has chosen a new king," referring to Bart De Wever, 39, the leader of the New Flemish Alliance, who urged "Francophones to make [a country] that works".
Belgium's 6.5 million Dutch-speakers and 4 million Francophones live very separate lives.
Nearly everything in the country – from political parties to broadcasters to boy scouts and voting ballots – already comes in Dutch- and French-speaking versions. Even charities such as the Red Cross and Amnesty International have separate chapters.
De Wever seeks an orderly breakup of Belgium. His party accuses Wallonia, Belgium's poorer southern half, of bad governance that has raised the jobless rate to double that of Flanders, the Dutch-speaking north.
On Monday, King Albert is expected to start one-on-one meetings with political leaders to see who should form a new government. In 2007, those talks lasted more than six months.
If he becomes premier of Belgium, De Wever will head a coalition government which will force him to tone down his independence talk and negotiate for more regional self-rule within Belgium.
These talks have been deadlocked for years.
True to tradition, the big winners in Wallonia were the Socialists who won 26 seats, up six. Their leader, Elio di Rupo, also a prospective premier, said: "Many Flemish people want the country's institutions reformed. We need to listen to that."
Flanders and Wallonia already have autonomy in urban development, environment, agriculture, employment, energy, culture, sports and other areas.
Flemish parties demand that justice, health and social security are added to that list, but Walloon politicians fear that ending social security as a federal responsibility will mark the end of Belgium.
The divide goes beyond language. Flanders is conservative and free-trade minded. Wallonia's long-dominant Socialists have a record of corruption and poor governance.
Flanders enjoys a 25% higher per-capita income, and its politicians are tired of subsidising Francophone neighbours.
As governments worldwide tried to tame a financial crisis and recession, the four parties that led Belgium since 2007 struggled with linguistic spats, most notably over a bilingual voting district comprising the capital, Brussels, and 35 Flemish towns bordering it.
The high court ruled it illegal in 2003 as only Dutch is the official language in Flanders. Over the years, Francophones from Brussels have moved in large numbers to the city's leafy Flemish suburbs, where they are accused of refusing to learn Dutch and integrate.
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