BELGIUM
BELGIË
BELGIQUE
BELGIEN
‫بـلـجـيـكــــــــــــا‬
About Belgium
• Constitutional monarchy
• Head of State : King Albert II
• Capital : BRUSSELS
• 10.2 million inhabitants
• Official languages :
–Dutch (6 million)
–French (4 million)
–German (80.000)
History
• A history of wars and occupation : by
Romans, Vikings, French, Spanish,
Austrians, Dutch, Germans…
• 1815 : Napoleon looses at Waterloo
History
• 1815 : Creation
of the “United
Kingdom of the
Netherlands” as a
buffer to prevent
France from
controlling North
Sea ports and
threatening
Britain – Rule by
Dutch king
History
• 1830 : Belgian
Revolution –
the Catholic
South led by a
mainly French
speaking elite
secedes from the
Protestant,
Dutch speaking
North
History
• 1831 : French speaking elite agrees
on a very modern, liberal
constitution that organises Belgium
as a UNITARY, DECENTRALISED,
MONOLINGUAL state
DECENTRALISED ?
in 3 levels
STATE
PROVINCES
MUNICIPALITIES
More than purely territorial subdivisions,
but subordinate
MONOLINGUAL ?
• 1831 Constitution :
“French is the only official language”
• In reality, a majority of the population
speaks Dutch (Flemish)
• As the right to vote is extended, and
proportional representation is introduced,
the Flemish people’s political power
increases and Dutch becomes an official
language by the end of the 19th century
• 1970 : German becomes official language
The Language Laws
A series of laws on the use of
languages (1921, 1932, 1962) lays
the foundation of the
territoriality principle
“in monolingual regions, the
language of that region is
compulsory for all public
administrative acts”
The Language Laws
divide Belgium into 4 linguistic areas
(now enshrined in the Constitution)
–
–
–
–
The Dutch speaking area
The French speaking area
The German speaking area
The bilingual area of Brussels
(= 19 municipalities)
The Language Laws
• In private, the use of languages is free
• In relations with the government and the
judiciary, the use of the official language
of the linguistic area is compulsory
• In the bilingual area and in 8 mixed
municipalities with “facilities” (along the
linguistic border), citizens can choose
which official language they use when
dealing with government
MONO/BI-LINGUAL ?
• The language issue is a sensitive
one, and has been since 1830
• The rules are very rigid
• The reason is mainly psychological
–Flemish fear being overruled by
French speakers (as they once
were)
–French speakers fear being forced
to be bilingual (as they once were)
From unitary to federal
• Since the 1930s : Flemish
community demanding cultural
autonomy
• Since the 1960s : Wallonia
(southern, French speaking part of
Belgium) demanding economic
autonomy
From unitary to federal
• 1970 : 1st state reform
= creation of 3 cultural communities
• 1980 : 2nd state reform
= creation of 2 economic regions
• 1988 : 3rd state reform
= creation of a 3rd economic region
= Brussels Capital Region
Federal Belgium
Federal State, Regions, Communities
•
•
•
•
•
•
Institutions
Legislative norms
Territorial jurisdiction
Distribution of competences
Instruments to exercise competences
Conflict prevention and resolution
Institutions in federal Belgium
• Executive : 6 Governments
1. Federal Government
2. Government of the Flemish Region
= Government of the Flemish Community
3. Government of the Walloon Region
4. Government of the French Community
5. Government of the German speaking Community
6. Government of the Brussels Capital Region
Institutions in federal Belgium
• Legislative : 6 Parliaments
1. Federal Parliament : bicameral
• Council of Representatives
• Senate
2. Parliament of the Flemish Region
= Parliament of the Flemish Community
3. Parliament of the Walloon Region
4. Parliament of the French Community
5. Parliament of the German speaking Community
6. Parliament of the Brussels Capital Region
Institutions in federal Belgium
• Council of Representatives
150 Members, directly elected (88D + 62F)
• Senate
71 Senators (41D + 29F + 1G)
– 40 directly elected (25D + 15F)
– 21 “Community” senators (10D+10F+1G)
= members of Community Parliaments
– 10 “coopted” senators (6D + 4F)
Mechanisms to protect
linguistic minority
• Equal composition of the Cabinet
7D Ministers + 7F Ministers (+ Prime Minister)
• “Alarm bell procedure”
75% of MPs of one linguistic group can suspend
the legislative process and demand consultations
within Cabinet which has to propose a solution,
but only once per draft law
• “Special majority laws”
• Quorum : 1/2 present of each linguistic group
• 1/2 majority within each linguistic group
• 2/3 majority of total MPs present
Distribution of powers
between Council and Senate
Council
Senate
1. Constitutional
amendments
2. Statutes of the
Regions and
Communities
3. Organisation of
the judiciary
4. Ratification of
international
treaties
Council
1.
2.
3.
4.
Naturalisation
Liability of
federal
ministers
Budget
Army
contingent
Council
(Senate)
All other laws
If it so wishes,
the Senate can
debate draft laws
and even propose
amendments, but
the Council has
the last word.
Senate =
“reflection
chamber”
Legislative norms
• Federal “laws”
• Regional “decrees”
• Community “decrees”
• Brussels Region “ordinances”
= equal = NO hierarchy of norms
= Communities and Regions may
repeal, amend, amplify or replace
existing federal laws IF they stay
within their area of competence
Distribution of competences
• Belgium : from unitary to federal state
• The powers of the newly created Regions
and Communities are listed in the
constitution or in special majority laws
• All the powers that are NOT explicitly
attributed to the Regions and
Communities (= residual powers) remain
the competence of the federal state
Distribution of competences
Powers of the Communities
1. Cultural matters (fine arts, libraries, media,
recreation, sports, tourism, cultural events…)
2. Education (universities, schools, training…)
3. Person-related matters (health, family policy,
welfare, youth protection, immigrants,
handicapped…)
4. Language policy (in the administration,
education, employer-employee relations)
Distribution of competences
Powers of the Regions
• Land use and planning
• Environment and
water
• Nature conservation
• Housing
• Agriculture
• Economy
• Foreign trade
•
•
•
•
•
Energy
Labour policy
Public works
Transportation
Organisation and
oversight of provincial
and municipal
authorities
Distribution of competences
Powers of the Federal State
“Reserved + residual competences”
•
•
•
•
•
•
Monetary policy
Justice
Social security
Security and safety (police, civil defence)
Defence (army)
Civil, commercial, labour law
Territorial jurisdiction
• The territorial jurisdiction of the
Federal State is the whole territory
• The territorial jurisdiction of the
Communities and the Regions is
defined according to the
4 linguistic areas (Dutch, French,
German, and bilingual)
Territorial jurisdiction
• Regions
– Flemish Region = Dutch speaking area
– Walloon Region = French + German area
– Brussels Capital Region = bilingual area
• Communities
Flemish Community = Dutch speaking area
+ Dutch speaking institutions in bilingual area
– French Community = French speaking area
+ French speaking institutions in bilingual area
– German Community = German speaking area
Territorial jurisdiction
3 (economic) Regions
Flemish Region
Walloon Region
Brussels Capital
Region
Territorial jurisdiction
3 (cultural) Communities
Flemish Community
French Community
German-speaking
Community
Instrumental powers
Regions and Communities can use a
number of “instruments” that enable them
to exercise their responsibilities:
– Penal powers
– Fiscal powers
– International powers
International powers
Principle of parallelism
between internal and external powers
“Regions and Communities can
conclude international treaties in
matters within their exclusive
jurisdiction”
BUT
“Need to ensure stability of Belgium’s
international relations”
Cooperative federalism
Principle of
“federal loyalty”
=
legal principle of
proportionality
(now enshrined in the Constitution)
Cooperative federalism
Prevent conflicts : Cooperation
Organic
– Consultative Committee (between governments)
– Interministerial Conferences (on specific matters)
Procedural
– Council of State (highest administrative court)
gives opinion on draft laws prior to voting
– Obligation to inform, to advise, to consult or to
consent according to legal requirements
Conventional
– Conclusion of Cooperation Agreements on specific
issues
Cooperative federalism
Settlement of conflicts
–Conflicts of competence = legal
problem to be settled by the
Constitutional Court
–Conflicts of interest = political
problem to be settled by the
Consultative Committee
European Union
• Belgium = one of 6 founding members,
more than 50 years ago
• Enlarging : now 27 member states
• Deepening : many areas of supranational
and common decision-making at EU level,
while keeping strictly intergovernmental
decision-making in other areas
• Debate in 2007 : Constitution ?
Federalism ?
CONCLUSION
• CENTRIFUGAL
– Federal state retains residual powers
• BIPOLAR and COOPERATIVE
– Essentially between 2 linguistic communities
• TERRITORIAL
– Regions becoming more important
• COMPLEX and EVOLVING
– “sui generis” = no master plan = future ?
• SUPRANATIONAL
– Integrating European Union