Belgium, and what's wrong with it

[Insano]

I thought a nice break from the US election talk would be healthy for some of you

You may or not know there's a country out there, called Belgium. It has a very troubled history, and since the elections of June 2007 this has escalated. We're now at the point where nobody knows anymore how to move on. The reason this is important for foreigners is that Belgium is seen as the model for the EU. But now it's falling apart.

The BBC looked at the Belgian problem, and layed out the problems for those unfamiliar with Belgium. If you're interested, I suggest you take a look. I can assure you that this is the best series of articles on Belgium I've read.

Part 1: Rich Flanders seeks more autonomy
Part 2: Wallonia battles wasteland image
Part 3: War of words in divided Belgium
Part 4: Belgian ethnic rift baffles immigrants
Part 5: Can divided Belgium hold together?

If you have any questions, please do ask

 

[The Monkey]

I wrote a small paper for university about the situation of Belgium. I used it as an example of the disintegration of the nation states. It also shows the failure of the 19th century Belgian leaders in creating a solid national unity as is found in most European states. Of course, most of those other leaders didn't have to work with a state with two different major language groups, which inevitably made it more difficult to turn it into a nation.

 

[Insano]

Those 19th century Belgian leaders all came from south of the linguistic border, where people speak French. In that time, the French-speaking population ruled the country.

A solid national unity is impossible. A federal state as found in Switserland is the only option. But that means that all parties must be willing to cooperate. This is not the case, since the French-speaking politicians always start from a situation where they want to keep the status-quo.