German-speaking Community of Belgium

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The Executive (government) of the German-speaking Community meets in Eupen

Flag of the German-speaking community in Belgium

The German-speaking Community of Belgium (German: Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft Belgiens, short DGB) is one of the three federal communities in Belgium. It is the main part of the so-called East Cantons (German Ost-Kantone) of Belgium. It has an area of 854 km², and a population of over 71,000, of which almost 100% are German speaking (traditionally Ripuarian-speaking). Its capital is Eupen; it is part of the province of Liège and borders on the Netherlands, Germany, and Luxembourg.

The area known today as the East Cantons consists of the German-Speaking Community and the municipalities of Malmedy and Waimes (Weismes), which belong to the French-Speaking Community of Belgium. The East Cantons were part of the Rhine Province of Prussia in Germany until 1920 (as the counties (Landkreise) of Eupen and Malmedy), but were annexed by Belgium following Germany's defeat in World War I and the subsequent Treaty of Versailles. Thus they also became known as the cantons rédimés, "redeemed cantons". The peace treaty of Versailles demanded the "questioning" of the local population about their political status. This process was not carried out as an anonymous plebiscite. Instead those locals who were unwilling to become Belgians and who wanted the region to remain a part of Germany were required to register themselves along with their full name and address. In fact the Belgian military administration prevented an equitable carrying out of this "questioning" and the process was a farce as many locals feared reprisals or even expulsion after enlisting.

German-speaking areas of Belgium.

In the mid-1920s there were negotiations between Germany and Belgium and the kingdom of Belgium seemed to be inclined to sell the region in fact back to Germany. At this point the French government fearing for the complete postwar order intervened at Brussels and the Belgian-German talks were called off.

The new cantons had been part of Belgium for just 20 years when in 1940 they were retaken by Germany in World War II. The majority of people of the east cantons welcomed this as they considered themselves German. Following the defeat of Germany in 1945 the cantons were once again annexed by Belgium, and as a result of alleged collaboration with Nazi-Germany an attempt was made to 'un-Germanize' the local population by the Belgian and Wallonian authorities.

Starting in the early 1960s Belgium was divided into four linguistic areas, the Dutch speaking Flemish area, the French speaking area, the bilingual capital of Brussels, and the German speaking area of the east cantons. In 1973, three communities and three regions were established and granted internal autonomy. The legislative Council of the German Speaking Community, Rat der Deutschsprachigen Gemeinschaft, was set up. Today the German-Speaking Community has a fair degree of autonomy, especially in language and cultural matters, but it still remains part of the region of French speaking Wallonia. There has been much argument in the past few years that the German-Speaking Community should also become its own region. Many German-speakers would welcome this. They also demand more fiscal and financial autonomy; fiscal autonomy is still nearly zero for now. One of the proponents of full regional autonomy for the German-speaking Community is the current Minister-President Karl-Heinz Lambertz.

[edit] Government

The German-speaking Community has its own Government, which is appointed for 5 years by the Parliament of the German-speaking Community. The Government is headed by a Minister-President, who acts as the "prime minister" of the Community, and is assisted by the Ministry of the German-speaking Community. The Government of the German-speaking Community is currently formed by four Ministers:

Karl-Heinz Lambertz, Minister-President and Minister for District Authorities
Bernd Gentges, Deputy Minister-President and Minister for Vocational Training and Employment, Social Policy and Tourism
Oliver Paasch, Minister for Education and Research
Isabelle Weykmans, Minister for Culture and Media, Monuments and Sites, Youth and Sport