Flemish Movement

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Flemish flag, as used by the separatist Flemish Movement, tongued and clawed in black
Flemish flag, as used by the separatist Flemish Movement, tongued and clawed in black

The Flemish Movement (Dutch: Vlaamse Beweging) is a popular term used to describe the political movement for emancipation and greater autonomy of the Belgian region of Flanders, for protection of the Dutch language in Flanders, and for protection of Flemish culture.

The Flemish Movement's moderate wing was for a long time dominated by the Volksunie ("People's Union") – a party that from its onset in 1954 till its collapse in 2002 greatly advanced the Flemish cause, though severely criticised by hardliners for being too accommodating. After the Volksunie's collapse, the party's representatives were absorbed by other Flemish parties. Nowadays nearly every Flemish party (except for the far right Vlaams Belang) can be considered part of the moderate wing of the Flemish Movement. This wing has many ties with union and industry organisations, especially with VOKA (network of the VEV, Vlaams Economisch Verbond, Flemish Economic Union).

The Flemish Movement's radical wing is dominated by right-wing extremist organizations such as Vlaams Belang, Voorpost, Nationalistische Studentenvereniging (Nationalist Students Union), and several others. The most radical group on the left side is the Brussels based Marxist-inspired and Flemish independentist organisation "Meervoud". The militant wing also still comprises several moderate groups such as the N-VA (Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie, New-Flemish Alliance), a relatively small party with representatives in the regional and federal parliament) and several extra-perliamentary organisations, many of which are represented in the OVV (Overlegcentrum van Vlaamse Verenigingen, Consultation Centre of Flemish Associations). The most important of these is the VVB (Vlaamse Volksbeweging, Flemish People's Movement).


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[edit] Internal trends

[edit] Independentists

Today, the militant wing of the Flemish Movement generally advocates the foundation of an independent Flemish republic with Brussels as its capital. Rightist Vlaams Belang and traditional, conservative N-VA support this view. Vlaams Belang, carrying 24.15% of the votes in Flanders at the last regional elections (2004), is now the second largest political formation in Flanders. A small part of this militant wing even advocates reunion with the Netherlands to form the Greater Netherlands sometimes also referred to as Dietsland. This view is shared with several Dutch right-wing activists and nationalists, who are very supportive of the Flemish Movement. Recently, several more moderate politicians in the Netherlands have also adopted this idea, including left-wing politicians such as Jan Terlouw.

[edit] Confederalists

Left wing regionalist Spirit, as well as several representatives of important Flemish parties belonging to the moderate wing, including the Christian democrat CD&V party (the largest party in Flemish Parliament as of 2003), the liberal VLD party (3rd largest), and, to a lesser extent, the socialist party SP.a (4th largest), prefer a confederal organisation of the Belgian state over the current federal organisation. Such a scheme would make the Flemish government responsible for nearly all aspects of government, whereas some important aspects of government are currently the responsibility of the Belgian federal government. The Belgian and Flemish capital of Brussels would remain a city where both Dutch-speaking and French-speaking citizens share equal rights, whereas the militant wing's independentist vision would, to a certain extent, render the French-speaking citizens of Brussels - who represent more than 80% of the population of that city – foreigners in a Flemish, Dutch-speaking region.

[edit] Federalists

Several representatives of the SP.a and, to a lesser extent, the CD&V and VLD parties, prefer an improved federal organisation of the Belgian state over a confederal one. This view is shared with several social and cultural organisations such as the Vermeylenfonds (Vermeylen Foundation), with labor unions, and with mutual health insurance organisations. The advocates of this view hope to improve the Belgian institutions so that they work correctly. However, recent allegations on continued discrimination against Dutch-speaking citizens by hospitals and medical emergency services in Brussels, the resistance of French-speaking people living in Flanders to adapt to the Dutch-speaking environment (by insisting on maintaining language privileges that are arguably provided by federal law), and the near-impossibility to alleviate labor costs because of alleged conservative resistance from the French-speaking Socialist union is not likely to strengthen Flemish support for the federalist cause.

[edit] Orangists

After the secession of Belgium in 1830, Orangist sentiment in Flanders for a time sought the restoration of the United Kingdom. Some of the most prominent Flemish Orangists were Jan Frans Willems and Hippolyte Metdepenningen. This sentiments inspired the later Greater Netherlands movement, although that movement was not all monarchist. At present there is no public support in Flanders, nor is there any evident public debate on the matter, for a restored United Kingdom of the Netherlands.

[edit] History

Jan Frans Willems
Jan Frans Willems

For prior events: see History of Belgium and Flanders

[edit] Belgian Independence

When Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830, there was a (political) reaction against the Dutch, including their language. The economic heart of Belgium in those days was Wallonia, with its coal mines and iron ore, while Flanders to a large extent was a rural and economically underdeveloped region. The combination of political (notably pressure by big neighbour France) and economic factors lead to French becoming the socially dominant language in Belgium, with Flemish being reduced to the status of a local patois.

Half a century after the Belgian revolution, Flemish intellectuals such as Jan Frans Willems, Philip Blommaert, Karel Lodewijk Ledeganck, Ferdinand Augustijn Snellaert, August Snieders, Prudens van Duyse and Hendrik Conscience began to call for recognition of the Dutch language and culture in Belgium. This movement became known as the Flemish Movement, but was more intellectual than social, with contributors such as Charles De Coster, author of Uilenspiegel and the poets Guido Gezelle, Hugo Verriest and Albrecht Rodenbach.

Cultural organizations which wanted to promote the Flemish language and culture were founded, such as the Willemsfonds in 1851, and the Davidsfonds in 1875. The first Vlaemsch Verbond (Constant Leirens, Ghent) and the Nederduitse Bond, were founded in 1861. The Liberale Vlaemsche Bond was founded in 1867. Writers such as Julius de Geyter and Max Rooses were active in the Nederduitse Bond. On 26 September 1866, Julius de Geyter founded the Vlaamsche Bond in Antwerp. The Flemish weekly magazine Het Volksbelang, founded by Julius Vuylsteke, appeared for the first time on 12 January 1867.

In 1861, the first Flemish political party, the Meetingpartij was founded in Antwerp, by radical liberals, Catholics and Flamingants (Jan Theodoor van Rijswijck, J. De Laet and E. Coremans), and it existed until 1914. In 1888, Julius Hoste Sr. founded the moderate liberal Flemish newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws, to support the Flemish Movement in Brussels. In 1893, the Flemish priest Adolf Daens, founded the Christene Volkspartij, which would cause a radicalization and democratization of the Catholic party. The first Flemish political success was the passing of the Gelijkheidswet (Equality law) in 1898 that for the first time recognized Dutch (Flemish) as equal to French in judicial matters (legal documents). In 1910, the law Franck-Paul Segers was accepted on the usage of Dutch in secondary education in public schools.

[edit] World War I

The liberal politician Louis Franck, the Roman catholic Frans Van Cauwelaert and the socialist Camille Huysmans (together they were called the three crowing cocks) worked together for the introduction of Flemish at Ghent University. In 1911 the proposal by Lodewijk De Raet to this end was accepted, though it would not be implemented until 1930. With the coming of the 20th century the Flemish Movement became more radical and during World War I many activists welcomed the occupiers as "liberating Germanic brothers". The young Marnix Gijsen and the poet Paul van Ostaijen, were involved in the activist movement during the war. The Germans did indeed help out their "Germanic brothers" by setting Dutch as the sole administrative language and by converting Ghent University to the Dutch language. Most of the Flemish population however loathed those traitors that had collaborated with the brutal German occupiers. With the German defeat so went many of the language reforms. The collaboration and subsequent prosecution of certain leaders of the Flemish Movement did not of course produce a climate congenial to compromise.

[edit] Interbellum

The Flemish Movement became more socially oriented through the Frontbeweging (Front Movement), an organization of Flemish soldiers who complained about the lack of consideration for their language in the army and Belgium in general, and harbored pacifistic feelings. From this the Frontbeweging became a political movement, dedicated to peace, tolerance and autonomy (Nooit Meer Oorlog, Godsvrede, Zelfbestuur), and yearly pilgrimages to the IJzertoren are still held to this day. The poet Anton van Wilderode wrote many texts for this occasion. Many rumours arose regarding the treatment of Flemish soldiers in WWI, though in the mean time mostly debunked by research of Flemish historians, live on and are part of the Flemish martyr heritage. For instance, one such legend is that many Dutch-speaking soldiers were slaughtered because they could not understand orders given to them in French by French speaking officers. While the official language of the army was indeed French, the truth is that units were organized by geographical origin, and their commanding officers were perfectly capable of translating central orders into the language of their troops, be it Flemish, French or Walloon. Another quite frustrating matter was (and still is) the Belgian royal family's bad knowledge of Dutch. It's been told that king Albert I gave a speech during WW I, in French, concluding with the words Pour les Flamands, la même chose ('For the Flemings, the same', a very condescending expression towards the Flemish community.) That's one of the reasons, the Belgian monarchy is generally less popular in Flanders than it is in French speaking Belgium. In the 1920s the first Flemish nationalist party was elected and in 1928, August Borms, a prominent Flemish leader on death row for working in the German Flemish government, was elected.

In the 1930s the Flemish Movement grew ever larger and Dutch was recognized for the first time as the sole language of Flanders. In 1931, Joris Van Severen founded the Verbond van Dietse Nationaal-Solidaristen Verdinaso, a fascist movement in Flanders.

[edit] World War II

During World War II, Belgium was once again occupied. The Germans enacted laws to protect and encourage the Dutch (Dutch is a Germanic language) in Flanders and generally did all they could to encourage the ill-feelings between Flemings and Francophones, e.g. by setting free only Flemish POWs. Although the Nazis had no intention whatsoever to allow the creation of a Greater Netherlands or of a Flemish state, many Flemish nationalists embraced collaboration, mainly because the occupying forces gave them rights their own country never had. Interestingly, there was even more collaboration in Wallonia, although it was not politically inspired. In Wallonia and Brussels, the Rexist organization of Leon Degrelle was a French-speaking movement and the leading and most fanatic collaboration group. After the war, all collaborators, but especially the Flemish ones, were heavily prosecuted, and the Flemish cause thoroughly discredited, mainly because it suited the French-speaking elite, but also in part because to many Flemish nationalists, the reaons behind their collaboration were still, if not entirely justified, then at least understandable.

[edit] Post War

After the war, the Flemish Movement lay dormant for nearly 20 years. The Vermeylenfonds was founded in 1945. Then in the 1960s the movement once more gathered momentum and in 1962 the linguistic borders were finally drawn up, with Brussels being designated as a bilingual city. The late 1960s saw all major Belgian political parties splitting up into Flemish and Francophone wings. It also saw the emergence of the first major nationalist Flemish party, the Volksunie (Popular Union, but not in a communist sense). In 1977 more radical far right-wing factions of the Volksunie came united and, together with earlier far right nationalist groups, formed Vlaams Blok. This party would eventually overtake the Volksunie, only to be forced later, on the grounds of a discrimination conviction, to change its name to Vlaams Belang. Numerically, it is has become the main right-wing party of the Flemish Movement.

In 2000 the Volksunie split into Spirit and the N-VA. Both parties now have form coalition cartels with other parties. The 2004 elections were won by both Spirit (in cartel with SP.a) and N-VA (in cartel with CD&V), taking both part in the newly formed government of the Flemish part of Belgium. The federal elections of 2007 were won by CD&V with N-VA, whilst SP.a with Spirit lost those elections. This has given the N-VA some important influence in the formation of a new Belgian government, which resulted in the longest and most difficult government formation in Belgium ever. This is due to N-VA's promise of giving more self control to Flanders and Walone, and the Walone parties's promise of not giving more self control to those regions.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  • Flemish Movement
  • Van geyt et al., The Flemish Movement, The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science.1946; 247: 128-130
  • Vos Hermans, The Flemish Movement: A Documentary History, 1780-1990, Continuum International Publishing Group - Athlone (Feb 1992), ISBN 0485113686
  • Clough Shepard B., History of the Flemish Movement in Belgium: A study in nationalism, New York, 1930, 316 pp.
  • Ludo Simons (ed.), Nieuwe Encyclopedie van de Vlaamse Beweging, Lannoo, 1998, ISBN 978-90-209-3042-9
  • M. Van Haegendoren, The Flemish movement in Belgium, (J. Deleu) Ons Erfdeel - 1965, nr 1, p. 145

[edit] External links

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