Francophone Democratic Federalists

Francophone Democratic Federalists
Fédéralistes Démocrates Francophones
President Olivier Maingain
Founded 11 May 1964
Headquarters Chaussée de Charleroi 127
1060 Brussels
Ideology Interests of French speakers in Brussels
Regionalism
Liberalism
Political position Centre-right[1]
National affiliation Reformist Movement (2002-11)
International affiliation None
European affiliation None
European Parliament group No MEPs
Colours      Amaranth
Chamber of Representatives
(French-speaking seats)
2 / 63
Senate
(French-speaking seats)
0 / 24
Walloon Parliament
0 / 75
Parliament of the French Community
2 / 94
Brussels Parliament
(French-speaking seats)
12 / 72
European Parliament
(French-speaking seats)
0 / 8
Website
www.fdf.be
Politics of Belgium
Political parties
Elections

The Francophone Democratic Federalists (French: Fédéralistes Démocrates Francophones, FDF) is a regionalist[2][3] and liberal[1] political party in Belgium whose aim is expansion of the linguistic rights of French-speakers.[4][5] The party is led by Deputy Olivier Maingain.

The FDF was founded on 11 May 1964 and until 1982, dominated Brussels' municipal politics. Until January 2010 the party was known as the Democratic Front of Francophones (French: Front Démocratique des Francophones).[6][7]

On the national level the FDF was a constituent part of the Reformist Movement (MR), an alliance of Francophone liberal parties from 2002 until 25 September 2011. On that day, the FDF decided to leave the coalition. They did not agree with the manner in which president Charles Michel defended the rights of the French-speaking people in the agreement concerning the splitting of the Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde district, during the 2010–2011 Belgian government formation.[8]

Policies

The party advocates extension of the bilingual status of the Brussels-Capital Region to several officially Dutch-speaking municipalities around Brussels (in Flemish Brabant), where a majority of the population is French-speaking. This is strongly opposed by all Flemish parties, who say that these inhabitants should respect and learn the majority language of the Flemish region.

The FDF also pushes for the rights of French-speakers in Flemish municipalities to use French instead of Dutch in dealing with Dutch-speaking officials. This is opposed by all Flemish parties, who argue that the Frenchification of Brussels should not further itself into the Flemish Region.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Collectif; Petit Futé,; Dominique Auzias; Jean-Paul Labourdette (25 February 2014). Belgique 2014 Petit Futé (avec cartes, photos + avis des lecteurs). Petit Futé. p. 42. ISBN 978-2-7469-7123-3.
  2. ↑ Régis Dandoy; Arjan Schakel (19 November 2013). Regional and National Elections in Western Europe: Territoriality of the Vote in Thirteen Countries. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 54. ISBN 978-1-137-02544-9.
  3. ↑ Peter Starke; Alexandra Kaasch; Franca Van Hooren (7 May 2013). The Welfare State as Crisis Manager: Explaining the Diversity of Policy Responses to Economic Crisis. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 192. ISBN 978-1-137-31484-0.
  4. ↑ Paul F. State (27 July 2004). Historical Dictionary of Brussels. Scarecrow Press. p. 120. ISBN 978-0-8108-6555-6.
  5. ↑ Martin BUXANT; Steven SAMYN (5 May 2011). Belgique, un roi sans pays. EDI8 - PLON. p. 93. ISBN 978-2-259-21505-3.
  6. ↑ Philippe de Riemaecker (1 January 2013). Quand les singes se prennent pour des dieux. Editions Publibook. p. 212. ISBN 978-2-7483-9789-5.
  7. ↑ Els Witte (2009). Political History of Belgium: From 1830 Onwards. Asp / Vubpress / Upa. p. 372. ISBN 978-90-5487-517-8.
  8. ↑ "FDF almost unanimously votes in favour of split with MR" (in Dutch). deredactie.be. Retrieved 2011-09-25.

External links