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| Community reform (Belgium) | |
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| Name | Community reform (Belgium) |
Community reform (Belgium) is the process of constitutional, legal, and political changes in Belgium aimed at redefining the powers and structures of the Flemish, French, and German linguistic communities and the Brussels-Capital Region. Rooted in linguistic tensions and federalization efforts involving institutions such as the Monarch of Belgium, Prime Minister of Belgium, Belgian Federal Parliament, it intersects with major events like the State reform of Belgium and treaties such as the Treaty of Brussels (1948). The debates have involved key figures and parties including Paul-Henri Spaak, Guy Verhofstadt, Yves Leterme, Elio Di Rupo, Bart De Wever, and institutions such as the Council of Ministers of Belgium.
Belgium's path to community reform traces to the linguistic conflicts after the Belgian Revolution and early compromises like the Treaty of London (1839), evolving through crises such as the School War (Belgium) and the tensions leading to the federalization of the state during the Second School War and post-World War II reconstruction influenced by figures like Paul-Henri Spaak and movements such as the Flemish Movement and the Francophone Movement. Key turning points include the constitutional revisions that spawned the State reform of Belgium, the recognition of Flanders, Wallonia, and the German-speaking Community of Belgium as constitutional entities, and urban tensions in Brussels-Capital Region involving municipalities like Sint-Jans-Molenbeek and political actors such as François Schuiten and Charles Vandenpeereboom.
Reforms were embedded in successive constitutional amendments involving the Constitution of Belgium and laws enacted by the Belgian Federal Parliament and judiciary such as the Court of Cassation (Belgium) and the Constitutional Court of Belgium. Instruments included special majority rules, transfers via the Special Law on Institutional Reforms (Belgium), and frameworks like the Interministerial Conference and the Benelux Union agreements. Jurisprudence from the European Court of Human Rights and rulings involving the Council of State (Belgium) have occasionally intersected with domestic constitutional interpretation, alongside influences from the Treaty of Rome and European integration through actors like Herman Van Rompuy and Jean-Luc Dehaene.
Major milestones include the first state reform in 1970, the 1980 and 1988–1989 reforms creating regions, the 1993 transformation to a federal state under Jean-Luc Dehaene, the 2001 Lambermont accords, the 2011–2014 negotiations leading to the sixth state reform under Elio Di Rupo and Yves Leterme, and subsequent transfers affecting areas like fiscal autonomy, employment, and family policy tied to accords such as the Verhofstadt II Government decisions. Proposals ranged from enhanced regional fiscal autonomy advocated by New Flemish Alliance leaders like Bart De Wever to confederal visions promoted in some Flemish Movement circles and autonomist strategies associated with Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles representatives.
Political parties central to the debate include Christian Democratic and Flemish, Flemish Liberals and Democrats, Socialist Party (francophone), Parti Socialiste (Belgium), New Flemish Alliance, Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats, Ecolo–Groen, and the Reformist Movement. Political leaders involved include Guy Verhofstadt, Yves Leterme, Elio Di Rupo, Bart De Wever, Herman Van Rompuy, Charles Michel, and Thierry Bodson, with parliamentary actors from the Chamber of Representatives (Belgium) and Senate of Belgium debating transfers. Social movements, trade unions such as the Confédération des Syndicats Chrétiens, cultural institutions like Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroeporganisatie and RTBF, and media outlets including Le Soir and De Standaard shaped public discourse alongside activists like Louis Michel and intellectuals such as Chantal Mouffe.
Implementation produced institutional changes: expanded competencies for the Flemish Government, the Government of Wallonia, the Government of the German-speaking Community of Belgium, and the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, reallocation of personnel via laws involving the Federal Public Service Finance, the creation of community commissions such as the Common Community Commission (Brussels) and the French Community Commission (COCOF), and reforms to electoral arrangements including provincial and municipal interactions with the Electoral College (Brussels) system. Administrative adaptations engaged agencies like the National Bank of Belgium and regulatory bodies such as the Belgian Competition Authority.
Reforms altered policymaking in areas transferred to communities and regions, affecting taxation models linked to the European Central Bank (ECB) context, labor market policy intersecting with institutions such as the National Employment Office (ONEM), education systems administered by Department of Education (Flanders) and Wallonia-Brussels Federation, cultural funding through entities like the Royal Library of Belgium, and infrastructure projects involving the Belgian Road Research Centre. Intergovernmental coordination forums including the Conference of Prime Ministers (Belgium) and the High Council for Integration addressed cross-cutting issues like mobility and public health crises managed with input from officials such as Karel Van Eetvelt and Ingrid Van Hecke.
Critiques focus on democratic cohesion, fiscal imbalances between Flanders and Wallonia, complexity criticized by scholars like Philippe Van Parijs and commentators in Knack, legal challenges lodged before the Constitutional Court of Belgium, and tensions culminating in political crises such as the 2010–2011 federal formation collapse involving Yves Leterme and the New Flemish Alliance. Debates over secessionist tendencies, the role of Brussels as a bilingual enclave tied to institutions like the European Commission and NATO Headquarters, Brussels, and accusations of institutional over-fragmentation have been raised by academics affiliated with Universiteit Gent, Université catholique de Louvain, and think tanks such as the Egmont Institute.