Vlaams Blok
Vlaams Blok | |
---|---|
Leader | Frank Vanhecke |
Founded | 1978 (as coalition) |
Registered | 28 May 1979 (as party) |
Banned | 9 November 2004 |
Split from | Volksunie |
Succeeded by | Vlaams Belang |
Youth wing | Vlaams Blok Jongeren |
Membership | 18,000 (2004)[1] |
Ideology | |
Political position | Far-right |
European Parliament group |
|
Colours | Orange, Black |
Party flag | |
Website | |
www | |
*Formerly European Right (1989–94) and Technical Group of Independents (1999–2001). |
Vlaams Blok (English: Flemish Block, or VB) was the name of a
The party originated from split within the
All significant Flemish political parties were reluctant to enter coalitions with the Vlaams Blok. Following a 1989 agreement, known as the cordon sanitaire, the party was effectively blocked from entering any level of government. The court of appeal in Ghent in April 2004 ruled that some of the party's organizations had breached the 1981 anti-racism law and that the party sanctioned discrimination. The ruling was made definite on 9 November 2004, and the party shortly after reorganised itself as the Vlaams Belang.[5] By 2004, the party had arguably become the single most popular Flemish party in Belgium, supported by about one in four of the Flemish electorate,[6] as well as being one of the most successful radical right-wing populist parties in Europe as a whole.[7]
History
Background, Flemish Movement
The Vlaams Blok originated from the loose
The direct predecessor to the Vlaams Blok was the big tent People's Union, which was founded in 1954 as the successor to the Christian Flemish People's Union electoral alliance, that had successfully run for election earlier the same year.[11] The party had been careful to choose its leaders from nationalist circles that had not collaborated with the Nazis.[12] The People's Union had successfully united various strands of Flemish nationalists into a coherent movement from federalists to separatists, however some Flemish separatists had been suspicious of the People's Union since its outset, and it became clear by the 1970s that the party had moved to a moderate left-liberal course, which led to the defection of its more radical members.[13] The remaining nationalist hardliners finally rejected the party's participation in a new five-party government coalition in 1977, and particularly the Egmont pact,[14][15] believing it had conceded too much to the francophone government parties.[16]
Early years (1978–1988)
In late 1977, the rejection of the Egmont pact by the hardliner faction of the People's Union led to the establishment of two new (short-lived) parties; the radical nationalist Flemish National Party (VNP) and the national liberal Flemish People's Party (VVP), respectively led by Karel Dillen and Lode Claes.[17][18] The parties contested the 1978 general elections in a coalition called "Vlaams Blok", where they won 1.4% of the vote and one seat in the Chamber of Representatives (taken by Dillen).[18] On 28 May 1979, the VNP and VVP finally merged to form a new party named Vlaams Blok,[19] and Dillen was nominated to be the party's leader for life.[20] The party initially recruited its members from Flemish nationalist organisations, such as the Taal Aktie Komitee, Voorpost, Were Di, and the Order of Flemish Militants, while some local groups also simply turned into local branches of the Vlaams Blok.[19] Since its inception, the party was widely regarded as an extreme right-wing and racist group.[6]
The party did not have much electoral success at first, and was stable at one seat in the 1981 general elections. It stood candidates in very few communities, and was active almost entirely in the city of Antwerp.[19] Having been founded mainly as a protest against the Egmont pact, the party revamped and broadened its platform after the pact collapsed.[21] It did not make much progress in the 1985 general elections, and Dillen thus started the so-called "Operation Rejuvenation", allowing for an across-the-board change of the party leadership, integrating many leaders of nationalist youth and student organisations into the party council. The party's youth organisation, the Vlaams Blok Jongeren (VBJ), was founded in 1987 by among others Filip Dewinter and Frank Vanhecke.[22]
Starting in 1983, the Vlaams Blok increasingly began focusing on immigration (inspired by the success of other European right-wing populist parties), and on the international day against racism in 1984 held its first conference to discuss the "foreigner problem." Towards the late 1980s, the party also became one of the first in Europe to flirt with an anti-Islam agenda (warning about what it called the "Islamization of Europe") and address the issue of immigrants from majority Muslim societies, in particular Turkish and Moroccan migrant communities in Belgium. Vlaams Blok claimed that such communities were a threat to Flemish ethnic and cultural identity and were linked to crime.
Rise of the party (1988–2004)
The electoral success of the Vlaams Blok began after the younger generation in the party shifted the party's emphasis from Flemish nationalism (separatism) to the immigration issue.[26] In the 1988 local election in Antwerp the party first started to take off, going from 5.5% of the vote in the city to 17.7%,[27] a success which drew much publicity.[22] On 10 May 1989, based on the Antwerp success,[28] the presidents of all major Belgian parties (including the People's Union) signed a cordon sanitaire (hygienic barrier), where the parties agreed to never conclude any political agreements with the Vlaams Blok, nor make immigration a political issue.[29] While the Vlaams Blok itself also largely rejected cooperation with other parties, it did increasingly consider such cooperation, particularly in elections in 1994, 1999 and 2000, only to find themselves effectively blocked by the cordon sanitaire.[30][31] Although intended to keep the Vlaams Blok from gaining political influence, many argued that the cordon sanitaire in reality helped the strong electoral surge for the party, as it was made into what could be seen as the only "true opposition," and the party was able to bolster its claims that the Belgian political establishment sought to suppress calls for more Flemish autonomy and deny the Flemish voters a voice in national affairs.[32] The agreement was renewed in following years,[28] and Vlaams Blok chairman Karel Dillen was used to call it the "insurance policy" of his party;[33]
"I was basically very happy with its existence. There was something a bit too much about it: everybody against us. If the sense is that there is a hunt out for us, then this will only drive people to take the side of the outlaw."
In December 1988, a major split occurred in the party, when a group who opposed the "Operation Rejuvenation" tried to squeeze the Dewinter-VBJ faction out of the party leadership. Led by Geert Wouters, he accused Dewinter's faction of being "
In the
In the
The Vlaams Blok continued to be particularly strong in and around Antwerp, where it received as much as 33% of the vote in the 2000 local elections.[14] In 2001, the party was forced to alter its political program, as according to the laws for party financing, it was not compatible with the European Treaty on Human Rights.[41] In 2002, the Vlaams Blok was the only party to vote unanimously against the introduction of same-sex marriage.[42]
In the 2004 Flemish Parliament election, the party finally became the single largest party group in parliament. The party was invited by the formateur for government discussions, only to find that its differences with the other parties was insurmountable, resulting in the three traditional parties forming a majority government, retaining the cordon sanitaire.[43] By this time, the party had nevertheless become the very most popular Flemish party in Belgium, being supported by about one in four of the Flemish electorate.[6]
Court of Cassation ruling (2004)
In October 2000, the
"Today, our party has been killed, not by the electorate but by the judges."
Frank Vanhecke, 9 November 2004.[45]
In June 2001, the Brussels Correctional Court declared itself incompetent to hear the case, as it related to political misconduct. In February 2003, the Brussels Appellate Court followed and gave a similar judgement. The original plaintiffs then appealed, and the case was sent to the court of appeal in Ghent, which upheld the complaint; the Vlaams Blok non-profit organisations were fined, and it was deemed that the Vlaams Blok was an organisation that sanctioned discrimination. The Vlaams Blok lodged an appeal which was rejected, and in November 2004, the ruling was made definite, when it was upheld by the Court of Cassation.[44] The ruling meant that the party would lose access to state funding and access to television, effectively shutting the party down.[45]
Reactions
The whole trial was seen by some as a political trial, inspired by the Belgian establishment. The federal parliament had notably amended the Constitution in order to create legal possibilities to condemn the party.[46] The Vlaams Blok also pointed at the problem of political nomination of judges, and again claimed that the lawsuit had been a political process coordinated with the Belgian Ministry of the Interior.[47][48]
The leadership of the Vlaams Blok seized the occasion of the ban to dissolve the party, and start afresh under a new name.[49] Five days later, on 14 November, the Vlaams Blok disbanded itself, and a new party with the name Vlaams Belang was established. (Other proposed names included the Flemish People's Party and Flemish Freedom Front.)[32] The new party instituted a number of changes in its political program, carefully moderating some of the more extreme positions of the former Vlaams Blok.[50][51] Nevertheless, the party leadership made it clear that the party would fundamentally remain the same.[51]
Professor Lamine (
Ideology
The main ideological and political strategies of the Vlaams Blok started out with its radical nationalist rejection of the People's Union compromise on the Flemish autonomy issue, later to be followed by focus on immigration and security, exploitation of corruption and other scandals, and defense of traditional values. While the party was legitimized first and foremost by its defense of Flemish interests and desire for Flemish independence, its voters were mainly motivated by anti-immigration, law and order and anti-establishment protest.[14]
Flemish nationalism
The main issue for the party was Flemish nationalism, and most issues that were added later, were in some way also connected to this.[54] The Flemish nationalism promoted by the party (volksnationalisme) was according to its program "based on the ethnic community being a naturally occurring entity whose cultural, material, ethical and intellectual interests need to be preserved."[55] While the party primarily worked for an independent Flemish state (modeling the split on that of Czechoslovakia),[56] it for a long time also promoted the idea that the new state should merge with the Netherlands, and establish a Dutch-speaking federation (Greater Netherlands). From the 1990s however, the latter idea was downplayed by the party, as the Netherlands then turned into a "permissive, multicultural and social-democratic state" according to one scholar (although this Dutch political situation would be sharply overturned in the 2000s).[54]
Immigration, minorities
Immigration became an important issue for the Vlaams Blok from the late 1980s. Interconnected with the Flemish nationalism issue, immigrants were considered to be a threat to the Flemish ethnic community. In 1992, the party established its 70-point plan, which included measures to stop all immigration, return most immigrants to their native countries by force, and legally discriminate against residing migrants in respect of markets such as labour, housing and education. The party's opponents particularly saw its immigration program as a source of claims of racism, and the party thus in its latest years downplayed the relevance of the 70-point plan, and softened its written positions regarding immigration.[26]
Concerns about crime and security was also linked to immigration, as the party particularly blamed
The party was according to political scientist
Social issues
In 2003, the Vlaams Blok was the only major Flemish party to vote against the legalization of same-sex marriage in Belgium. The party was not opposed to homosexuality and supported civil partnerships for same-sex couples, but regarded same-sex marriage as a step too far.[63]
Anti-establishment
Another element in the ideology of the party was a
Economy
The party had no strong economic preferences, and generally supported a
Foreign policy
The party was the only major Belgian party that opposed Belgium's membership of the European Union, as well as the idea of a federal Europe itself. It however defended a con-federal Europe based on sovereign culturally homogeneous nation-states. The European issue was however not an issue the party promoted much.[65]
It also favoured the abolition of the United Nations, citing; "The illogical composition of the Security Council. The unwieldy bureaucracy. The democratic deficit."[66] The party did also not have any faith in such a world community or international legal system, questioning the entire logic behind the UN. It rejected the view of any international consensus about concepts as democracy, justice, freedom and human rights, especially since most of its member countries are non-Western and undemocratic.[66]
International relations
The Vlaams Blok maintained good contacts with nationalist parties throughout Europe and other countries. The Vlaams Blok did traditionally have the closest contacts with Dutch and South African far-right groups, including the Dutch
The party also became very active in establishing contacts with post-communist parties in Eastern European countries, including the
Election results
Note that the election results in elections other than those for the Flemish Parliament (and the Dutch-speaking electoral college in the European Parliament) gives a somewhat wrong image of the party's support, given that the party only ran in Flanders, the one half of Belgium.[6]
Chamber of Representatives
Election year | # of total votes | % of overall vote | # of seats won |
---|---|---|---|
1978 | 75,635 | 1.4% | 1 |
1981 | 66,424 | 1.8% | 1 |
1985 | 85,391 | 1.4% | 1 |
1987 | 116,534 | 1.9% | 2 |
1991 | 405,247 | 6.6% | 12 |
1995
|
475,677 | 7.8% | 11 |
1999
|
613,523 | 9.9% | 15 |
2003
|
761,407 | 11.6% | 18 |
Senate
Election year | # of overall votes | % of vote | # of seats won |
---|---|---|---|
1978 | 80,809 | 1.5% | 0 |
1981 | 71,733 | 1.2% | 0 |
1985 | 90,120 | 1.5% | 0 |
1987 | 122,953 | 2.0% | 1 |
1991 | 414,481 | 6.8% | 5 |
1995
|
475,667 | 7.7% | 3 |
1999
|
583,208 | 9.4% | 4 |
2003
|
741,940 | 11.3% | 5 |
Flemish Parliament
Election year | # of overall votes | % of vote | # of seats won |
---|---|---|---|
1995 | 465,239 | 12.3% | 15 |
1999 | 603,345 | 15.5% | 20 |
2004 | 981,587 | 24.2% | 32 |
European Parliament
Results in the Dutch-speaking electoral college is given in the parenthesis.
Election year | # of overall votes | % of vote | # of seats won |
---|---|---|---|
1984
|
73,174 | 1.3% (2.1%) | 0 |
1989
|
241,117 | 4.1% (6.6%) | 1 |
1994
|
463,919 | 7.8% (12.6%) | 2 |
1999
|
584,392 | 9.4% (15.1%) | 2 |
2004
|
930,731 | 14.3% (23.2%) | 3 |
References
- ^ De Winter, 2004, p. 16.
- ISBN 978-90-5487-517-8. Archivedfrom the original on 27 May 2016. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ Heywood, Andrew (2018). Essentials of Political Ideas. Palgrave. p. 58.
- ISBN 978-0-19-921849-3. Archivedfrom the original on 3 January 2014. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ a b Erk, 2005, pp. 493-502.
- ^ a b c d e De Winter, 2004, p. 6.
- ^ Coffé, 2005, p. 205.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-55587-610-4. Archivedfrom the original on 29 July 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ^ a b De Winter, 2004, p. 4.
- ^ a b De Winter, 2004, pp. 4-5.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, p. 83.
- ^ De Winter, 2004, p. 5.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, pp. 83-84.
- ^ a b c De Winter, 2004, p. 2.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, pp. 84-85.
- ^ Coffé, 2005, p. 207.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, p. 85.
- ^ ISBN 90-02-15260-4.
- ^ a b c Mudde, 2003, p. 87.
- ^ a b De Winter, 2004, p. 15.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, pp. 87-88.
- ^ a b c d e Mudde, 2003, p. 88.
- ^ a b Coffé, 2005, p. 208.
- ^ "How Covid-19 Has Boosted the Radical Populist Right in Belgium". 27 October 2020. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
- ^ a b c d Coffé, 2005, p. 209.
- ^ a b c d e De Winter, 2004, p. 13.
- ^ De Winter, 2004, pp. 2 and 6.
- ^ a b Coffé, 2005, p. 213.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, pp. 88-89.
- ^ De Winter, 2004, p. 19.
- ^ Coffé, 2005, pp. 211-212.
- ^ a b Roxburgh, Angus (9 November 2004). "Blow to Belgium's far right". BBC News. Brussels. Archived from the original on 13 January 2013. Retrieved 8 January 2010.
- ^ Coffé, 2005, pp. 213-214.
- ^ a b c Mudde, 2003, p. 89.
- ^ De Winter, 2004, p. 7.
- ^ a b c Mudde, 2003, p. 90.
- ^ Coffé, 2005, pp. 209-210.
- ^ Swyngedouw; Abts; Van Craaen, 2007, p. 96.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, p. 91.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, p. 92.
- ^ Coffé, 2005, p. 214.
- ^ "Why Vlaams Belang made an ethical move: ' Better a transgender than a transmigrant'". De Standaard (in Dutch). 5 June 2019.
- ^ Coffé, 2005, p. 212.
- ^ a b Coffé, 2005, pp. 214-215.
- ^ a b "Court rules Vlaams Blok is racist". BBC News. 9 November 2004. Archived from the original on 25 May 2012. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
- ^ Totten, Michael (22 November 2004). "Belgians Waffle? A Ban to Worry About". TCS Daily. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ Van Hauthem, Joris (16 November 2004). "Reacties over uitspraak Annemans zwaar overtrokken". Vlaams Belang (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 16 April 2013. Retrieved 11 January 2011.
- ^ Vanhecke, Frank (20 November 2004). "Niets veranderd!". Vlaams Belang (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 16 April 2013. Retrieved 11 January 2011.
- ^ Coffé, 2005, p. 216.
- ^ Erk, 2005, p. 493.
- ^ a b Swyngedouw; Abts; Van Craaen, 2007, p. 98.
- ^ "Eigen voetvolk bijlange niet meer eerst". De Morgen. 22 July 2006. p. 26.
- ^ "Vlaams Belang niet in beroep tegen veroordeling". De Standaard (in Dutch). Brussels. 7 March 2005. Archived from the original on 15 May 2011. Retrieved 9 January 2011.
- ^ a b De Winter, 2004, pp. 12-13.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, p. 96.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, p. 97.
- ^ a b Mudde, 2003, p. 103.
- ISBN 9780312083908. Archivedfrom the original on 28 December 2016. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- from the original on 26 March 2015. Retrieved 10 November 2011.
- ^ "How Covid-19 Has Boosted the Radical Populist Right in Belgium". 27 October 2020. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, p. 100.
- ^ a b c Art, David (July 2008). "The Organizational Origins of the Contemporary Radical Right: The case of Belgium" (PDF). Comparative Politics: 435. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
- ^ "Changing Positions on LGBTQI-Rights by Far-Right Parties in Western Europe". 2 November 2017. Archived from the original on 21 March 2020. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, pp. 91-92.
- ^ a b De Winter, 2004, p. 14.
- ^ a b Swyngedouw; Abts; Van Craaen, 2007, p. 90.
- ^ Mudde, 2003, pp. 93 and 128.
- ^ a b c Mudde, 2003, p. 93.
- ^ Rottenberg, Hella (15 November 1994). "Van CD naar Nederlands Blok en soms terug". de Volkskrant (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
- ^ Swyngedouw; Abts; Van Craaen, 2007, pp. 95-96.
Bibliography
- Coffé, Hilde (2005). "The adaptation of the extreme right's discourse: the case of the Vlaams Blok". Ethical Perspectives (2). European Centre for Ethics, from the original on 29 February 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
- De Winter, Lieven (July 2004). Casals, Xavier (ed.). The Vlaams Blok and the heritage of extreme-right flemish-nationalism. The extreme right in Europe, a many faceted reality. Sabadell University. Archived from the original on 6 February 2017. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
- Erk, Jan (May 2005). "From Vlaams Blok to Vlaams Belang: The Belgian Far-Right Renames Itself". S2CID 143126680.
- Mudde, Cas (2003). The ideology of the extreme right. Manchester University Press. ISBN 978-0-7190-6446-3. Archivedfrom the original on 2 February 2021. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- Swyngedouw, Marc; Abts, Koen; Van Craaen, Maarten (2007). "Our Own People First in a Europe of Peoples: The International Policy of the Vlaams Blok". In Liang, Christina Schori (ed.). Europe for the Europeans: the foreign and security policy of the populist radical right. Ashgate. pp. 81–102. ISBN 978-0-7546-4851-2.
External links
- Vlaams Blok website
- Flanders Independent site Archived 29 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine
- The Flemish Republic online newsletter for English-speaking people, a website of the Vlaams Blok
- Supreme Court's decision of 9 November 2004, (pdf document), provisional version of the original decision in Dutch
- Official Vlaams Blok party comment on the conviction Archived 27 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine