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37-580: The party was founded as the Democratic Front of Francophones ( Front Démocratique des Francophones , FDF) on 11 May 1964 as a response to the language laws of 1962 . The party had instant success in Brussels: it first contested parliamentary elections one year later , where it won one senator and 3 seats in the Chamber of Representatives for the constituency of Brussels . Its number of seats increased further in

74-508: A bilingual country, with French and Dutch being recognised as official languages everywhere. This led to a proposal to split the administration in Belgium to preserve the French-speaking nature of Wallonia and to avoid the possibility that French-speaking civil servants there might have to pass a Dutch language examination. This implied a choice: should Belgium become a bilingual country or

111-479: A gendarme from Luxembourg, but a sworn translator of Dutch origin ( Nederlandse afkomst ). On five occasions Goethals would have confessed and as chief railroad worker he had to know the French language, while Coucke sold vegetables to French-speaking customers and, having had money problems before the murder, thereafter had means of which he could not demonstrate the origin. The Member of Parliament then asked whether

148-434: A country with two language regions? This was expressed in two alternatives: In 1921, the principle of territoriality was chosen; it was confirmed by further legislation, with landmark laws passed in 1932 and 1962. The language areas were outlined according to the principle of the language of the majority of the population, and a provision in the 1932 law determined that a language census should be conducted every ten years:

185-594: A crisis in Voeren surrounding the mayor, José Happart . Protests raised by French-speakers before the European Court of Human Rights ECtHR were mostly unsuccessful (e.g. Belgian Linguistics Case ). A number of institutions such as the Catholic University of Leuven obtained authorisation to become bilingual. In 1970, on the completion of the first state reform, four language areas were established by Article 4 of

222-472: A municipality could change its linguistic status only according to the findings of the census. This more flexible approach opened the possibility of minorities representing a minimum 30% of the local population being able to obtain services in their native, or chosen, language. A 1962 law determined which municipality belonged to what language area . Each Belgian municipality is restricted to one language area, of which there are four: Dutch, French, German, and

259-449: A person expressed a wish to be engaged in French, but in reality the law was hardly applied in daily life: Flemish citizens were still obliged to communicate with the administration in French, because most civil servants were monoglots who either spoke only French or refused to use the Dutch language. Until 1883, education in secondary schools had been entirely in French. The third law on

296-572: A resident of a municipality has no such rights in any neighbouring municipality.) To benefit from these facilities, they must be asked for by the person concerned. This raised the issue of whether the facilities had to be requested on each and every occasion or whether a single request conferred a blanket benefit. In 1997 the Peeters directive required that inhabitants of such municipalities must request such facilities in their chosen language on each and every occasion they want to enjoy that right. This led to

333-461: A time Belgium was legally only French -speaking, though the majority of the citizens spoke Dutch , and only the official language was acknowledged by the Courts of Justice. They became an example as well as an exponent of how the French-speaking bourgeoisie (from Wallonia but also from Flanders) treated their Flemish fellow-citizens, of whom the language – if not its speakers – was considered inferior by

370-705: A train travelling from Antwerp to Charleroi , announcements are made first in Dutch (in the Flemish Region ), then in French and Dutch (in the Brussels-Capital Region ), again in Dutch and finally in French in Wallonia. Station announcements at Eupen and Hergenrath , the two stations in the German-speaking community, are made in German and French (in that order). This requires rail travellers to be conversant with

407-564: Is French-speaking, but the official language is Dutch , and pushes for the rights of French-speakers in Flemish municipalities to use French instead of Dutch in dealing with Dutch-speaking officials. Both stances are opposed by Flemish parties, who say that French-speaking residents of the Flemish Region should learn Dutch and argue that the Francization of Brussels should not further itself into

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444-484: The dossier of the trial case could be looked into by MPs or by civilians, and whether it corroborated the journalist's statements about Rabet, the interpreter, Goethals' confessions, and Coucke's financial situation. He also wished to know whether the nine death penalties of 17 January 1862 by the same court of which seven had been reduced, were connected to the Black Gang and thus to Boucher, Leclerq, and Rabet. Would

481-638: The Assize Court of Hainaut in Mons started on 20 August 1860. Although both lived in Couillet , Wallonia , and spoke French for their work, they were assisted by a Dutch translator, Pierre Van Horenbeek. Prosecutor Charles-Victor de Bavay obtained their death sentence five days later. They were beheaded on the Grand Market Place of Charleroi a few weeks later. In 1861, a year after the execution, 14 members of

518-614: The Belgian federal parliament, Filip De Man directed a series of questions at the vice-prime minister and minister of Justice, regarding the case Coucke and Goethals. His introduction stated that since 1861 there had been several attempts to officially restore the honour of Coucke and Goethals. In 2000, Johan Vande Lanotte , Siegfried Bracke and Geert Goedertier had still written (in België voor beginners. Wegwijs in het Belgisch labyrint , p. 27, die Keure, Brugge) that Coucke and Goethals were not

555-463: The Belgian portion of the E40 motorway , westbound travellers to Liège are directed to Lüttich and eastbound travellers are directed to Luik , but signs near the city itself refer only to Liège . Jan Coucke and Pieter Goethals Jan Coucke (c. 1812 – 16 November 1860) and Pieter Goethals (c. 1826 – 16 November 1860) were two Flemings who were sentenced to death for murder in 1860 at

592-463: The Constitution. Since then the language affiliation of municipalities can be changed only by special law . At the same time language communities were established, with the Flemish and French Communities being responsible for the regulation of the use of languages in their language area in the areas of administration, education, and for interactions between employers and their workforce. Currently

629-429: The French-speaking province of Hainaut . These and several other municipalities obtained facilities for the minority language group. In a municipality with a minority speaking another official language, facilities were provided for registered residents speaking that language. For example, education in an alternative official language was made available as long as sixteen or more parents requested its provision. (However

666-499: The French-speaking upper classes, and operated in French. This bias disadvantaged the largely Flemish North and, to a lesser degree, the Walloons of the South and the mainly German- or Luxembourgish -speaking environs of Arlon . As universal education developed in Belgium, the French language was initially the sole medium of instruction, alienating the northern half of the country. There

703-566: The Minister of Justice in this case be willing to ask the advice of the Attorney General at the Appeal Court of Mons, and to ask for the revision of the verdict of 1869, or to provide reasons for not asking the latter. The Minister replied one year later, on 24 July 2006. The confession of guilt by third parties can be considered as a new fact having taken place after the conviction, offering

740-570: The Netherlands . A conflict arose between the citizenry of the Flemish provinces who wished to engage with the authorities in Dutch, and the largely francophone aristocracy of the southern provinces which became modern-day Belgium. While the Belgian Constitution guaranteed "freedom of language", in practice the authorities, including government institutions such as the courts, were dominated by

777-648: The PRL, the FDF, the MCC and the PFF formed the Reformist Movement (MR), a closer alliance of Francophone liberal parties. In January 2010 the party name was amended to Francophone Democratic Federalists ( Fédéralistes Démocrates Francophones ), maintaining its original acronym. In September 2011, the FDF decided to leave the alliance over disagreements with MR president Charles Michel on

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814-731: The Region. Notable elected members include: [REDACTED] Media related to DéFI at Wikimedia Commons Language legislation in Belgium This article outlines the legislative chronology concerning the use of official languages in Belgium . A factor in the Belgian Revolution of the 1830s was the rising dominance of the Dutch language in the southern provinces of the United Kingdom of

851-634: The agreement concerning the splitting of the Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde district during the 2010–2011 Belgian government formation . The party adopted its current name, DéFI, in November 2015. The party advocates the extension of the bilingual status of Brussels to some municipalities in the Brussels Periphery (in Flemish Brabant , Flemish Region ), where a majority of the population

888-488: The bilingual area Brussels-Capital that includes the Belgian capital city and eighteen surrounding municipalities. From then on, modifications of the linguistic regime would be possible only after changing the law, which required a majority of each language community. In that same year, the municipality of Voeren (Fourons) went to the Dutch-speaking province of Limburg , and Comines (Komen) and Mouscron (Moeskroen) to

925-541: The elite. Later on, the real perpetrators confessed to the murder, which in 1873 led to a debate in parliament that ended in the Coremans Act , one of the first laws to recognize Dutch as an official language in Belgium, allowing the Flemish to use their own language at Flemish courts, though not yet in Brussels. On 23 March 1860, widow Dubois was the victim of an assault and robbery by night in Couillet near Charleroi . She

962-654: The first law on the use of languages, supported by Edward Coremans , regulated the use of languages in the courts in Flanders . Dutch became the major language in Flanders, but oral testimony and penal action were still permitted in French. The second law on the use of languages in 1878 regulated the use of language in the administrations of Flanders and Brussels . Announcements to the public by government officials had to be made either in Dutch or in both languages. Correspondence with municipalities or persons would be in Dutch unless

999-459: The general population, the law was passed, largely due to the extension of suffrage to every male citizen aged 25 and above which increased the number of Flemish voters, and the introduction of plural voting in 1893 which allowed some eligible voters to cast more than one vote. Disagreement over the country's language policy continued. Some segments of French-speaking Wallonia were concerned that current practices could result in Belgium becoming

1036-422: The infamous Black Gang were to appear before the same assize court. The leader of the gang, Leopold Rabet, confessed that French-speaking gang members had killed the widow Dubois. Jean-Baptiste Boucher and Auguste Leclercq confessed to having committed the murder and were sentenced to death. They also confessed that although Coucke and Goethals did not kill the widow, they were their accomplices. On 18 July 2005 at

1073-420: The language used by the Belgian authorities, administration, education, businesses, and the army is determined by the courts. The constitutional right of freedom of language remains intact and absolute only in the home, leading to ongoing tensions in Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde . The National Railway Company of Belgium 's policy is to provide information on the train in the language of the region. For example, on

1110-399: The murderers of the widow, but were informed on the murder. In 1948, a study by the Flemish journalist Herman Bossier had concluded that there had not been a miscarriage of justice , as according to the journalist, the declaration by Rabet included errors and two other members of the Black Gang, after their trial, had talked about the Flemish as accomplices; the interpreter would not have been

1147-493: The name of their destination in both languages (though on-board ticket inspectors are bound to respond in either language). In and around international stations, such as Brussels Airport , Dutch and French announcements are supplemented by announcements in German and English. As mentioned above, road signs are required to give destinations only in the local language, requiring travellers to recognise their ultimate and intermediate destinations in multiple languages. For example, on

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1184-459: The possibility to review the case. The criticism and advises that several authors may have brought forward, do not form a ground for a revision. According to the Minister, of the mentioned elements, only the statement by Rabet form such a ground in as far it is of a nature that proves the innocence of the convicts and it has been made in circumstances giving credibility to that statement or confession. The mentioned information however, does not offer

1221-466: The subsequent parliamentary elections. The party also dominated Brussels' municipal politics until 1982. Initially the party cooperated with the Walloon Rally . From 1977 until 1980, the FDF participated in the federal governments led by Leo Tindemans and subsequently Wilfried Martens . From 1992, the FDF regularly competed in electoral alliance with the larger Liberal Reformist Party (PRL). In 2002

1258-473: The use of languages was voted on in 1873, perhaps influenced by growing public dissent occasioned by cases such as the 1872 case of Jozef Schoep. He refused to pay a fine of 50 francs for not wanting to declare the birth of his son to the municipal administration of Molenbeek in French, only to be convicted after an appeal in Cassation . This and other cases provoked the discussions about the use of languages, and

1295-516: The use of languages was voted on in order to introduce bilingual education. In 1898, the Law on Equality was introduced. Dutch and French were now to be regarded as co-equal official languages but native French speakers in parliament, unwilling to learn or use Dutch, were either unable or unwilling to read the Dutch texts they were supposed to vote on. The reverse was not the case: Dutch speakers were obliged to learn French. Nevertheless, under pressure from

1332-491: Was a similar sense of alienation in other areas such as justice, as the trial and conviction of two Flemish labourers, Jan Coucke and Pieter Goethals , in 1860 demonstrated. The pair were sentenced to death for the murder of a widow without having understood one single word of their trial, and were then found to be innocent after they were executed. The Flemish Movement started to advocate language legislation that would recognise Dutch as an official language. The first law on

1369-543: Was discovered in agony only the next day, and died of her injuries a few days later. To the village policeman, she had only been able to utter that her attackers spoke "Flemish". Consequently, the attention was drawn on two Flemings who had been making a living in the region, Jan Coucke, a forty-nine-year-old potato salesman born in Sint-Denijs near Kortrijk , and Pieter Goethals, a railroad worker originating from Lotenhulle and thirty-four years of age. Their trial in French at

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