It's some day or other in between Christmas and New Year (where days of the week lose their meaning) and I'm doing what comes naturally - staying up late and looking at weird stuff on the web.
It's at times like this when those weird questions come back to haunt me, and I go on Google safari.
Today's question(s): will Belgium go the way of Czechoslovakia, and if it did, what would happen to Brussels? Would things degenerate into a "Yugoslavian situation"?
As always, someone has come up with an answer, and every possible scenario for a "life after Belgium" can be found here including a version in Esperanto, if you please.
There are, it seems, only a couple of things which have kept Belgium's major constituents - Flanders and Wallonia - from divorce (or worse), and probably the most effective of these has been Brussels. If Flanders were to declare independence, it would surely want to take Brussels with it. After all, the city sits geographically in Flanders and the Flemish parliament is here. It's also by far the largest city in Flanders (or Belgium for that matter), and has unmatched economic significance. The teensy snag about the whole thing is that at least 85% of Brussels' population counts French as their mother tongue, which would make the new Flemish Republic - with its French-speaking capital city - a rather odd affair.
There are enough competing scenarios and possible plots to make a fascinating novel. If anyone has heard of one - in French, Dutch or English - I'd be delighted to hear of it!
Posted by Eurodan at December 30, 2003 12:19 AMHi Dan,
I do believe there are several mostly fictitious books written on this issue. It goes without saying that being Flemish, I am "slightly" prejudiced, so the books I know all are Dutch language.
There is first of all an author from the Kempen (for does who do not know - no offence - , it is roughly the Region between Antwerp and Germany) called Walter Van Den Broeck who wrote a trilogy on Belgium and the Belgian Royal House which does include, I do believe a scenario on the ending of Belgium. I know that one of the books is called "Het beleg van Laken" (the siege of Laken, Laken being the place where the Belgian King has its residence, it is near Brussels). I started reading it but I found it so boring that I have given up after a while.
A second and much more interesting author is Geert Van Istendael who by the way, lives in our neighbourhood. He is a former journalist who worked at the news room of the Belgian Flemish TV. He mainly writes books on the history of Brussels (e.g. Arm Brussel), and Belgium (Het Belgisch Labyrint of de Schoonheid der Wanstaltigheid). His latest novel - le titre m'echappe - is rather apocalyptic and tells about Belgium after its collapse. This might interest certainly you because Geert Van Istendael has a very clear insight into the functioning of Brussels and this country in general. You will often find him as an expert in discussions related to this topic.
I hope this informatiom replies somewhat to your question. If you have read any of these novels, please let me know - which I am sure you will -, I find a rather interesting topic too.
The guy nextdoor,
- Bart -
xxx
And there is "De charme van chaos, Berichten uit de burgeroorlog in België", Dirk Draulans:
http://www.nl.bol.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/nl/-/EUR/BOL_DisplayProductInformation-Start;sid=RimvAXJXZc2vHzJWh9uRNpKB3C7EOqbRMMY=?BOL_OWNER_ID=666877391&Section=BOOK&lgl=1&plid=&lgl_BOL_OWNER_ID=1
describing a Walloon invasion of Flanders,trigggering a third world war.
But I don't think it's meant seriously... ;-O
Posted by: pascal van hecke at January 11, 2004 9:47 PM