ANTWERP It shouldn’t have become a big theme.
In recent days, however, the proposal of the Belgian Vlaams Belang party to encourage women to give birth under the age of 30 with a reward has become the most interesting topic of the elections. The issue has been emphasized by others than the party itself.
Competitors calculate that emphasizing the old side of Vlaams Belang will drive away voters from it. They are happy to compare the birth allowance, for example by Margaret Atwood to the Handmaid’s Tale – Orjattaresi television series based on the novel, where women become birthing machines.
In the shopping streets of Antwerp, voters condemn maternity allowance for young women.
– It’s ridiculous. I’m pretty sure even if they get elected they won’t implement that nonsense, Greet De Broeck says.
– It reminds me that we are going back to the beginning of the 20th century, studying social work Julie Bijewcier smirk.
She emphasizes that women have the right to decide about their bodies and make choices.
With Stefan Westman has no position on the matter.
– Everyone in my family has had children over the age of 30.
The extreme right is also rising in the core of the EU
Vlaams Belang’s communication strategists will certainly be upset by the siding. The party would like to focus on immigration.
The extreme right is on the rise all over Europe, including in the EU’s capital, Belgium. According to opinion polls, the far-right Vlaams Belang, which is pushing for Flemish independence, would have a clear election victory in Sunday’s parliamentary elections.
Belgians will vote in three elections on Sunday, when the next term’s MEPs and representatives of the parliamentary and regional administrations will be elected. About 90 percent also vote, because voting is compulsory in the country.
Despite its leading position, Vlaams Belang may not come to power. The other Belgian parties have so far not agreed to cooperate with it.
According to some researchers, Vlaams Belang is more radical than France’s far-right National Coalition.
A racist background is suspected
According to Stefan Westman, Vlaams Belang has some good ideas regarding security.
– There have been problems here in that officers and firefighters have been attacked during the work shift. It is good if, for example, the waiters have safer conditions and safety equipment. However, I don’t know if I choose their political direction.
Julie Bijewucier suspects the racist background of the party.
– They are very popular, but I am not their fan. I’m also a bit scared of what the consequences will be if they get a big election win.
Greet De Broeck says that the party is too extreme for her.
– I must say that the chairman of the party is very intelligent, but he goes too far to extremes. I won’t vote for him.
Has led the party since 2014 Tom Van Grieken.
Compulsory voting is a good thing, according to De Broeck.
– Decades ago we had to fight to vote, so it’s good that everyone is doing their job.
Those who skip voting face a fine of up to 80 euros. However, it is not much prescribed.
Belgium will hardly cease to exist
Belgium is divided by a strict language border into Flanders, which speaks Flemish, a dialect of Dutch, and southern Wallonia, which speaks French. Both have their own parties. There are separately the Walloon and Flemish social democrats, liberals and so on.
The Flemish have parties that support the independence of Flanders, because Flanders feels that it supports the poorer Wallonia. The roles have changed. Wallonia, which used to rely on heavy industry, was the more prosperous part.
In general, Wallonia votes more for the left and in Flanders for the right.
Political scientist Dave Sinardet The University of Brussels says that, according to opinion polls, Flemish and French-speakers agree on many issues, even though they vote in different ways.
– It is special that southern French-speaking Belgium is the only region in the entire European Union that does not have a strong far-right party.
Sinardet thinks that there would be an order for such a thing.
In general, according to Sinardet, Flemish voters consider immigration issues more important than French-speakers, for whom social issues and purchasing power are more important issues.
According to Sinardet, there is another big contradiction in supporting independence.
Up to half of the Flemish voters support nationalist parties, which officially support the independence of Flanders and the disappearance of Belgium. At the same time, public opinion polls show that only ten percent of Flemish people support the independence of Flanders.
For example, Vlaams Belang is promoting Flanders’ declaration of independence in the Flemish regional parliament, but the project is unlikely to advance. The self-governance efforts of Spain’s Catalonia are also a warning example.
Assembling the next Belgian government may take a long time again, as the negotiations involve a large number of parties, of which there are two versions in different languages.
The last time it took almost 500 days for the government to be formed. There are seven parties in the government and the prime minister is chosen by the liberals from the middle of the party field Alexander De Croo.