Welcome to The Flemish Republic
Why the Belgian federation should be dissolved and Flanders should become an independent state. |
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 Frequently asked questions
Brussels as the bilingual capital of a free Flanders?
Historically, Brussels was a Dutch-speaking city. Research shows that less than 5% of all preserved public documents written before 1500 were written in French. But during the French occupation (1794-1815) and after the creation of Belgium in 1830 public life was completely frenchified. French was the only language used in education, government, the army, and the judiciary. Anyone who wanted to have a career had to learn French. Because of this social pressure and because of the dearth of Dutch-speaking education, many Flemings sent their children to French-speaking schools. The children of Flemish parents became bilingual. The grandchildren often became Francophone monoglots. In this way, the proportion of Dutch-speakers in Brussels shrank from 90% at the beginning of the 19th century to around 15% by the end of the 20th century. Now, the presence of large numbers of European and non-European foreign nationals increases the pressure on the Dutch-speaking minority. But we believe that Brussels should remain the capital of Flanders. Hundreds of thousands of Flemings work every day in Brussels. The economy of Brussels is very closely interwoven with the economy of the Flemish area around the city. Zaventem, the international airport of Brussels, is situated in Flemish territory. In an independent Flanders Brussels would retain its bilingual status. (A comparable situation is the one presently existing in Helsinki, the bilingual capital of Finland.) The Vlaams Belang conducts all of its Brussels campaigns in both Dutch and French.
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