Panafrican News Agency

Belgium: Belgian Prime Minister to attend Francophonie summit

Brussels, Belgium (PANA) - The Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel, will attend the Francophonie Summit scheduled for November 29 and 30 in Dakar, Senegal, a government statement announced on Tuesday.

Two years ago, the head of the Belgian government, Elio Di Rupo, refused to attend the summit in Kinshasa, DR Congo, because he said the country was not democratic. Belgium was represented by Foreign Minister Didier Reynders.

This is the first time a francophone Prime Minister will represent Belgium at the summit of the Francophonie as the Kingdom of Belgium has been run for at least two decades by Flemish Prime Ministers, the majority ethnic group in the European nation, composed of Walloons (French) and Flemish.

The french-speaking Michel, whose party represents less than one-third of MPs in Parliament, got the job by default, as the leader of the Flemish Party NVA (New Flemish nationalist alliance- right) which won the last election, Bart De Wever, refused to assume the post.

The NVA advocates the partition of Belgium into two entities, namely an independent Flemish Republic and a francophone Walloon state.
-0- PANA AK/BEH/MTA/MA 4Nov2014