Flemish Community

The term 'Flemish Community' is used in two different meanings:

• sociologically, culturally, politically, it refers to the Flemish people and all their organisations, media, social and cultural life;
• institutionally, the term refers to one of the three Communities, established by the Belgian constitution; however, in contemporary life, the Flemish Community, different from the two other, became a rather theoretical concept since the immediate unification of all institutions of both Flemish Region and Flemish Community. Since, this Flemish Community, different from the two other, has no operating institutions anymore; no parliamentary assembly, no governement, no civil servants; all its competencies were transferred to the unified institutions (see Flanders for more details).

In practice, both definitions covers roughly the same people: being all inhabitants from the Flemish region, as well as those inhabitants from the Brussels region that decided for theirselves to belong to that community (regardless if they are Ducth-speaking, or migrants who opted de facto for the Flemish Community, rather then for the French-speaking community).

Competencies of the Flemish Community

Trough articles in the Belgian constitution, the following broad areas of competencies were given to the Flemish Community:

• education (except for degree requirements, ... and for >95% of its financing);
• culture and language matters (except for all its economic aspects that remain on belgian level);
• certain aspects of healthcare (very tiny part of the entire public health policy);
• agriculture (altough most competencies in this area moved to the European Union);
• public works and regional economic development;
• energy (altough <95% of actual competencies in this area remain on belgian level);
• international development co-operation in all areas of the competency of the (not yet operational).

While this list appears already quite nice, the Flemish Community has as good as no financial autonomy at all. It receives >95% of its budgets from national, belgian funds; on top of that, for its very limited own fiscal powers, it is severely restricted by belgian rules on how much it can (must) tax and spend.

in addition, the Flemish Community, just as well as the Flemish region, doesn't have any Court of Auditors, nor any judicial courts of its own.

Dutch, official language and other languages in Flanders

Dutch is the public and official language of the whole Flemish community. In private, small minorities speak French, Yiddish, Turkish, Arabic, Berber, Italian, Spanish, English and German. Most of these groups are recent immigrants. Jews form the oldest minority (since Middle Ages) that kept its own identity, followed by the French-speaking minority.

In certain municipalities along the border with the Wallon and the Brussels region, French-speakers enjoy limited language facilities. Similar facilities are enjoyed by Flemings and german-speakers in Wallonia, and by French-speakers in the german-speaking territories. This was intended as a temporary measure of support for the historic language minorities in those areas. Since, three evolutions complicated things: 1. Many French-speakers established in the municipalities around Brussels; in some, especially in the six municipalities with such facilities, these migrants form the actual majority; together with the then minority, that results in 5 out of 6 of those municipalities now having a French-speaking majority (where, at the establishment of the linguistic areas in belgium, French-speakers totalled less then 50% of the population in all of them); 2. Nationalistic tendencies dominating most French-speaking political parties, they refused that those facilities were to be temporary, thus trying to obtain a de facto recognition for the refusal of all new French-speakers established in those areas to recognise the Flemish nature of the Flemsih region (and especially its language); 3. Within Wallonia, consistent pressure was applied on Flemings living in the Walloon municipalities with facilities for the Flemings; sometimes, this became open discrimination as in the illegal refusal to fund Flemish schools in these municipalities; as a result, there are no Dutch-speaking schools left.

Dialects tended to be very strong, and particular to every locality. Since the second World War, the influence of radion, television, and with more people moving out of their region of birth, the use of the original dialects tends to decrease, and the fade away. Differences between the regional dialects erode, and new types of intermediate dialects appears. These are often called (in Dutch) 'verkavelingsvlaams'.

In Brussels, the local dialect is heavily influenced by the French, both in pronunciation, as in vocabulary. However, most Flemings in brussels don't speak the local dialect. This is certainly partly due to the large numbers of young Flemings coming to brussles, and others moving out.

Local Flemish institutions in Brussels

The Brussels region doesn't have real provincial institutions. Most provincial competencies were attibuted to the official Brussels Capital Region, for all 'territorial tasks', and to the two official communities for all its community competencies (education, culture and social well-being). The Flemish community therefore established a local elected council and executive to care for these 'intermediate level decision making & public service', being the Vlaamse Gemeenschapsraad and the Vlaamse gemeenschapscommissie (or 'VGC'). The VGC then, in its turn recognised local, municipal institutions to take care of the purely local public service in these community areas (called 'gemeenschapscentra' in Dutch).

Striclty legally speaking, the Flemish community is not competent for individual people in brussels, but for Flemsih institutions as schools, theatres, libraries and museums. The reasons for this is that no formal subnationality was established in Brussels. This would have been logical and coherent with sounds democratic principles in a federal state, but many Flemings hesitated or were against, and the French-speaking parties were totally against.

Media

Flanders has an official radio and television broadcasting company, the 'Radio- en Televisieomroep' or 'VRT' in Dutch. Since 2 decenia, private radio and television broadcasting companies were established. The written press is dominated by a couple of national Flemish dailies (as 'Tijd', 'De Morgen' and 'De Standaard'), several strong regional dailies and a huige number of general and specialised magasines.