Question

How the powers were shared between the central and state government in Belgium to avoid the division of the country? Explain.

Hint:

Recall the 1993 changes in the Belgian Constitution: ministers in the central government, powers of the regional governments, and the status of Brussels.

Answer 1

Step 1: Background of the problem:
Belgium is a small country in Europe. Dutch speaking people live mostly in the Flemish region and form about 59 percent of the population. French speaking people form about 40 percent, and live mostly in the Wallonia region. In the capital Brussels, 80 percent speak French and 20 percent speak Dutch.
The French speakers were richer and more powerful in the past, so the Dutch speakers felt left out. This led to tension between the two communities, and Belgium could have been divided.

Step 2: Why power sharing was the solution:
Belgian leaders chose to share power between the two communities and between the central and regional governments. Between 1970 and 1993, they changed the Constitution four times to build a working arrangement.

Step 3: Point 1: Equal ministers in the central government:
The Constitution says that the number of Dutch speaking and French speaking ministers shall be equal in the central government.
Some special laws need the support of a majority of members from each linguistic group. So no single community can take decisions alone.

Step 4: Point 2: Powers given to the regional governments:
Many powers of the central government were given to the state governments of the two regions of the country.
The state governments are not subordinate to the central government. They are independent in the areas given to them.

Step 5: Point 3: A separate government in Brussels:
Brussels has a separate government in which both communities have equal representation. The French speaking people accepted equal representation in the central government. In return, the Dutch speaking community accepted equal representation in Brussels.

Step 6: Extra arrangement: community government:
A third kind of government, the community government, is elected by people of one language community, wherever they live. It looks after cultural, educational and language related issues.

Final Answer:
Belgium avoided division by sharing power. It gave equal ministers to both communities in the central government, gave wide powers to independent regional governments, and set up a separate government for Brussels with equal representation (any two points are enough for full marks). \[ \boxed{\text{Power was shared by equal ministers, strong regional governments and a separate Brussels government}} \]