Feelings of membership in Belgium and Wallonia

The question of the memberships is capital in any country where develops a Régionalisme (political) or a Nationalisme of emancipation such nationalisms Québécois, or Flemish etc

It is for example the will of most of the Inhabitants of Quebec to give independent Quebec compared to Canada, or of the Catalans to widen their autonomy with respect to Spain. The sounders thus raise very regularly in these countries the question to know which are the feelings of membership of the country, the people, the area.

The federalism is a daily reality in Belgium. The Wallonia like the Flanders, like Brussels and the the French Community of Belgium, have important competences. In Wallonia, and it is the matter of this article, the feelings balance between the unit (Belgian) and autonomy (Walloon, and Flemish inevitably). To approach the way in which these various options of membership are distributed, it is interesting to scan the surveys a little more closely. But more especially work - thorough, less dependant on the media topicality - many scientific Institutes (IWEPS, CLEO, PIOP), or inter-University work which undertook to apply scientific methods to the study of these problems.

Feelings of membership, a major policy issue

The example of Europe

The Europe itself proceeds to investigations in order to determine the way in which each one is perceived now or in the future (for example only French , French and European , Européen and French , only Européen ). The question of the feelings of memberships thus arises in many places in the democratic countries.

If, in the case of Europe, the put question is that of the preferential membership of an independent nation or at the EU, this article is interested more particularly in the case of Belgium by then comparing it with other independent nations whose certain areas want, either to be detached completely (Quebec), or want to increase there their autonomy (Catalonia, Flanders, Wallonia).

Impact of the determination of the feeling of membership

The determination of the feeling of membership can have an impact on the future of the territory considered. If, for example, a survey reveals that the Inhabitants of Quebec affirm that they feel to exclusively belong or initially to the Quebec (and not to the Canada ), one can think that there are chances that a separatist policy receives their support. If, on the contrary, a survey shows that they feel to belong initially or even only to the Canada , one can think that a separatist policy has much less chance to be essential.

In the same way, when a survey is suggested that the Walloons initially feel to belong to the Belgium , it can think that there are few chances that a policy aiming at widening the autonomy of the Wallonia with regard to the Belgium receives their support. If a survey suggests the opposite, then, on the other hand, one can think that a policy plus separatist can become extensive in agreement with the Walloon opinion.

Feelings of membership in Wallonia and Flanders

In Wallonia, one feels at the same time Walloon and Belgian and one is divided between the feeling of membership in Belgium and Wallonia. This phenomenon also exists in Flanders but is there less Net.

It is this ambivalence of the feelings which tends to always show the Belgian book in particular published by the Fondation King Baudouin, who defends this thesis not on the basis of survey simple, but starting from more deepened sociological investigations and which is repeated since 20 or 25 years, overall with the same results.

In particular, inside this collective book, three other researchers, Misters R.Doutrelepont, Jaak Billiet and Mr. Vandenkeere write the final chapter entitled identity Profils in Belgium . Their conclusions join other surveys carried out in Belgium: there would be no opposition among Walloons between the feeling to belong to Belgium and the feeling to belong to Wallonia.

The detail of the investigations

Questions about the feeling of membership

With an open-ended question (without choice to make on a range of answers pre-indicated), on the paramount feeling of membership, much of guarantors evoke other memberships that the memberships " géopolitiques" (of the " type; Belgium " , " Wallonia " , " Europe" , " world entier" …).

This open-ended question is formulated as follows: Among all the groups to which you belong, which is that which has the most importance for you? .

Certain people do not grant any preference to a group of membership like Wallonia, Belgium, Flanders etc They do not quote any preferential group of membership (even not l'" Europe" or " the world entier"). This attitude is frequent at the people who have a higher instruction, but not at all. Many quotes nonpolitical affiliations: the family, friends, the district, colleagues of office, the city or the village, the under-area (the area inhabitant of Li2ege, Namurian, the Coal-mining) etc

Does it manage to you to feel you Walloon, Belgian etc?

Another question (closed this time, i.e. where one gives only the choice between answers pre-indicated), is posed as follows: does it manage to You you to feel… Belgian, Wallon, Flemish never, seldom, from time to time, often, very often, always?

Here, 44,6% of the Walloons answers all the time and very often Wallons. The Flemings are 44,2% to feel " all the time or " very souvent" Flemings. The answer I very often feel Belgian or always corresponds to 43,9% of answers among Walloons and to 35% of answers among Flemings. There would be thus equality of the Walloon feeling and Belgian in Wallonia, but not or less in Flanders.

Strongly Walloon, Belgian, Flemish…

As regards the membership " forte" , 38,9% of the Walloons strongly feel Wallons and 39,8% strongly Belgian. For the Flemings there is 48,9% of answers which indicate that one feels strongly Flemish and 28% of answers which one feels strongly Belgian . The Flemings would thus feel more strongly Flemish, but not in proportions much higher than the way in which the Walloons express this same " fort" feeling with regard to Wallonia.

Conclusion

R.Doutrelepont, Jaak Billiet and M.Vandenkeere conclude consequently with an ambivalence from feeling among Walloons, attaches both in Belgium and in Wallonia, which is checked besides also in Flanders (but less clearly). Many other investigations, for 20 or even 25 years, have confirmed these results (and in particular investigations of the CLEO of 1989 to 1997)

The current federal political system would thus correspond to very enracinés feelings, insofar as, like all Fédéralisme, it incarnates two possible honesties politically, one with the Federal state (Belgium), the other at the federate State (Wallonia).

Results of sample surveys in Quebec, in Catalonia and Wallonia

The general question put by the investigators of the various countries is: " I feel? " :

With the Quebec , Canadian inhabitant of Quebec only (16,8%), initially (30,1%), and Québécois (33,3%), Canadian than Québécois (12,3%), only Canadian (6,8%)

In Catalonia , Catalan only (10%), initially (17%), Catalan and Spanish (44%), Spanish than Catalan (16%), only Spanish (12%)

In Wallonia , Walloon only (1,8%), initially (9,5%), Walloon and Belgian (43,6%), Belgian than Walloon (24,7%), only Belgian (17,6%).

Note 1: One does not have the " without answers " for Quebec, Catalonia and Wallonia the figures are 1% and 2,2%]. Note 2: It is difficult to have recent investigations which can be compared as it is the case here, the questions always not being posed in the same way in the three countries.

Evolution of the first level of membership

In 1996, on the basis of list of possible answers, with the question “With what do you have the feeling to belong initially? ”, the Walloons answered 65,9% in Belgium, to 10% with their city or commune, 9% with the Walloon region and 7,8% at the French Community (0% with the province, 5,3% others, and 1,3% did not decide).

An inter-University conclusion

If there is a Walloon Indépendantisme well which could appear sometimes in a violent way, if there is a Walloon Nationalisme well, it carries the mark of ambivalences that Belgian always (with other investigations) proposes. This ambivalence lasts for a long time. Is it related to the Belgian State like legal or ideological construction? Or does it express a major tendency and even more universal of the human beings - independent of the Belgian State or other concrete political contexts - to like their memberships while wishing not to be locked up there?

In any case four Belgian directors of always (Bawin of the Ulg, Voyé of UCL, Dobbelaere of KUL and Elchardus of VUB) - the only Belgian inter-University study carried out on similar subject and making continuation in 2001 with a similar study of 1992, also sponsored by the Foundation King Baudouin - concludes from this way: “ the chapter on the political affiliations, if he does not teach us large-thing on the political affiliations from the Belgians, surprises us by the fact that the inhabitants of the 3 Areas (Flanders, Wallonia, Brussels) first of all give the preference to their area of membership, then to Belgium, then in Europe. The Flemings are more numerous to be identified initially with their area than the Walloons and the Inhabitants of Brussels, but in Flanders (22% compared with 27% in Wallonia), and this result is completely unexpected, one is identified in Belgium in quasi equivalent proportion. ” ( Belgian always , p.260)

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