Small olive-tree

In French-speaking Belgium (Wallonia and Area of Brussels-Capital), the expression Petit olive-tree indicates a coalition known as progressist, i.e. between the Socialist party, Ecolo and the humanistic democratic Center (ex-Party social-Christian). It is about a wink with Italian Olivier, although the political situation is not easily comparable.

At the communal level indeed, all the types of coalitions exist, so much " red romaine" (Socialists and Christians) that " mauve" or " laïque" (Socialists and liberals, the laic caratère of the latter however extremely grew blurred since a quarter century, with local variations), " small olivier" , even " rainbow " (Socialists, liberals and ecologists, as for the federal government in 1999-2003). In three common contiguous inhabitants of Brussels, Saint-Gilles, Anderlecht and Brussels-city, the PS is respectively combined to the liberals against the CDH and Ecologist, in the opposition against a coalition liberal-ecologist (more Flemish Christian-Democrats) and in coalition with the CDH and Ecologist against the liberals.

At the regional level of Brussels, the coalition is of " type; small olivier" (more essential Flemish parties), on the level Community French-speaking person red Roman, at the mauve federal level. Since certain elected officials cumulate mandates communal and regional or communal and federal, that leads to a certain political schizophrenia.

The concept of " Small olivier" had a counterpart in 1996 Flemish side, the Sienjaal of Maurits Coppieters and Norbert De Batselier, concretized since 2003 in the electoral trust SP.A - Spirit which tried, in vain, to extend to the party ecologist Agalev. The refusal of the leaders and a majority of members of this last to join this trust of the lefts with socialist domination caused the departure of some militants and elected officials ecologists towards one of the two parties of the trust.

The idea of gathering of the progressists is old in Belgium, it in particular knew a certain strength in 1945, between the movements resulting from resistance to the Nazisme, but its incarnation partidaire, the Belgian democratic Union, could not surmount the Pilarisation and the opposition between laic Socialists and Christian-Democrats.

May 1st, 1969, the socialist director Léo Collard lance a call in favor of a gathering of progressists, who remains uncompleted.

In the years 1980, the left wing of the democratic Front of the French-speaking people makes scission under the democratic denomination of Rassemblement of Brussels, which introduces candidates (Serge Moureaux, Leon Defosset) on the lists PS, but members of the RDB (of which many communal elected officials) end up adhering individually to the PS. Paradoxically, this hemorrhage will cause a bringing together of the FDF with the liberals, which will be concretized in a trust FDF- PRL and in fine in the constitution of the MR..

The constitution of a pole of center-right around Louis Michel and of the Parti reforming liberal within new the reforming Mouvement on the model the Union for the French democracy Valery Giscard d'Estaing in the years 1970 or the Maison freedoms (initially baptized Pôle of freedoms in 1994) Silvio Berlusconi caused calls in favor of a convergence of the lefts, actually more on the model of the French Plural left, without ridge structure, that of Italian Olivier who has the role to become a federation of the left parties.

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