The Flemish rightwing N-VA – a separatist, Flemish nationalist party – is planning to stand for election in Wallonia, said party leader Bart De Wever in an exclusive interview with Het Laatste Nieuws on Saturday.
De Wever is willing to do everything he can to get rid of "a very left-wing government" in Wallonia, including putting his party – which has always strongly focused on Flemish interests and is very vocal in its criticism of the country's French-speaking regions – up for election in Wallonia.
"I am firmly convinced that confederalism is the only way to get rid of a very left-wing government in Wallonia. That administration is detrimental to the Flemish. And that message must also be told in Wallonia," he told the newspaper. "That is why we are particularly strongly considering submitting lists in Wallonia."
'Only way to get our point across'
As a federal nation, Belgium is currently divided into different smaller federated states (known as regions). As such, power is not centralised in one overarching government but shared between the central level and these semi-autonomous regions.
Confederalism, however, would give more powers and competencies to these regions, making them independent and autonomous sovereign states (voluntarily) deciding to cooperate – which is what De Wever and his party want to achieve with another state reform.
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Whether it will be N-VA or some kind of sister party up for elections on the Walloon ballot has not yet been decided, he said. "We will see what form that takes. The Walloons are my neighbours and if they are thriving, that is also to my advantage. But if I give money to keep people poor, then there is no point."
That is what he wants to make clear in Wallonia, as he said it is the only way to get that point across. "It will not get into the media or into the debate. The left-wing politicians are not going to tell you that, and [Francophone liberal MR leader Georges-Louis] Bouchez is the biggest Belgianist you can imagine. So that different perspective on our state is simply not told in Wallonia.”
