An End to Belgium?

Although I did quickly mention the many differences between the north and the south, I forgot to talk about the current political crisis in Belgium, which has arisen due to those very regional distinctions. As I previously mentioned, the Dutch north has become the far richer area and in Wallonia, unemployment rates are 2-3 times higher. Flanders wants economic autonomy and views the Walloons as “welfare deadbeats” (according to Prof. Lynch of UVA). The tables have turned and many Dutch-speakers are advocating for an independent Flanders. This is a country with a very complex government system, as I already talked about. And now, just on Monday when we were docked in Belgium, the prime minister Yves Leterme resigned. Last year, Leterme had said that Walloons are “intellectually incapable of learning Flemish.” His own mother spoke French! These are the kind of powerful sentiments that exist between the north and the south….and yet as a tourist, one could never notice any of this….however, Brussels, which is a separate federal district, did feel very different from Antwerp, and Brussels is a bilingual area! But what will happen to Belgium? Would the EU let a split occur? And if so, what would that mean for other areas, such as Scotland, northern Italy, Catalonia in Spain? Is it possible that I will never be able to visit Belgium as we know it today?