BRUSSELS Updated:12/12/2020 20:15h
Enrique Serbeto
The leader of the Flemish independence movement and current mayor of Antwerp, Bart De Wever, believes that the “Catalan way” has been “a clumsy thing” that has deeply divided society in Catalonia and that they do not intend to imitate it in any way. In an interview published today, Saturday, the leader of the New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) does not renounce achieving independence for this Belgian region but insists that this must take place “with an agreement on a federal scale” and even “from an international perspective”.
In the interview published in the economic daily “l’Echo”, De Wever insists that the future of Belgium and the Flemish region must be resolved through an agreement. “The question of Flemish autonomy, confederalism or even beyond, will have to be resolved at the federal level. There must be an orderly agreement, even from an international perspective” he said. The N-VA is the main ally in Belgium of the former president of the Generalitat who has fled from justice, Carles Puigdemont.
However, judging from what he says in this interview, the most important aspect of this cooperation seems to have been that it has helped the Flemish to determine what they do not want to do. “We are not going to trigger a situation of ‘Catalan style'” he assures, since he believes that it has been counterproductive to his objectives. His version of what happened in the Spanish autonomous community leads to “division” and “desperation” in society. “Try to do this with your own community: cut it in half – Catalonia is divided to the bone – and then plunge it into a state of despair. He therefore warns that “this is not my ambition” and this is what happens “if you play rough”.
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