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| Choose the first letter to select required country: Government Of Belgium
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| Country name |
conventional long form: kingdom of belgium conventional short form: belgium local short form: belgique/belgie local long form: royaume de belgique/koninkrijk belgie |
| Government type | federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarch |
| Capital | Brussels |
| Administrative divisions | 10 provinces (French: provinces, singular - province; dutch: provincies, singular - provincie) and 3 regions* (french: regions; dutch: gewesten); antwerpen, brabant wallon, brussels* (bruxelles), flanders*, hainaut, liege, limburg, luxembourg, namur, oost-vlaanderen, vlaams-brabant, wallonia*, west-vlaanderen note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities |
| Independence | 4 October 1830 a provisional government declared independence from the Netherlands; 21 July 1831 the ascension of King Leopold I to the throne |
| National holiday | 21 July (1831) ascension to the Throne of King Leopold I |
| Constitution | 7 February 1831, last revised 14 July 1993; parliament approved a constitutional package creating a federal state |
| Legal system | civil law system influenced by English constitutional theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
| Executive branch |
chief of state: king albert ii (since 9 august 1993); heir apparent prince philippe, son of the monarch head of government: prime minister guy verhofstadt (since 13 july 1999) cabinet: council of ministers formally appointed by the monarch note: government coalition - vld, mr, ps, sp.a-spirit elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch and then approved by parliament |
| Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate or Senaat in Dutch, Senat in French (71 seats; 40 members are directly elected by popular vote, 31 are indirectly elected; members serve four-year terms) and a Chamber of Deputies or Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers in Dutch, Chambre des Representants in French (150 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - SP.A-Spirit 15.5%, VLD 15.4%, CD & V 12.7%, PS 12.8%, MR 12.1%, VB 9.4%, CDH 5.6%; seats by party - SP.A-Spirit 7, VLD 7, CD & V 6, PS 6, MR 5, VB 5, CDH 2, other 2 (note - there are also 31 indirectly elected senators); Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - VLD 15.4%, SP.A-Spirit 14.9%, CD & V 13.3%, PS 13.0%, VB 11.6%, MR 11.4%, CDH 5.5%, Ecolo 3.1%; seats by party - VLD 25, SP.A-Spirit 23, CD & V 21, PS 25, VB 18, MR 24, CDH 8 Ecolo 4, other 2 note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities; this reality leaves six governments each with its own legislative assembly; for other acronyms of the listed parties see the Political parties and leaders entry elections: senate and chamber of deputies - last held 18 may 2003 (next to be held no later than may 2007) |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Justice or Hof van Cassatie (in Dutch) or Cour de Cassation (in French) (judges are appointed for life by the Government; candidacies have to be submitted by the High Justice Council) |
| Political parties and leaders | Christian Democrats and Flemish or CD & V [Yves LETERME]; Ecolo (Francophone Greens) [Jean-Michel JAVAUX, Evelyne HUYTEBROECK, Claude BROUIR]; Flemish Liberal Democrats or VLD [Karel DE GUCHT]; Flemish Socialist Party.Alternative or SP.A [Steve STEVAERT]; Francophone Humanist and Democratic Center of CDH [Joelle MILQUET]; Francophone Reformist Movement or MR [Antoine DUQUESNE]; Francophone Socialist Party or PS [Elio DI RUPO]; GROEN! (formerly AGALEV, Flemish Greens) [Vera DUA]; National Front or FN [Daniel FERET]; New Flemish Alliance or NVA [Bart DE WEVER]; Spirit [Els VAN WEERT]; note - new party now associated with SP.A; Vlaams Blok or VB [Frank VANHECKE]; other minor parties |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | Christian, Socialist, and Liberal Trade Unions; Federation of Belgian Industries; numerous other associations representing bankers, manufacturers, middle-class artisans, and the legal and medical professions; various organizations represent the cultural interests of Flanders and Wallonia; various peace groups such as Pax Christi and groups representing immigrants |
| International organization participation | ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC |
| Diplomatic representation in the US |
chief of mission: ambassador franciskus van daele FAX: [1] (202) 333-3079 consulate(s) general: atlanta, chicago, los angeles, and new york telephone: [1] (202) 333-6900 chancery: 3330 garfield street nw, washington, dc 20008 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US |
chief of mission: ambassador (vacant); charge d'affaires brenda b. schoonover embassy: regentlaan 27 boulevard du regent, b-1000 brussels mailing address: psc 82, box 002, apo ae 09710 telephone: [32] (2) 508-2111 FAX: [32] (2) 511-2725 |
| Flag description | three equal vertical bands of black (hoist side), yellow, and red; the design was based on the flag of France |
Introduction and Background to Belgium | Geography Of Belgium | People Of Belgium | Economy Of Belgium | Communications Of Belgium | Transportation Of Belgium | Military Of Belgium | Transnational Issues Of Belgium
Belgian Flag Map Of Belgium Dutch language Flemish language
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