BELGIUM: Royal Snub

• Share

Belgium's constitution is hard on the King's ministers. It specifically states that the ministers shall be held wholly responsible for the King's actions, good or bad. Two weeks ago, 21-year-old King Baudouin announced that he would snub the funeral of Britain's King George VI, and would send his younger brother, Prince Albert, to London in his stead. Why? Well, Baudouin is his father's son, and his memory still smarts at the British attitude towards his father Leopold over Belgium's surrender to Germany in 1940.

But Belgians are independent cusses. At Baudouin's announcement, there were angry protests. After all, Belgium had been born with Britain's help, and with Britain's help twice liberated from the Germans. Besides, said Belgians, Baudouin was just being rude. Premier Jean van Houtte's government suppressed the announcement of the King's refusal while it tried to talk him out of it.

But the King remained adamant. Last week opposition deputies moved a vote of censure against Van Houtte's government on the ground that it "has given bad advice to the King, or, what would be even worse ... has given the right advice, but has been unable to persuade the King to follow it." The government was defeated, 91 to 84, but, since it had not been defeated on a vote of confidence, refused to resign. The opposition thereupon walked out of Parliament, refused to return until after King George's funeral.