“They want Brussels to remain part of Flanders. There are economic reasons, of course, but there are also love-hate relationships,” said Gatz, a liberal minister in Brussels.
In 1999, the Flemish government announced that it aimed to bring Flemish-language services such as daycares, libraries, community centers, and theaters to a third of Brussels’ citizens, which is much larger than the city’s Dutch-speaking population.
Schools were a particular area of focus. Brussels had been Frenchized through its education system, and hardcore nationalists saw Dutch schooling as a way to “reconquer” the city for their community.
Educational investment poured in, and the city’s Flemish schools gained a reputation for being superior to their French-speaking counterparts, attracting not only immigrants but also children from French-speaking families.
Footballer Romelu Lukaku has become a symbol of that effort. Born to Congolese parents, he appeared in the TV documentary “Lukaku’s School” about a Dutch school in the Anderlecht district of Brussels.
international city
What will happen to Brussels if Belgium splits remains a subject of largely speculative debate. The proposals range from a power-sharing agreement between Flemish-speaking and Francophone communities to the creation of an independent EU capital with the status of Washington, D.C., to the absorption of the city into one of its two larger regions. It covers a wide range of things.