Belgian Socialist Party
Encyclopedia
The Belgian Socialist Party was a democratic socialist
Democratic socialism
Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation...

 party which existed in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 from 1945 to 1978.

The BSP was founded by activists from the Belgian Labour Party
Belgian Labour Party
The Belgian Labour Party, called Belgische Werkliedenpartij in Dutch and Parti Ouvrier Belge in French, was the first socialist party in Belgium, founded in 1885.-History:...

 (1885–1940), which was the first Belgian socialist party. It ceased to function during the Second World War, while Belgium was under Nazi occupation. Its main support bases were the co-operative and trade union
Labour movement
The term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing labour...

 movements, and it won relatively more support in Wallonia. Like most Belgian political organisations, the party supported greater integration with the European Economic Community
European Economic Community
The European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...

, albeit in a socialist context.

As linguistic and community issues became more divisive, the Belgian Socialist Party split into two new entities: the Socialistische Partij
Socialist Party - Different
' is a Flemish social-democratic party in Belgium. It was formerly known as the Socialistische Partij , which in turn had branched off from the Belgian Socialist Party, itself formed by former members of the Belgian Labour Party.-1978-now:The party was the big winner in the 2003 election, running...

 for the Flemish
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...

 community and the Parti Socialiste
Socialist Party (francophone Belgium)
The Socialist Party is a Francophone social-democratic political party in Belgium. As of the 2010 elections, it is the second largest party in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and the largest Francophone party...

 for the Francophone
French Community of Belgium
The French Community of Belgium is one of the three official communities in Belgium along with the Flemish Community and the German speaking Community. Although its name could suggest that it is a community of French citizens in Belgium, it is not...

 community.

Presidents

Presidents BSP/PSB
Period President
1942 - 1945 Achille Van Acker
Achille Van Acker
Achille Honoré Van Acker was the 33rd Prime Minister of Belgium in four different cabinets from 1945 to 1958, for a total period of seven years. He was a member of the BSP-PSB - the then still national Belgian Socialist Party. He was nicknamed Achille Charbon.-Life:Van Acker was born in Bruges on...

1945–1959 Max Buset
1959–1971 Leo Collard
Leo Collard
Leo Collard was a Belgian politician, the BSP minister of public education and Mayor of Mons ....

Co-Presidents (from 1971)
Period Dutch speaking co-President French speaking co-President
1971–1973 Jos Van Eynde Edmond Leburton
Edmond Leburton
Edmond Jules Isidore Leburton was a Belgian politician and former Prime Minister.Leburton served as the 42nd Prime Minister of Belgium from January 1973 to April 1974. He is the last native French speaker to hold that office, disregarding the bilingual Paul Vanden Boeynants from Brussels. He was a...

1973–1975 Jos Van Eynde André Cools
André Cools
André H.P. Cools was a Belgian socialist politician who died by assassination.-Political career:Cools had a long and distinguished political career...

1975–1977 Willy Claes
Willy Claes
Willem Werner Hubert "Willy" Claes was the eighth Secretary General of NATO and a Belgian politician. He was a member of the Flemish Socialist Party....

André Cools
André Cools
André H.P. Cools was a Belgian socialist politician who died by assassination.-Political career:Cools had a long and distinguished political career...

1977–1978 Karel Van Miert
Karel Van Miert
Karel Van Miert was a socialist Flemish politician.He was born in Oud-Turnhout. He studied at Ghent University and gained a degree in diplomatic sciences. In 1976 he became adjunct-national secretary of the – at that time – unitary Belgian socialist party...

André Cools
André Cools
André H.P. Cools was a Belgian socialist politician who died by assassination.-Political career:Cools had a long and distinguished political career...


See also

  • Socialist Party (francophone Belgium)
    Socialist Party (francophone Belgium)
    The Socialist Party is a Francophone social-democratic political party in Belgium. As of the 2010 elections, it is the second largest party in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and the largest Francophone party...

    , also known as the Parti Socialiste or PS of Belgium, a French-speaking social democratic political party
  • Socialist Party - Different
    Socialist Party - Different
    ' is a Flemish social-democratic party in Belgium. It was formerly known as the Socialistische Partij , which in turn had branched off from the Belgian Socialist Party, itself formed by former members of the Belgian Labour Party.-1978-now:The party was the big winner in the 2003 election, running...

     (Flemish: Socialistische Partij - Anders), the Flemish social democratic party in Belgium. It was formerly known as SP, now as SP.a
  • Charter of Quaregnon
    Charter of Quaregnon
    The Charter of Quaregnon was the doctrinary basis for the Belgian socialists from 1894 until 1979.In 1894, Belgian elections were for the first time held according to the scheme of the plural right to vote under the pressure of the violent Belgian general strike of 1893...

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