Liberaal Appèl
Encyclopedia
The Liberal Appeal is a Flemish
right-liberal
political party
.
Founded on March 22, 2002 by the liberal MEP
Ward Beysen
(1941-2005) as a secession of the VLD
, mostly in Antwerp. The Liberaal Appèl was first a movement, then became a full-fledged political party on January 20, 2003. It took part, with a limited amount of votes (less than 0,5%) under the 5% electoral threshold, at the May 2003 federal elections.
On January 14, 2005, Ward Beysen committed suicide, an event that created doubts over the party's future. There were meetings in the following months between the leadership of Liberaal Appèl and another VLD-dissenter, Hugo Coveliers
, but to no effect, as Coveliers finally announced his own party VLOTT
to break the cordon sanitaire
around the Vlaams Belang
.
On November 7, 2005 the party's leader, Jacques Kerremans, met his VLD counterpart Bart Somers in view of an electoral cartel
for the municipal elections
of October 8, 2006, and the reintegration of Liberaal Appèl into the VLD began at the local level.
On February 2, 2007 the party's leader announced that his party will participate at the open alliance of VLD / VIVANT for the general election of June 2007. This is a further step to reintegration into the VLD.
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...
right-liberal
Liberal conservatism
Liberal conservatism also known as progressive conservatism is a variant of political conservatism which incorporates liberal elements. As "conservatism" and "liberalism" have had different meanings over time and across countries, the term "liberal conservatism" has been used in quite different...
political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
.
Founded on March 22, 2002 by the liberal MEP
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
Ward Beysen
Ward Beysen
Eduard Marie August "Ward" Beysen was a Belgian politician and well-known freemason. He held a degree in Dutch and history teaching, obtained in 1963 in Lier and started his political career in the seventies in the Flemish liberal party, the Party for Freedom and Progress , which was renamed...
(1941-2005) as a secession of the VLD
Flemish Liberals and Democrats
' , commonly known as Open VLD and also simply as the VLD, is a Flemish liberal political party in Belgium, created in 1992 from the former Party for Freedom and Progress and a few other politicians from other parties. The party led the government for three cabinets under Guy Verhofstadt from 1999...
, mostly in Antwerp. The Liberaal Appèl was first a movement, then became a full-fledged political party on January 20, 2003. It took part, with a limited amount of votes (less than 0,5%) under the 5% electoral threshold, at the May 2003 federal elections.
On January 14, 2005, Ward Beysen committed suicide, an event that created doubts over the party's future. There were meetings in the following months between the leadership of Liberaal Appèl and another VLD-dissenter, Hugo Coveliers
Hugo Coveliers
Hugo F.V. Coveliers is a Belgian politician and lawyer. He was a member of the Belgian Chamber of People's Representatives between 1985 and 1995 and from 1993 to 2003. Since 2003 he has been a member of the Belgian Senate...
, but to no effect, as Coveliers finally announced his own party VLOTT
VLOTT
VLOTT is a Belgian right-wing liberal or fortuynist political party. The acronym VLOTT stands for Flemish Liberal Independent Tolerant and Transparent . It was founded on November 23, 2005 by ex-Flemish Liberals and Democrats member Hugo Coveliers...
to break the cordon sanitaire
Cordon sanitaire
Cordon sanitaire — or quarantine line — is a French phrase that, literally translated, means "sanitary cordon". Though in French it originally denoted a barrier implemented to stop the spread of disease, it has often been used in English in a metaphorical sense to refer to attempts to prevent the...
around the Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang is a Belgian far-right political party in the Flemish Region and Brussels that advocates the independence of Flanders and strict limits on immigration, whereby immigrants would be obliged to adopt Flemish culture and language...
.
On November 7, 2005 the party's leader, Jacques Kerremans, met his VLD counterpart Bart Somers in view of an electoral cartel
Cartel
A cartel is a formal agreement among competing firms. It is a formal organization of producers and manufacturers that agree to fix prices, marketing, and production. Cartels usually occur in an oligopolistic industry, where there is a small number of sellers and usually involve homogeneous products...
for the municipal elections
Belgian municipal elections, 2006
The Belgian provincial and municipal elections, 2006 took place on Sunday 8 October 2006. The electors have elected the municipal counsellors of 589 cities and towns as well as the ten provincial councils...
of October 8, 2006, and the reintegration of Liberaal Appèl into the VLD began at the local level.
On February 2, 2007 the party's leader announced that his party will participate at the open alliance of VLD / VIVANT for the general election of June 2007. This is a further step to reintegration into the VLD.