Politics & Current Affairs — March 11, 2011

Belgium & Democracy

David Van Reybrouck predicts the underlying causes of Belgium’s political crisis will repeat themselves elsewhere as the new media call into question established democratic practices.

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What is the second reason for this crisis in Belgian politics? “It is the enormous change that new media have brought to professional politics: the involvement of citizens has become significantly more important. Every step a politician takes, every negotiation he is involved in, finds its way into the press immediately. Previously, discretion could sometimes be effective for months: politicians would get together and thrash out a compromise that they could all live with. Then they went and defended the compromise before their party and their electors. Now, every move they make is immediately a political fact. Politicians do not talk to each other any more.”

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