Back Circulaire belge du 16 décembre 1997 French Circolare Peeters Italian Róndsjtuurbreef-Peeters LI Omzendbrief-Peeters Dutch
The Peeters directive (Dutch: Omzendbrief-Peeters, French: Circulaire Peeters), officially Circular BA 97/22 of 16 December 1997 concerning the use of languages in municipal councils of the Dutch language area,[1] is a circulaire of the Flemish government regulating the use of languages in municipal councils in the Flemish Region (Belgium), where the sole official language is Dutch. The directive is more in particular aimed at the municipalities with language facilities bordering the Brussels Capital-Region. It stipulates that each and every time French-speakers deal with the government, they must explicitly ask for their documents to be in French.[2][3][4]
The circular caused national political commotion and reflects the conflicting perception of language facilities in Dutch and French-speaking public opinion.[5] The non-appointment of three mayors of municipalities with language facilities – refused by the Flemish government because they repeatedly ignored the Peeters (and Keulen) directives – was a highly mediatised issue during the 2007–2008 Belgian government formation.[6] It attracted international attention when the mayors took their case to the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.[7]
- ^ "Omzendbrief BA 97/22 van 16 december 1997 betreffende het taalgebruik in gemeentebesturen van het Nederlandse taalgebied". Regelgeving – Omzendbrieven (in Dutch). Flemish government. 1997. Retrieved 22 September 2009.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
restrictiefwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Wilfried Swenden (2002–2003). Personality versus Territoriality: Belgium and the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. European Centre for Minority Issues. pp. 331–356. ISBN 9004138390. Retrieved 21 September 2009.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - ^ Wolters Kluwer Belgium NV (2007). Statutenzakboekje overheidspersoneel 2007 (in Dutch). Kluwer. p. 37. Retrieved 22 September 2009.
- ^ Stefaan Huysentruyt; Mark Deweerdt (29 December 2004). "Raad van State beperkt toepassing faciliteiten in randgemeenten" (PDF) (in Dutch). De Tijd. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 December 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2009.
- ^ "Keulen weigert benoeming van drie burgemeesters" (in Dutch). Gazet van Antwerpen. 24 November 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2009.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
michelwas invoked but never defined (see the help page).