The German-speaking Community within the Belgian State

Even though the German-speaking Community is an entity that nearly has full independence for communitarian matters, it is a unity of the Federal State and is integrated into the Belgian federal structures.

At the federal level

The Parliament of the German-speaking Community has one of its members at the second house of the federal Parliament, the Senate. The Senate is made up of 71 political members plus representatives of the Royal House who sit there by rights. Louis Siquet (SP) is the senator of community of the German-speaking Community.

There is currently no representative directly elected by the population of the German-speaking Community at the Belgian Senate because no candidate achieved the requisite number of votes in the latest elections. This case is mainly due to the fact that the German language region still does not form its own constituency. Indeed, it belongs to the French-speaking body of electors.

The House of Representatives includes one member of the German-speaking Community, Mrs. Kattrin Jadin (PFF). In fact, the German language region represents a part of the province of Liege’s circumscription for this election. That is why the Parliament of the German-speaking Community claimed a guaranteed representation at the House of Representatives in several resolutions.

At the regional level

Since the German-speaking Community belongs to the Walloon Region, it can elect regional representatives at the level of the circumscription of Verviers. But once again, there is no guaranteed representation since there is no circumscription for the German language region.
However, three representatives of the Parliament of the Walloon Region actually live in the German language region and took the oath in German:

• Edmund Stoffels (SP)
• Monika Dethier-Neumann (ECOLO).

Within the province of Liege

The German language region belongs to the province of Liege but represents a proper circumscription for the elections of the provincial council. Six members live in the German language region and took the oath in German:

• Denis Barth (CSP)
• Joseph Barth (SP)
• Marlene Bongartz-Kaut (ECOLO)
• Heinz Keul (PFF)
• Balduin Lux (PFF)
• Anne Marenne-Loiseau (CSP)

Consultation committees

Within a state, the member states continually have to consult each other or the federal State. The Government of the German-speaking Community is empowered to represent the German-speaking Community in the appropriate consultation committees.