Belgium | Country report | Freedom in the World | 2014 Freedom in the World 1 Overview: King Albert II abdicated on July 21, 2013, at the age of 79, and his son, Crown Prince Philippe, 53, became king. The monarchy is largely ceremonial, although the king retained constitutional authority to mediate between parties during the process of forming a government—a role played by Albert during a 541-day political stalemate that followed 2010 parliamentary elections. In July, Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo oversaw the completion of a state reform package that would grant more autonomy to regional and local governments in areas including welfare, labor, and health care policy. The reform was to take effect in July 2014. Ethnic and linguistic conflicts had prompted a series of constitutional amendments in 1970, 1971, and 1993 that devolved considerable power from the central government to the three regions in the Belgian federation: French-speaking Wallonia in the south; Flemish-speaking Flanders in the north; and Brussels, the capital, where French and Flemish share the same official status.

Cultural and economic differences between the regions have contributed to political rifts between Flemish and Francophone parties across the ideological spectrum, with the wealthier Flemish north seeking increased self-rule and reduced taxpayer support for the less prosperous Wallonia. Voting takes place along strict linguistic lines; with the exception of the bilingual district encompassing Brussels, parties are only permitted to run in their respective linguistic regions. After 2010 parliamentary elections, coalition negotiations stalled over issues linked to the balance of power between Flanders and Wallonia. A deal was finally reached in November 2011, after Flemish and Francophone parties reached a compromise on the separation of the contentious Brussels-area electoral district. Di Rupo, of the Francophone Socialist Party, became the first French-speaking prime minister in more than 30 years. The next federal and regional elections were set to take place in 2014. Political Rights and Civil Liberties: Political Rights: 40 / 40 [ Key ] A. Electoral Process: 12 / 12 Belgium’s Parliament consists of two houses: the House of Representatives and the Senate. The 150 members of the House are elected directly by proportional representation.

There are 71 seats in the Senate, with 40 filled by direct popular vote and 31 by indirect vote. Members serve four-year terms in both houses. The prime minister, who is the leader of the majority party or coalition, is appointed by the monarch and approved by Parliament. The party system is highly fragmented, with separate Flemish and Walloon parties representing all traditional parties of the left and right. B. Political Pluralism and Participation: 16 / 16 The separatist New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) had won 27 seats in the House of Representatives in the 2010 parliamentary elections, the most of any party, but was excluded from Di Rupo’s government. Di Rupo’s Francophone Socialist Party had 26 seats. The Francophone Movement for Reform held 18 seats. The Christian Democratic and Flemish (CD&V) party had 17 seats. The xenophobic Vlaams Blok party was banned in 2004 for violating the country’s antiracism laws. It changed its name to Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) and removed some of the more overtly racist elements from its platform.

However, the party maintains its opposition to immigration and its commitment to an independent Flanders. It held 12 seats. C. Functioning of Government: 12 / 12 Corruption is relatively rare in Belgium, which was ranked 15 out of 177 countries and territories surveyed in Transparency International’s 2013 Corruption Perceptions Index. In March 2013, Finance Minister Steven Vanackere resigned over a scandal involving a January deal by a state-owned bank to buy back shares at favorable terms from two Christian labor organizations linked to Vanackere’s CD&V; Vanackere admitted no wrongdoing. Civil Liberties: 57 / 60 D. Freedom of Expression and Belief: 15 / 16 Freedoms of speech and the press are guaranteed by the constitution and generally respected by the government. Belgians have access to numerous private media outlets. However, concentration of newspaper ownership has increased in recent decades, leaving most of the country’s papers in the hands of a few corporations. Internet access is unrestricted. Freedom of religion is protected. About half of the country’s population identifies itself as Roman Catholic.

However, members of a number of minority religions have complained of discrimination by the government, which has been criticized for its characterization of some non-Catholic groups as “sects.” In March 2013, Foreign Minister Didier Reynders called for closer scrutiny of the preaching of Muslim clerics in Belgium, warning that some imams were preaching radical Islamist views. In April 2010, the Chamber of Deputies approved a ban on the partial or total covering of the face in public locations; although it did not specifically mention the veils worn by some Muslim women, these were widely seen as the target. The ban took effect in July 2011. Offenders face a fine of up to €137.50 ($180) or a week in jail. In June 2013, a Belgian court sentenced a French Islamist, Brahim Bahrir, to 17 years in prison for “attempted murder for terrorist motives.” He had stabbed two police officers in Brussels in June 2012, after riots earlier in June that followed the arrest of a woman who refused to remove her veil. The government does not restrict academic freedom. E.

Associational and Organizational Rights: 12 / 12 Freedom of assembly is respected. Freedom of association is guaranteed by law, except for groups that practice discrimination “overtly and repeatedly.” Employers found guilty of firing workers because of union activities are required to reinstate the workers or pay an indemnity. In February 2013, as many as 40,000 people joined a demonstration in Brussels organized by unions to protest government austerity measures, including wage and welfare benefit freezes. F. Rule of Law: 15 / 16 The judiciary is independent, and the rule of law generally prevails in civil and criminal matters. Although conditions in prisons and detention centers meet most international standards, many continue to suffer from overcrowding. Specific antiracism laws penalize the incitement of discrimination, acts of hatred, and violence based on race, ethnicity, or nationality. While a 2009 government decision regularized 25,000 illegal immigrants, there have been complaints about the treatment of rejected asylum seekers and illegal immigrants awaiting deportation, who can sometimes be held in unsanitary conditions in the Brussels airport for several months.

In March 2013, the federal minister for asylum and migration policy, Maggie De Block, rejected a call from Flanders integration minister Geert Bourgeois to require Roma immigrants to Flanders to undergo an integration course. In April 2013, police raided over 45 homes across the country and arrested six men suspected of recruiting Islamist militants to join the ongoing antigovernment insurgency in Syria. The police operation targeted a group called Sharia4Belgium, which had agitated for Islamic law in Belgium until announcing that it was disbanding in October 2012. In October 2013, Belgium extradited to the United States Nizar Trabelsi, a Tunisian man who had been held in Belgian custody since 2001. He was convicted in 2003 by a Belgian court of plotting to carry out a suicide bombing at a Belgian air base where U.S. soldiers were stationed. In September, the Council of State, Belgium’s highest administrative court, had rejected Trabelsi’s appeal of his extradition, in which he claimed that he would be subject to “inhumane” treatment by the United States. The Belgian government said it had received assurances from U.S.

officials that Trabelsi would be tried in a civilian court rather than a military tribunal, and would not face the death penalty. G. Personal Autonomy and Individual Rights: 15 / 16 The law provides for the free movement of citizens at home and abroad, and the government does not interfere with these rights. However, individual communities may expel Roma from city limits at the discretion of the local government. The European Court of Justice in April 2013 ruled that a Flemish law infringed on workers’ freedom of movement within the European Union by requiring employers based in the region to write contracts in Dutch, even for non-Dutch-speaking employees from abroad; the law stipulated that noncompliance could result in cancellation of a contract. The government actively promotes equality for women. The state Institute for the Equality of Men and Women is empowered to initiate sex-discrimination lawsuits. In the 2010 elections, women won about 40 percent of the seats in the Chamber of Deputies, and 37 percent of the seats in the Senate. Belgium legalized same-sex marriage in 2003, and in 2006 it gave gay and lesbian couples the right to adopt children.

In 2011, Di Rupo became the country’s first openly gay prime minister. Belgium is a source, destination, and transit point for trafficked persons. However, according to the U.S. State Department’s 2013 Trafficking in Persons Report, the country complies fully with the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking. In December, the Senate passed a bill that would make the country the first in the world to legalize euthanasia for terminally ill children, despite opposition from religious groups. The measure still required the approval of the House of Representatives to become law. Belgium legalized euthanasia for terminally ill adults in 2002. Scoring Key: X / Y (Z) X = Score Received Belgium Approves Euthanasia For Children Julien Warnand—EPA Activists of the collective Yellow Safety Jacket protest against the proposed statutory amendment legalizing the euthanasia of young children, in Brussels, Feb. 11, 2014.

Lawmakers passed a bill allowing euthanasia in very rare cases of terminally ill children Belgium became the first country in the world to remove any age restrictions on euthanasia, after an emotional debate which split the medical profession over the best way to treat a terminally ill child with a desire to end his or her life. Despite last-minute pleas for a rethink from within Belgium and as far away as Canada, parliament on Thursday agreed with the doctors who argued that in rare cases of unbearable and irreversible suffering, children should have the same right as an adult to ask to die with dignity. Under the amendments to the country’s 2002 euthanasia law, a child of any age can be helped to die, but only under strict conditions. He or she must be terminally ill, close to death, and deemed to be suffering beyond any medical help. The child must be able to request euthanasia themselves and demonstrate they fully understand their choice. The request will then be assessed by teams of doctors, psychologists and other care-givers before a final decision is made with approval of the parents. Dr.

Jutte Van der Werf Ten Bosch, a pediatric oncologist from University Hospital Brussels, says such cases are very rare, but heartbreaking for families and doctors when they do come up. She recalls the frustration of treating a 16-year-old girl who was suffering severe complications from leukemia and was lying in a hospital bed connected to tubes, waiting to die. “It was just hell for six months in the hospital,” she says. “I feel like a total failure in these cases. … You promise the child ‘I will take care of you, I will do the best I can,’ and then you can’t do the best you can because all these complications arise and you can’t do anything about it.” She has come across children as young as eight who have articulated an understanding of their situation, but doctors expect the most likely cases would involve adolescents. While assisted suicide is permitted under certain conditions in Switzerland, Germany and parts of the United States, only Belgium, Luxembourg and The Netherlands allow doctors to take steps to actively end a patient’s life, usually by administering an overdose of sedatives. In Luxembourg, that patient must be over 18, while in The Netherlands children can request euthanasia from the age of 12.

Belgium’s existing euthanasia law for adults has broad public support, and a recent survey by the RTBF broadcaster found that 75% of people supported extending the same rights to children. Parliament approved these amendments on Thursday with 86 MPs voting in favor, 44 against, and 12 abstentions. The Senate had already passed the bill in December. But there has been opposition, both from religious groups and more than 170 Belgian pediatricians who signed an open letter to parliament this week requesting they delay the vote. Dr. Stefaan Van Gool, a pediatrician at the University of Leuven, says the doctors were concerned that procedures for assessing a child’s mental capacity to make life-and-death decisions were not sufficiently clear in the bill. They were also worried a child might be pressured into making a decision by parents, and that were are too many possibilities for misuse of the law. “We are suffering together with these children to get through the most difficult moments of life, but at such time what we deliver to these children is care,” he says, adding that his experiences show children want to live as full a life as possible right until the very end.

“We have children who do exams up to two days before they die. They are children that always dream about a future, although this future may only be a few hours.” A plea also came from Canada earlier this month, where a four-year-old girl born with a congenital heart condition recorded a video message urging Belgium’s King Philippe not to sign the law, which is the final formality. Her mother told the monarch that she was concerned that a child like her daughter—who grew up to be a happy, active child—could be euthanized after birth. Dr. Gerlant van Berlaer, a pediatrician who also works at the University Hospital Brussels, understands why the debate in Belgium has provoked strong feelings all over the world. “I would be rather scared if it didn’t evoke emotional reactions: we’re talking about children,” he tells TIME. But he says no doctor would ever take the decision to end a child’s life lightly. “The first reaction I will always have and all my colleagues will have is to run away from these questions because we don’t want to hear this,” he says. He remains haunted by all the cases in which he was powerless to do anything.

He cites the case of a child with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, where the muscles degenerate to the point where a sufferer can no longer swallow or speak. “They can see the children in the bed next to them suffocate,” he says. “They will say, ‘I know my life will end, but doctor, just don’t let it end like my friend’s did.’” Until now, the law has not allowed him to even discuss such an option. “This child asked me not to let him suffocate,” he says. “Of course I did not do anything active at the time, but I’m still struggling with this, because I did not respond to the last question of the child.” Children’s euthanasia bill signed by Belgium king — RT News Tags Children , Health , Religion , Europe , Human rights , Law Belgian newspapers reported that King Philippe signed the bill into law Sunday, putting to rest weeks of speculation on whether he would approve the law amid strong opposition from Catholic organizations throughout Europe. The legislation, which grants children the right to request euthanasia if they are “in great pain” and there is no available treatment, makes Belgium the first country in the world where the age of the child is not taken into consideration.

Similar legislation exists in the Netherlands, though only for children over the age of 12. In both countries, children are required to receive the consent of parents, doctors and psychiatrists. The Belgian Catholic Church opposes the law, earlier describing it as a “step too far.” European Catholics also petitioned the king to veto the bill. In late February, a Spanish conservative lobby delivered more than 200,000 signatures to King Philippe in Brussels, demanding that he not sign the bill. One of the petition’s organizers, Alvaro Zulueta, says more than 5,000 of the signatures came from concerned Belgians, although Italians made up the largest number of respondents, AFP reported. Although King Philippe’s signature was technically necessary for the bill to pass, it would have been highly unusual for the constitutional monarch not to approve the legislation. The bill passed the Belgium House of Representatives 86-44 with 12 abstentions February 13, following approval by the Senate last December. Some lawmakers strongly contested the bill, which was proposed by the ruling Socialist Party. The bill was opposed by the Christian Democratic and Flemish parties, which earlier threatened to take the proposal before the European Court of Human Rights.

Belgium became the second country in the world after its neighbor, The Netherlands, to legalize euthanasia following the 2002 Belgium Act on Euthanasia. Since that time, the number of reported cases of euthanasia in Belgium has reached 1,400 per year. Critics say it has fundamentally changed Belgium society. In one case in December 2012, Doctors announced that they had euthanized 45-year-old deaf identical twins who were going blind and believed they had nothing left to live for. Critics said the brothers were not terminally ill nor suffering physical pain, and it took them two years before they found doctors who would perform the procedure. According to Bioedge, a doctor at their local hospital said, “I do not think this was what the legislation meant by 'unbearable suffering.’" In another case, a 44-year-old woman with chronic anorexia nervosa was euthanized. A 64-year-old woman suffering from chronic depression was also euthanized without informing her relatives. The doctors involved claimed the cases were exceptional, saying all legal obligations were met.

Despite more extreme cases which have gathered worldwide media attention, a recent public survey earlier found that 75 percent of Belgians supported the child euthanasia measure. In Belgium, terminally ill children have the right to die - YouTube In Belgium, terminally ill children have the right to die Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Published on Jan 16, 2015 More than a decade after Belgium became the second country in the world to legalize euthanasia, it once again made headlines in early 2014 when it became the first country to lift any age restrictions associated with the procedure. Under the law, terminally ill children can request euthanasia if they are near death, and suffering “constant and unbearable physical” pain with no available treatment. Officials in Belgium’s Euthanasia Control and Evaluation Commission, which oversees the practice in Belgium, expect cases of child-euthanasia to be extremely rare. NewsHour's Ivette Feliciano reports.

Category Legal Euthanasia for Children In Belgium: Will It Trigger Death Tourism? Legal Euthanasia for Children In Belgium: Will It Trigger Death Tourism? {{article.article.images.featured.caption}} Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Full Bio The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer. Loading ... Loading ... This story appears in the {{article.article.magazine.pretty_date}} issue of {{article.article.magazine.pubName}}. Subscribe Starting this week, Belgium becomes the first country in the world to lift all age restrictions on euthanasia – which already has been legal there for 12 years. The controversial law took effect after King Philippe signed it on Sunday. While widely opposed by religious groups throughout Europe, it was supported by a strong majority of Belgians despite the fact that the country is predominantly Roman Catholic. The bill, which was passed in parliament by an overwhelming majority last month, allows for terminally and incurably ill children to request euthanasia if they are near death, and suffering "constant and unbearable physical” pain with no available treatment. Parental consent, as well as the agreement of doctors and psychiatrists, is required.

Although no age limits are set, the law says that the child must display "a capacity of discernment and be conscious at the moment of the request," and psychologists must test them to confirm they understand the gravity of the situation and what they are doing. Similar legislation exists in the Netherlands, though only for children over the age of 12. Opponents of the contested legislation, including religious leaders from different denominations, a number of medical organizations and politicians mostly from conservative parties, worry that the new legislation will contribute to the trivialization of euthanasia and will take the country down a perilous ethical path. Doctors opposing the law argued that modern medicine can alleviate the suffering of terminally ill patients. The Belgian Catholic Church has described the law as a “step too far,” and different organizations of European Catholics had petitioned the king to veto the bill. A conservative Spanish lobby delivered a petition last month with more than 200,000 signatures mainly gathered from other countries. “We are saddened and fearful for the future after this law to extend euthanasia to children without any age limit,” said the Catholic bishops’ conference, according to the Catholic News Service. “We totally uphold the rights of the child, of which love and respect are the most important.

But the right of the child to demand his own death is a step too far. It transgresses the prohibition of killing, which is the foundation of our human society.” Speculation on whether Belgium will become a new destination for what is known as “death tourism” has also been raised by representatives of political parties opposed to lifting age restrictions for medically assisted deaths. They argue that as cultural differences and moral reasons prevent most other nations from legalizing euthanasia, people will travel to countries that allow the practice. They worry that Belgium has opened its doors to death-seeking visitors. Switzerland is known for the number of foreigners who travel there to end their lives, primarily at the pro-euthanasia nonprofit organization Dignitas. The majority are British, German and French. Belgian legislators counter that the strict guidelines of the new law won’t permit that kind of tourism. The process is long and complicated and “can take weeks or months,” Gerlant van Berlaer, a pediatric critical care specialist at University Hospital Brussels told the British daily The Guardian.

The request for euthanasia must first be made in writing and the decision to proceed with each proposal must be agreed by a treating physician and confirmed by a second opinion from an outside peidatrician. The child must be interviewed by a pediatric psychiatrist or psychologist to determine "the capacity of discernment,” which then must be certified in writing. The child's physician must meet the parents or legal representatives to inform them of the outcome of the consultation and ensure their agreement with the decision, which also must be written. Official reports indicate that there are 1,400 cases of euthanasia in Belgium per year. Terminally Ill Children And The Right To Ask For Euthanasia:Video | TIME.com Follow @TIMEHealth While euthanasia is against the law in most of the world, this week Belgium became the first country to allow terminally ill children to choose to end their lives. The Belgian law sets up strict parameters under which children would be allowed to ask for euthanasia—from parents’ consent to the supervision of a psychologist. But the ground-breaking move in Europe raises questions for parents in the U.S. too. At what age does a child truly understand death?

“We all tend to think that children don’t have any understanding at all,” says Dr. Adam Naddelman, president of Princeton Nassau Pediatrics in New Jersey. “But kids actually know and understand more than we actually give them credit for.” In a 2009 study, 90% of adolescent cancer survivors interviewed said that terminally ill children should be free to make end-of-life decisions. The study’s results seemed to show that ill adolescents want to be involved in medical decision-making at the end of life, and that they value a certain degree of autonomous decision-making. But euthanasia opponents warn of children’s ability to take a leading role in critical decisions like the ones surrounding life-death choices. In the wake of Belgium’s vote, Sonja Develter, a Belgian nurse who has treated 200 cases of terminally ill children, argued that minors may not have the mental capacity or the vocabulary for requesting to die. “In my experience as a nurse, I never had a child asking to end his life. Children indeed say, ‘It’s really hard’ or I’m fed up,’ but that doesn’t mean they’re tired of living.” she said.

“It means they’re tired of their situation.” Critics of euthanasia in the U.S. echoed her sentiments. “Kids don’t have the capacity, the judgement to make sound decisions,” said Dr. John Haas, president of The National Catholic Bioethics Center, an organization dedicated to the analysis of moral issues surrounding health care, and one that does not support euthanasia. “Kids might be the ones requesting it, but ultimately, kids won’t be the ones making decisions, it will be made by adults.” The Belgian government isn’t the first one to consider including children in euthanasia legislation. The Netherlands was the first to legalize euthanasia , in 2002, allowing it in special cases for seriously sick patients 12 years or older. And for some, the recent extension to children is just the normal next step. “I don’t see it as anything so dramatic,” says Peter Singer, professor of bioethics at the Princeton University Center for Human Values. “The biggest step is to legalize euthanasia in the first place.” In the U.S., four states—Oregon, Washington, Montana, and Vermont—allow assisted suicide, and others—like Massachusetts and Connecticut—are currently considering legislation.

“The United States might not be ready for the active involvement of physicians,” says Singer. “But the movement to allow lethal doses administered by medical personnel to patients is spreading.” Belgium’s decision – where 75% of the population supports the measure – is making countries that currently allow euthanasia wonder: why can’t terminally ill minors, working in agreement with their health providers and their family, be allowed to make a decision that they could take on their 18th birthday? Subscribe Popular Among Subscribers Belgium's euthanasia law gives terminally ill children the right to die | PBS NewsHour Belgium’s euthanasia law gives terminally ill children the right to die January 17, 2015 at 11:32 AM EST 131617131616131616In Belgium, terminally ill children have the right to dieMore than a decade after Belgium became the second country in the world to legalize euthanasia, it once again made headlines in early 2014 when it became the first country to lift any age restrictions associated with the procedure.

Terminally ill children can request euthanasia if they are near death, and suffering “constant and unbearable physical” pain with no available treatment.2015-01-16 00:00:00disabled2365405620IsNXkFasc-0204132204120 Power warns against historical amnesia on RussiaOutgoing U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power used her final speech to focus on Russia as a major threat. Judy Woodruff sits down with Power during her last days in office to discuss troubling actions by Russia and the future of Russian relations under the Trump administration, as well as the Obama administration’s complicated decision not to intervene militarily in Syria.2017-01-17 18:00:00 legal opposition adds obstacles to BrexitThe mechanics of executing Brexit, the move to get Britain out the of European Union, are causing tensions inside the British government, and with opponents who would like to stop it from happening at all.

Special correspondent Jennifer Glasse reports.2017-01-16 18:00:00 is Trump criticizing key allies to U.S. security?European officials are digesting new comments by President-elect Trump, who told two newspapers that NATO is obsolete, suggested the U.S. might drop sanctions on Russia and said he is indifferent about the future of the EU. John Yang gets reaction from Heather Conley of the Center for Strategic and International Studies and Nicholas Burns, the former U.S. ambassador to NATO.2017-01-16 18:00:00 More than a decade after Belgium legalized euthanasia, it made headlines last year when it became the first country to lift any age restrictions for the procedure. Under the law, terminally ill children can request euthanasia if they are near death, and suffering “constant and unbearable physical” pain with no available treatment. NewsHour's Ivette Feliciano reports.

RELATED Belgium | Country report | Freedom in the World | 2015 Freedom in the World 1 Overview: Belgium held parliamentary elections in May 2014, but disagreement among the country’s parties, which are divided along both political and linguistic lines, delayed the formation of a government for more than four months. The separatist New Flemish Alliance (N-VA), the center-right Christian Democratic and Flemish (CD&V) party, the francophone Movement for Reform (MR), and the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats (VLD) reached a coalition agreement in October. The N-VA, which won the most seats of any party in the elections, was included in the government for the first time. In May, a gunman fatally shot four people at the Jewish Museum in Brussels. It later emerged that the suspected killer, a French Muslim, had recently returned from Syria, where he had been active with the Islamic State (IS) militant group. Political Rights and Civil Liberties: Political Rights: 40 / 40 [ Key ] A. Electoral Process: 12 / 12 The Belgian monarchy is largely ceremonial, although the king retains constitutional authority to mediate between parties during the process of government formation.

Belgium’s Parliament consists of two houses: the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate. The 150 members of the Chamber are elected directly by proportional representation. The Senate is comprised of 50 members selected by community and regional parliaments, and an additional 10 members chosen by the first 50 based on the results of the Chamber of Representatives elections. Members serve four-year terms in both houses. The prime minister, who is the leader of the majority party or coalition, is appointed by the monarch and approved by Parliament. The N-VA won 33 seats in the Chamber of Representatives in the May 2014 parliamentary elections, while outgoing prime minister Elio Di Rupo’s Francophone Socialist Party (PS) won 23 seats. The MR captured 20 seats, the CD&V took 18 seats, the VLD took 14 seats, and the Flemish Socialist Party Differently (sp.a) took 13 seats. The remaining seats were captured by seven minor parties.

N-VA leader Bart de Wever conceded in June that he was unable to form a government, leading King Philippe to task Kris Peeters of the CD&V and Charles Michel of the MR with leading the negotiations. In October, they reached a four-party, right-wing coalition agreement with the N-VA and the VLD. Michel, head of the only francophone party in the coalition, became prime minister. His government was sworn in that month—the first government in more than two decades to exclude the PS. B. Political Pluralism and Participation: 16 / 16 The party system is robust but highly fragmented, with separate Flemish and Walloon parties representing all traditional parties of the left and right. After the xenophobic Vlaams Blok (Flemish Block) party was banned in 2004 for violating the country’s antiracism laws, it changed its name to Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) and removed some of the more overtly racist elements from its platform. However, the party maintains an opposition to immigration and a commitment to an independent Flanders.

It captured only three seats in the 2014 elections, down from 12 in 2010. Ethnic and linguistic conflicts have prompted a series of constitutional amendments since 1970 devolving considerable power from the central government to the three regions in the Belgian federation: French-speaking Wallonia in the south; Flemish-speaking Flanders in the north; and Brussels, the capital, where French and Flemish share the same official status. The wealthier Flemish north has sought increased self-rule and reduced taxpayer support for the less prosperous Wallonia. Voting takes place along strict linguistic lines; with the exception of the bilingual district encompassing Brussels, parties are only permitted to run in their respective linguistic regions. C. Functioning of Government: 12 / 12 Corruption is relatively rare in Belgium, which was ranked 15 out of 175 countries and territories surveyed in Transparency International’s 2014 Corruption Perceptions Index. Civil Liberties: 57 / 60 D. Freedom of Expression and Belief: 15 / 16 Freedoms of speech and the press are guaranteed by the constitution and generally respected by the government. Belgians have access to numerous private media outlets.

However, concentration of print media ownership has increased in recent decades, leaving most of the country’s newspapers in the hands of a few corporations. Internet access is unrestricted. In November 2014, several media workers were assaulted by police while covering a demonstration in Brussels. Approximately half of the country’s population identifies itself as Roman Catholic. Freedom of religion is protected, but a number of minority religious groups have complained of discrimination by the government, which has been criticized for its characterization of some non-Catholic groups as “sects.” In 2010, the Chamber of Representatives approved a ban on the partial or total covering of the face in public locations; although it did not specifically mention the veils worn by some Muslim women, these were widely seen as the target. The ban took effect in July 2011. Offenders face a fine or a week in jail. The government does not restrict academic freedom. Private discussion is open and vibrant. E. Associational and Organizational Rights: 12 / 12 Freedom of assembly is respected, although a mass demonstration in 2014 led to clashes with police.

In November, unions organized a march in Brussels against the new government’s economic austerity plans, drawing more than 100,000 attendees. The demonstration became violent, leading to a police response; authorities reported dozens of injuries and detentions. Freedom of association is guaranteed by law, except for groups that practice discrimination “overtly and repeatedly.” Employers found guilty of firing workers because of union activities are required to reinstate the workers or pay an indemnity. In December, unions called a 24-hour nationwide general strike. F. Rule of Law: 15 / 16 The judiciary is independent, and the rule of law generally prevails in civil and criminal matters. Although conditions in prisons and detention centers meet most international standards, many facilities continue to suffer from overcrowding. Specific antiracism laws penalize the incitement of discrimination, acts of hatred, and violence based on race, ethnicity, or nationality. There have been complaints about the treatment of rejected asylum seekers and illegal immigrants awaiting deportation.

Maggie De Block, who held positions tasked with matters of asylum and immigration in the Di Rupo government, had taken a hard line against asylum seekers, leading to a significant drop in their numbers in 2013. In 2014, hundreds of Afghan asylum seekers continued to live in a makeshift camp they had established in a Brussels church in September 2013, protesting the government’s plan to return them to Afghanistan, where they argued their lives would be endangered. On May 24, 2014, a gunman opened fire at the Jewish Museum in Brussels, killing a couple visiting from Israel and a Frenchwoman volunteering at the museum. A fourth victim, a museum employee, died of his wounds in June. On May 29, authorities in Marseille, France, arrested a suspect, French citizen Mehdi Nemmouche, after he arrived on a bus from Brussels carrying weapons matching those used in the attack. He had allegedly traveled to Syria in 2013 and spent over a year fighting as part of IS, and was believed to be the first jihadist to return to Europe and commit a terrorist act after participating in the Syrian conflict.

In July 2014, France extradited Nemmouche to Belgium, where he was charged with “murder in a terrorist context.” In September, an Antwerp court began the trial of 46 alleged members of a radical Islamist group called Sharia4Belgium for recruiting militants to fight in Syria. The group had agitated for Sharia (Islamic law) in Belgium until announcing in 2012 that it was disbanding. Also in September, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ordered Belgium to pay €60,000 ($80,000) in damages and €30,000 ($40,000) in legal costs to Nizar Trabelsi, a Tunisian man who was extradited by Belgium to the United States in 2013 to face terrorism charges. The ECHR ruled that Belgium had violated his rights by extraditing him to a country where he faced the prospect of life in prison without the possibility of release, which the court said violated the prohibition of “inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment” by the European Convention on Human Rights.

The human rights of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) people in Belgium are afforded strong legal protections and supported by a vibrant community of civil society groups. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is illegal. In December 2014, ruling in the case of a gay man who had been found brutally murdered in Liège in 2012, a Belgian court found three defendants guilty of murder with homophobic motives and one defendant guilty of manslaughter with homophobic motives—the first such convictions in Belgium. G. Personal Autonomy and Individual Rights: 15 / 16 The law provides for the free movement of citizens at home and abroad, and the government does not interfere with these rights. However, individual communities may expel Roma from city limits at the discretion of the local government. Citizens have the right to own property and start private businesses, and commercial activity is regulated without arbitrary government interference. The government actively promotes equality for women. The state Institute for the Equality of Men and Women is empowered to initiate sex-discrimination lawsuits. In the 2014 elections, women won approximately 39 percent of the seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 50 percent of the seats in the Senate.

Belgium legalized same-sex marriage in 2003, and in 2006 it gave same-sex couples the right to adopt children. In 2011, Di Rupo became the country’s first openly gay prime minister. In February 2014, the Chamber of Representatives voted to give final approval to a bill that would make the country the first in the world to legalize euthanasia for terminally ill children. Belgium legalized euthanasia for terminally ill adults in 2002. Scoring Key: X / Y (Z) X = Score Received Round 6 Jeopardy Template What is the Kennedy Space Center? On July 20, 1969, where did Apollo 11 launch from? 100 What United States President resigned in 1974 while facing possible impeachment for the Watergate scandal? 100 What 1986 film featured this line, “"I feel the need... the need for speed!" 100 Who is Lisa Marie Presley? Who did Michael Jackson marry in May 1994?

100 Jeff Gordon, four-time champion, announced that 2015 will be his last year in which sport? 200 Name the volunteer program started in the 60s run by the United States Government. 200 Where is Munich, West Germany? During the 1972 Summer Olympics in what city were 11 Israeli athletes murdered by Arab gunmen? 200 What is the Tiananmen Square? In which Beijing Square were the 1989 protests crushed by tanks? 200 What is 888? What was the first toll-free area code put in service, after the supply of 800-numbers began to dwindle? 200 An American ban lasting 21 years was lifted in 2010 for what Scottish food? 300 What device did Douglas Engelbart invent which forever changed the electronic workplace? 300 What is Roe vs. Wade? What was the name of the 1973 Supreme Court case that declared abortion to be a constitutional right? 300 What is 1 minute and 31 seconds? In 1988, Mike Tyson knocked out Michael Spinks to win the heavyweight title.

About how long did it take? 300 Who is Geri Halliwell? Which former Spice Girl gushed: "I'm damn well going to use my fame positively," when she was made a sex-ed ambassador for the UN? 300 What is Euthanasia? In 2014 Belgium became the first country in the world to legalize what controversial treatment of terminally ill people? 400 Who are the Black Panthers? What political party encouraged blacks to fight for their freedom and achieve it through any means necessary? 400 Which company produced the first disposable razor in 1975? 400 What is The Soviet Union? Which country won 25 total medals to lead the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo? 400 What 1996 film featured the line, “You had me at hello”? 400 What iconic record label celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2009? 500 What is the zip code? Originally started at 1963, what was originally 4 digits later became 5 digits? 500 Who is Idi Amin?

Which Major General took control of Uganda in 1971 and soon became one of the worst and most notorious dictators of modern times? 500 What is the Rubik's Cube? In the 1980s, with over 350 MILLION units sold, what toy is widely considered to be the best selling toy in history? 500 What retail chain ignited a retro swing craze with ads depicting Khaki-clad dancing hep-cats? 500 What is doping? Belgium votes to legalise euthanasia for all children | Daily Mail Online Belgium votes to legalise euthanasia for children despite protest from 160 doctors Controversial law will allow terminally ill youngsters to request to die early Lawmakers vote by 86 to 44 in favour of the measure with 12 abstentions Only those with incurable illnesses and in unbearable pain will be eligible Campaigners argue sick children may be pressured into ending their life But those in favour say the law will be strict enough to prevent any abuse

Question: In 2014 Belgium became the first country in the world to legalize what controversial treatment of terminally ill people?
Answer: Euthanasia