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Cyprus: The Belgian ‘Tool Box’ Revisited
people (in spite of UN resolutions that
the relationship of the two communities
is not one of majority and minority but
one of political equality), and without
the settlement of the long-standing Cyprus
problem, has since May 2004 added
to the long list of divisive political and legal obstacles in the way of the establishment
of a postmodern partnership state on the Island.
Power to Sign International Treaties
Belgium is a country where an
overarching political nation and
two cultural/economic nations
co-exist
Since the 1993 reform, the Belgian system has extended the internal autonomy
of the federated entities in their areas of competence into the international arena,
endorsed by the Constitution as the principle of in foro interno, in foro externo. Consequently,
the regions and communities execute their competences both domestically
and internationally. International treaties falling into the exclusive jurisdiction
of a community or region are thus concluded by its government and approved by
its council (or parliament). The Federal Cabinet can object to the provisions of a
draft treaty, in which case the issue is taken up in the Inter-Ministerial Conference
on Foreign Policy (ICFP) constituted by the relevant ministers of the federated and
federal governments and where decisions are reached by consensus. The exclusive
and predominant competences of the communities and regions are quite vast and
extend into cultural affairs, education, the use of languages, land use and planning,
environment and water policy, rural re-development and nature conservation, housing,
agricultural policy, economic policy, external trade, energy policy, subordinate
authorities, employment policy, public works, and transportation.
The two sides in Cyprus do not see eye to eye on this issue either. The Turkish
Cypriot position is to apply the current Belgian experience (ius tractatis) in this
instance as well while the Greek Cypriot position is more reserved regarding the
powers of constituent states.
The result is that one has, as Bahcheli and Noel write, “two oddly distorted versions
of Belgian federalism […] Hence, for example, the Turkish Cypriot leader’s
selective emphasis on Article 167 of the Belgian constitution, which establishes
the right of the constituent regions to play an international role that includes even
treaty-making power in matters falling under their jurisdiction. Hence also the
Greek leader’s emphasis on the fact that only the Belgian federal government has
legal status in international law […] and that in the councils of the EU, Belgium is
required to ‘speak with one voice.’” 12
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