Jean-Maurice Dehousse
Jean -Maurice Dehousse ( born October 11, 1936 in Liège ) is a former Belgian politician of the Parti Socialiste (PS). He was for many years Parliamentarians ( Chamber of Deputies, the Senate and the European Parliament) and Minister in various governments at the national level. Dehousse is considered one of the founding fathers of the Walloon Region and held the office of Prime Minister derselbigen. At the local level he was mayor of Liege.
Curriculum vitae
Jean -Maurice Dehousse came as the son of Fernand Dehousse, also politicians and former ministers, and Rita Lejeune, philologist and one of the first female university professors in Belgium, on the world. He received his doctorate in 1960 as a doctor of law at the University of Liège ( ULg ) and holds a degree in " Advanced International Studies" at Johns Hopkins University ( JHU, 1961).
After he finished his studies, Dehousse first worked as a researcher for the FNRS (National Research Fund ) ( 1962 to 1965 ), then as an assistant at the ULg (1966 to 1971) and a professor at the Brussels French high school (1965 to 1971). During this time he took over in particular the role of union delegates of the socialist-oriented FGTB for the academic staff of the ULg.
Political career
Even before his actual entry into active politics Dehousse was engaged as a trade unionist political. Convinced by the idea of regionalization of Belgium, he joined the Mouvement populaire 1961 Wallon ( MPW ) in under the union leader André Renard. Also at the Congress of the Walloon Socialists, which was held in Verviers on 26 November 1967 Dehousse be called for a strong Walloon identity.
1970 was appointed Jean -Maurice Dehousse Associate Chief of Cabinet of former minister and co-founder of the MPW Feddy Terwagne (PSB ) and 1971 Chef de Cabinet of his father Fernand Dehousse (PSB ). In this capacity he was able to participate in the negotiations for the first reform of the state, in which the regions were not legally created but not yet concretely established.
1971 Dehousse was finally elected to the Chamber of Deputies, but had to sit in the opposition. In the 1970s, he was particularly anxious to emphasize the regionalist profile of the PSB and advocated a rapprochement with the Rassemblement Wallon (RW), the Regionalist Party of François Perin. His leap into the government abolished Jean -Maurice Dehousse 1977, where he first held the office of Minister of French culture. There he advocated the renaming of the national broadcaster RTB (Radio - Télévision Belge ) in RTBF (Radio télévision belge de la Communauté - française ). At the same time he acted with other sizes of the Parti Socialiste ( the successor to the PSB) as André Cools or Guy Spitaels from the second state reform, which was the real birth of the regions.
In the governments under Wilfried Martens ( CVP) Dehousse received the post of Minister of the Walloon Region. At the same time he was the chairman of the Walloon Minister within the national government, which effectively made him the first Prime Minister of the Walloon Region. His job as a minister was mainly the preparation of regionalization and the creation of new administrative structures in Namur, the unofficial capital of the region. As the Walloon government definitely could act independently of the national, Dehousse 1982 first Walloon Minister of Economy under André Damseaux (PRL ) and in the same year was still prime minister. This office he held until 1985.
The end of the 1980s was dominated by internal disputes of the Liège hp. As a member of the council since 1976 Liège fought Dehousse among others, José Happart, he also assisted in his struggle for Voeren, and other politicians of the so-called Groupe Perron against the influence of the ailing Mayor of Flémalle André Cools. After the assassination of Cools in 1991 also Dehousse was regarded as the successor at the head of Liège PS- Federation, but was Michel Daerden, then as a compromise candidate, go first.
In 1992, Jean -Maurice Dehousse again minister Jean -Luc Dehaene (CVP ), but left his post as he Daerden 1994 local elections won and took office as mayor of Liege. However, he left a few years later, this office when he was elected to the European Parliament in 1999. In the same year Dehousse presented for the Presidency of the PS for election, but lost clearly against Elio Di Rupo.
Since the end of his European mandate Jean -Maurice Dehousse lives retired from political life.
Honors
Jean -Maurice Dehousse is Commander of the Order of Leopold. He was elected by the Institut Jules Destrée one of the 100 most important Walloon personalities of the twentieth century.