Ward Beysen

Edouard " Ward " Marie August Beysen (born 26 June 1941 in Mortsel, Antwerp, Belgium, † 14 January 2005 in Wilrijk, Antwerp) was a Belgian politician.

Biography

After attending school, he completed a teaching degree in Dutch and History at the Rijksnormaalschool in Lier and graduated in 1963.

Beysen began his political career as a member of Partij voor de Vrijheid Vooruitgang (PVV ), first in local politics and was first elected in 1974 as a member of the city council of Antwerp, where he remained until 1981.

Subsequently, he was from 1981 to 1995 Member of the Flemish Parliament ( Vlaams Parlement ). From February to October 1988, he was briefly Minister of the Interior of Flanders in the government of Prime Minister Gaston Geens.

Between 1981 and 1995, was Beysen, who was named for his right-wing politics " Zwartje Beysen " ( Black Beysen ), member of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives ( De Belgische Kamer van volksvertegenwoordigers ). He was from 1985 to 1995 and Group Chairman of his party.

Between 1989 and 2000 he was again a member of the city council of Antwerp.

He was elected as a candidate of the now into Flemish Liberals en Democraten (VLD ) renamed PVV member of the 5th European Parliament in 1999, where he remained until the end of the legislature in 2004. In 2003 he resigned from the VLD out to form his own political party, the Liberal Alliance ( Liberaal Appèl ), who tried to approach the extreme right-wing Flemish parties. In the subsequent elections to the city council of Antwerp in 2003, but his party won only 1.21 per cent and no seats in the city parliament. In the subsequent regional elections the Liberals did not occur to appeal.

On January 15, 2005 took to his body in a pond near Antwerp. Apparently Beysen had committed suicide.