Belgium's Problem
There is no reason whatever why the British public should become more disturbed than the Belgians themselves over the dispute about the position of King Baudouin. The Belgian tradition that the Sovereign does not show himself to his people very often; the very special position of a young King who maintains a continuous family relationship with his father, the ex-King, and his stepmother, whose constitutional status is still undetermined; and the absence of any warm sympathy between Royal Family and people—all these are matters which are very foreign to the British conception of constitutional Monarchy. The dislike of many Belgians for certain specific actions of King Baudouin—his absence from the funeral of King George VI, his departure from Belgium for the Riviera at a time when many of his people were suffering from the recent flood disaster and his alleged interview with the repre- sentative of a Paris newspaper—must be accepted as a fact. So must the continual criticisms of the somewhat awkward relationship between the King, who must in some sense be a public figure, and his ' father and stepmother, who are not called upon to fulfil public duties. The consequences which flow from this situation must be left to the Belgians, and the best news from Brussels is that they will be kept separate from the other issues that have recently been exercising the Belgian politicians. If, as the Socialist leader, M. Spank, says, the Catholic Government is dying on its feet. then it would seem better to let its demise or survival depend on its conduct of the day-to-day business of running the country, and in particular on its foreign and financial policies, rather than on its relation- ship with a young King who has not had much time to find his own feet.
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