Pierre Harmel

Pierre Harmel, 1965

Pierre Harmel, 1967

Pierre Charles José Marie Graf (since 1991) Harmel (born March 16, 1911 in Uccle / Ukkel near Brussels , † November 15, 2009 in Brussels) was a Belgian legal scholar and statesman. He was Belgian Prime Minister from 1965 to 1966 and Belgian Foreign Minister from 1966 to 1972 .

Life

Harmel made a political career in the Christelijke Volkspartij-Parti Social Chrétien (CVP-PSC, today split into CD&V and cdH ). Between 1950 and 1972 he held several ministerial posts, including that of Prime Minister (1965-1966). In Belgium , his influence has been formative in the areas of education and culture, as well as in relations between communities.

After obtaining a diploma as a doctor of law, as well as licenses in social sciences , notary's office (1933) and tax law (1940), Pierre Harmel received a position as an assistant at the University of Liège before he was appointed professor in 1947, a position he was the first to do Gave up in 1981. Pierre Harmel began his political career in the Parti Social Chrétien and was elected a member of parliament in 1946. Two years later he took part in the creation of the Center for Research on National Solutions to the Social, Political and Legal Problems of the Walloon and Flemish Regions , which in 1958 presented a report showing the need for both communities to achieve cultural independence . This report served as the basis for the later language legislation in Belgium.

politics

Between 1950 and 1961, Pierre Harmel held ministerial posts in several successive governments (state education, justice and public service ) and was the first minister for cultural affairs in the history of Belgium in the second government of Gaston Eysken (1958–1961). In his office as Minister of State Education, he primarily took measures in favor of state subsidies for middle, normal and technical education.

After a time as chairman of the French-speaking wing of the CSP (1964-1965), he became Prime Minister in 1965 and remained so until 1966 in a coalition of the Christian Social and Socialist Party. Despite his best efforts, he did not have a sufficient majority to adopt the conclusions of the round table on constitutional reform with a view to federalization of the country.

His political career took on international dimensions between 1966 and 1972, seventeen years after his first major act on the international stage when he represented Belgium at the 4th Assembly of the United Nations . As Foreign Minister he was the main author of the Harmel Report deposited in 1967 . This exerted a considerable influence on the redefinition of NATO policy at the moment of detente between East and West. As an advocate of a strong defense policy , but also an advocate of dialogue and measures of constructive cooperation with the Eastern Bloc , he has long served as the most important source of inspiration for NATO's policy and its will to guarantee a stable peace policy . In 1973 Pierre Harmel was appointed Minister of State and was President of the Belgian Senate until 1977 . For his services, King Baudouin raised him to the hereditary nobility of Count in 1991 .

Awards

• 1967: Large gold medal on ribbon for services to the Republic of Austria

literature

• Dumoulin, Vincent. Pierre Harmel: biography. Brussels: Le Cri Edition, 2004.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Pierre Harmel est décédé
2. ↑ List of all decorations awarded by the Federal President for services to the Republic of Austria from 1952 (PDF; 6.9 MB)

Web links

• The Future Tasks of the Alliance: NATO's Harmel Report, 1966/67 ( Memento of April 11, 2005 in the Internet Archive ) Document collection on the Harmel Report of 1967, from the Parallel History Project on NATO and the Warsaw Pact (PHP)