Spaak Out

Twenty years after the World War Belgium is still torn with Wartime hatreds. The Walloons and many loyal Flemings have never forgiven those Flemish politicians who played ball with the German invaders in the hope that Germany would sever Flanders from the rest of Belgium and set it up as an autonomous state. Many pro-German Flemings were arrested for treason and imprisoned after the War and as long as King Albert sat on the throne, they had no hope of securing their freedom. Two years ago, however, broad-minded young King Leopold set out to unify his nation before another war, succeeded in having Paul van Zeeland, then Premier, push through Parliament a general amnesty granting full pardon to the post-War Flemish traitors.

Patriotic War veterans made no secret of their hatred of this royal boon, patiently waited for an incident to demonstrate their feelings. Fortnight ago, they found one. One of the Flemish politicians pardoned by the King's bill was Dr. Adrian Martens, a mediocre medical man who had worked for Flemish autonomy. Sentenced to death, Martens escaped to The Netherlands in 1918. The Belgians burned him in effigy. After the passage of the amnesty bill, he returned unobtrusively to take up practice in Ghent. Some time ago, Belgian Premier Paul Henri Spaak proposed Dr. Martens for membership in the newly created Flemish Academy of Science and King Leopold gave the proposal his royal signature. The Premier went before the Parliament and, after a riotous session, finally came out with its reluctant approval. But when he reached his home the veterans were waiting for him. As he stepped out of his taxi, 200 of them pummeled him to the pavement, shouted "Resign! Resign!"

Last week Premier Spaak did. King Leopold turned the job of forming a new Cabinet and placating the angry veterans over to onetime Premier Henri Jaspar.

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