Letter: The other Belgium

YOUR REPORT "War of words, fear and farce in Flanders" (20 September) was one-sided. The French-speaking minority is engaged in a campaign against the regional government for the sole purpose of strengthening its position in preparation of probable inter-regional discussions on federal state reform in 1999.

The incident in Ronse, where disabled children were ordered out of their school bus, was blown out of proportion by the French-speaking media. The issue was about having the correct licence to transport the children. According to the national ministry, no license had been granted.

The Walloon government and the French-speaking community have been repeatedly convicted by the highest court in Belgium for interference in Flanders' affairs, yet continue to do so in disrespect of the fundamentals of our federal state.

Your correspondent should talk to all segments of the population, including the Dutch-speaking minority of Myriam Delacroix-Rolin's town, who are having a hard time resisting Frenchification. She should notice where people are more open and unemployment and crime figures lower. Her story might become a different one.

ERIC LUYTEN

Brussels Free University