Bernard Anselme (born 3 November 1945) was the 6th

Minister-President of Wallonia The minister-president of Wallonia () is the head of the Government of Wallonia, the executive power of Wallonia, one of the three regions of Belgium. The official residence, known as the Élysette, is in Namur, along the Meuse River. The ministe ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

from 11 May 1988 to 7 January 1992.

Biography

Bernard Anselme was born on 3 November 1945 in

Mouscron Mouscron (; Dutch and vls, Moeskroen, ; Picard and Walloon: ''Moucron'') is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the Belgian province of Hainaut, along the border with the French city of Tourcoing, which is part of the Lille metropoli ...

Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...

to a postal worker. After his father was transferred to

Libramont-Chevigny Libramont-Chevigny (; wa, Libråmont) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. On 1 February 2015, the municipality, which covers 177.86 km², had 10,955 inhabitants, giving a population density of 61,5 ...

, Anselme studied humanities from 1957 to 1963, ending his education in the humanities at

Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namu ...

in 1963. In 1968, Anselme received a degree in political science, diplomacy and administration from Université Libre de Bruxelles in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

. During his time in Brussels, Anselme became involved in the Young

FGTB The General Labour Federation of Belgium (french: Fédération Générale du Travail de Belgique, or FGTB; nl, Algemeen Belgisch Vakverbond, ABVV) is a socialist national trade union federation in Belgium. It was founded in 1945. It is affiliated ...

, becoming its assistant secretary in 1964, its secretary in 1968 and serving as its president from 1968 to 1970. Between 1969 and 1972, Anselme served as the Special Adviser to the Minister for Community Relations, and from 1972 to 1977 served as an adviser to the President of the Walloon Economic Council, . In 1977, Anselme became the Member for Namur, serving in various positions before serving as Wallonia's Secretary of State from 1979 to 1980. In 1985, as a member of Wallonia's regional parliament, Anselme authored a decree establishing Namur as the capital of the Walloon Region. In 1988, Anselme became the

Minister-President of the Walloon Region The minister-president of Wallonia () is the head of the Government of Wallonia, the executive power of Wallonia, one of the three regions of Belgium. The official residence, known as the Élysette, is in Namur, along the Meuse River. The minist ...

, a position he retained until 7 January 1992. From 1994 to 1999 Anselme served as the Minister for Internal Affairs for the Walloon Region, followed by a few months in the position of Minister for Social Affairs. On 1 January 2001 Anselme became the Mayor of Namur. In October 2006, following the formation of a coalition between the Christian Democrats, Greens and Liberals, Anselme's Socialist Party was ousted from government for the first time in 30 years. Anselme announced his intention to resign from politics following the election defeat, but was convinced to stay in municipal politics. He currently sits as a Namur municipal councillor.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Anselme, Bernard 1945 births People from Mouscron Living people Ministers-President of Wallonia Ministers-President of the French Community of Belgium Mayors of places in Belgium People from Namur (city) Walloon movement activists 21st-century Belgian politicians