Roger Dekeyzer (18 June 1906 – 16 December 1992) was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

trade union leader. Born in

Ostend Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

, Dekeyzer became an English teacher, and the unpaid secretary of the

Socialist Union of Education Workers The Socialist Union of Education Workers (french: Centrale du Personnel enseignant socialiste; nl, Centrale van het Socialistisch Onderwijzend Personeel, CSOP) was a trade union representing workers in the education sector in Belgium. The union wa ...

of West Flanders. In 1925, he joined the

Belgian Workers' Party The Belgian Labour Party ( nl, Belgische Werkliedenpartij, BWP; french: Parti ouvrier belge, POB) was the first major socialist party in Belgium. Founded in 1885, the party was officially disbanded in 1940 and superseded by the Belgian Socialist P ...

, and from 1928 he served on the executive of its Ostend branch. In 1935, he began working full-time for the

Belgian Union of Transport Workers The Belgian Union of Transport Workers ( nl, Belgische Transportbond, BTB; french: Union Belge du Transport, UBT) is a trade union representing transport workers in Belgium. History The union was founded on 6 June 1913, with the merger of numerous ...

(BTB), as deputy secretary of its West Flanders district. The following year, he was promoted to become district secretary, and also secretary of the union's coastal area car drivers' section. In 1939, Dekeyzer was elected to both the Ostend Municipal Council, and the West Flanders Provincial Council. He fled to the United Kingdom early in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and worked organising Belgian sailors there. He became active in the

International Transport Workers' Federation The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) is a democratic global union federation of transport workers' trade unions, founded in 1896. In 2017 the ITF had 677 member organizations in 149 countries, representing a combined membership ...

(ITF), and was placed in charge of organising Belgian, Danish, Dutch, Polish and French transport workers in Scotland. Dekeyzer returned to Belgium at the end of the war, and was elected as secretary of the

General Federation of Belgian Labour 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 ...

(ABVV). He also served as general secretary of the BTB and of its ports section, and as secretary of the

Belgian Socialist Party nl, Belgische Socialistische Partij , logo = Logo of the Belgian Socialist Party.png , caption = The fist and rose emblem used by the party from 1973. , leader1_title = President , leader1_name = Achille Van Acker (first)André Cools (last) ...

's Ostend district. He soon moved to

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

, and in 1952, was elected to the municipal council, then in 1954 to the provincial council, and finally in 1958 was elected to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. In 1955, Dekeyzer was appointed as vice-president of the ABVV, then as president the following year.

Omer Becu Omer Liévin Benjamin Becu (21 August 1902 – 9 October 1982) was a Belgian trade unionist, who became General Secretary of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions. Born in Ostend, Becu trained as a radio operator and joined the ...

, president of the BTB, left to work for the ITF, and Dekeyzer's role of general secretary was merged with that of president of the union. He was also elected as vice-president of the ITF, then in 1960 became president of the ITF. Dekeyzer retired from his trade union and political posts in 1971, but remained on the boards of various organisations for the next decade. He died in 1992.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dekeyzer, Roger 1906 births 1992 deaths Belgian Socialist Party politicians Belgian trade unionists Members of the Senate (Belgium) People from Ostend