Miss Belgium under fire for not speaking Dutch

In the most vivid illustration of the political row row plaguing her country, the new Miss Belgium has come under fire for not speaking Dutch. French-speaking Alizee Poulicek was booed by the crowd on election night. "I didn't understand, can you repeat?" she said, in French when asked about her hopes for the future.

The daughter of a Czech father and a Belgian mother, Poulicek lives in French-speaking southern Belgium where she has little use for Dutch - an illustration of the country's deep linguistic divide. "For me it's difficult, I feel a bit lost," she apologised, adding that she had every intention of taking Dutch language lessons.

The young woman was nevertheless elected by a jury of television viewers as the country's next beauty ambassador.

Via euronews.net