Miet Smet

Miet Smet (born 5 April 1943) is a Belgian politician for the Christian Democratic and Flemish party (CD&V).

Miet Smet
Senator
In office
12 July 2007 (2007-07-12) – June 2010
Member of the Flemish Parliament
Assumed office
3 October 2004
Member of the European Parliament
In office
7 August 1999 – 7 August 2004
Personal details
Born (1943-04-05) 5 April 1943
Sint-Niklaas
NationalityBelgian
Political partyChristen-Democratisch en Vlaams
Spouse(s)Wilfried Martens
ResidenceLokeren
CommitteesPresident and Chair of AWEPA
Websitewww.mietsmet.be

Career

In 1988, Smet became the president of the European Centre for Workers' Questions, a position which she held till 1995.

Career in national politics

Smet was the founder (1973) and first president (until 1982) of the Christian People's Party political women's organisation, Vrouw en Maatschappij (Woman and Society).[1]

She was elected to the Belgian Chamber of People's Representatives in 1978. In 1985 she became State Secretary of Environmental Affairs, and negotiated an Equal Opportunities portfolio. While Smet's competencies cover all aspects of social emancipation, she focused on violence against women, women's economic position and their participation in decision-making. When Miet Smet became Minister of Labour and Employment in 1991, she kept the Equal Opportunities portfolio.[2]

Member of the European Parliament

When she was offered first place in the CD&V list for the European elections in 1999 instead of Wilfried Martens, Martens, at the instigation of then-wife Ilse Schouteden, refused to run at all.[3][4]

Miet Smet was a Member of the European Parliament from 1999 to 2004.

She became a Minister of State in 2002, and has been a member of the Flemish Parliament since 2004, and a Belgian senator since 2007.[5]

In 2009, Smet was elected president of the Association of European Parliamentarians with Africa (AWEPA),[6] taking over from former president Dr. Jan Nico Scholten.

Personal life

On 27 September 2008, Miet married fellow CD&V politician and former Belgian Prime Minister Wilfried Martens.[7] After the death of Martens' first wife, Lieve Verschroeven, the marriage was confirmed in the Catholic Church on 27 April 2013.

Other activities

Honours

References
  1. Miet en Manschappij in Johan Anthierens, Het Belgische domdenken, p. 27
  2. Kris Deschouwer; M. Theo Jans (2007). Politics Beyond the State: Actors and Policies in Complex Institutional Settings. Asp / Vubpress / Upa. p. 225. ISBN 978-90-5487-436-2.
  3. "Martens refuses to run". www.encyclopedia.com. 1 May 1999.
  4. Bates, Stephen (7 March 1999). "Love tangle is final undoing of former Belgian PM". The Guardian.
  5. "Belgische Senaat" (in Dutch). Belgian Senate. Retrieved 10 June 2009.
  6. "AWEPA Executive Committee". Archived from the original on 21 October 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  7. Oud-ministers Martens en Smet vandaag getrouwd, De Morgen, 27 September 2008
  8. Academic Council Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies.
  9. "Miet Smet". www.senate.be.

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