[2][3][4] From 1968 to 1978, before dedicating his life to his political career, Michel taught English, Dutch and German in the Provincial School of Jodoigne, a rural town 25 miles from Brussels.

During his time in office, he pursued former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet for crimes against humanity and played an active role in trying to bring peace to the war-weary Great Lakes region of central Africa.

[5] In July 2004, the Verhofstadt government appointed Michel as its candidate for the Belgian seat on the European Commission led by José Manuel Durão Barroso, to replace former commissioner Philippe Busquin.

Throughout his time as Member of the European Parliament, Michel served on the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs.

In addition to his committee assignments, Michel co-presided over the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly which advises on the orientations of co-operation policies between the EU and its partners in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific.

He was also a member of the European Parliament Intergroup on LGBT Rights;[8] the European Parliament Intergroup on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights;[9] and the Campaign for the Establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, an organisation which campaigns for democratic reformation of the United Nations, and the creation of a more accountable international political system.

Michel has been interested in the Central Africa situation and busy with the Democratic Republic of the Congo dossier since he became Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs (1999–2004) and European Commissioner in charge of the Development & Humanitarian Aid in the Barroso Commission.

The two main missions of this government were to maintain the peace by integrating all the militias into the unified army and to bring the country to elections on 30 June 2006 having ratified the new constitution by referendum.

In a lecture on 17 January 2008 (entitled Africa-Europe: the indispensable partnership) at the London School of Economics, Michel faced Congolese protestors who accused him of being complicit in Kabila's assassination and installing a puppet government in the Congo.

The Parliament's development committee was cautious though about the expenditure and he was also criticised for his slow response with one MEP comparing him to "a fireman who arrives at the scene after the fire has gone out".

In the same debate MEPs attacked the Commissioner for "appearing partial in the Congolese elections" in describing Joseph Kabila as "the hope of Congo".