Citizenship: 50 years of the EU

(The design was developed by Szymon Skrzypczak, a 24 year old polish student of design, from Poznan)

On March 25, the European Union (EU) celebrates 50 years of the signature of the Treaty of Rome, by the 6 initial countries who started the European Community – Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy. Portugal and Spain joined in 1986 and nowadays the EU counts 27 member states (after 10 new countries in 2004 and Bulgaria and Romania last January).

But actually it was on May 9, 1950, that the European Union was conceived as it was envisioned by Jean Monnet and by France’s then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Robert Schuman - what some like to call the “Declaration of Inter-Dependence”. Afterwards, came the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) which was followed by a closer economic union, with the simultaneous foundation on March 25th, 1957, of the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Community of Atomic Energy (EURATOM), for the standardization & safety of the production of nuclear power in Europe. A huge Common Market was the initial goal. In 1992, the Maastricht Treaty of 1992 transformed the whole structure into the European Union.

The European Union is an ambitious, original, innovative, democratic and successful experiment in the history of nations. At the basis were the equality among member states and their languages and innovative democratic decision processes taking account of the interests of individual members. There has never been any comparable experience in the World history (of course with the exception of forced unification or imposed integration as a result of imperialism, invasion or war). The European Union has therefore become a reference and example (as well as hope) for other regions of the world in their search for cooperation. Some of the EU’s its institutions, like the Commission, the Parliament, and the Court of Justice, are indeed unique in terms of their supranational nature and influence, and are models and examples for other experiences worldwide. Some of the current experiments (NAFTA, MERCOSUR, FTAA, ASEAN) in regional economic cooperation and integration owe their foundation and development to the perceived success of the EU. However none is near the same level of cooperation and transfer of national sovereignty to supranational institutions. The EU owes much of its success to the geographical (and somehow cultural) proximity of its members, which is not the case elsewhere in the globe. Some observers even argue that it is possible that the EU model may only succeed in the Americas.

50 years is a long time and yet it is nothing if we consider History and the centuries it took to build and consolidate national identities, national and multi-national-states in Europe.
It was a remarkable original idea but it was maybe easier at the time to start with six members in a post-war western Europe. Since then Europe has changed, the world has changed, geopolitics have changed, the cold war has ended, technologies have developed, the world is now a 'global village' and globalisation has spread to the whole planet.

After 50 years the EU is still a group of independent states which are not always in the same frequency line about many issues and which sometimes have it hard to agree on crucial themes. National selfishness, egocentrism and interests still prevail, many times. Yet a lot has been achieved during the 50 years. Sometimes, European citizens (and certainly younger ones) do not value anymore because ‘Europe’ has become part of everyday life, it is like an acquired 'fact’. Yet Europe has brought a lot of benefits, if anything the economic growth in many countries due to the existence of a huge single market without borders for people, money and goods. Nowadays European citizens can live and work in any other country of the EU, study, etc, see their study diplomas recognised, received unemployment and social benefits anywhere they live, transfer pension rights, have medical assistance, etc. Europe had also an important role after the second world war and to consolidate democracy and peace.
Nowadays most European countries share a common currency – the euro and can move around most countries within the Union without passport controls. We are far from a European ‘unified culture’ and approach but many times, Europeans are closer than they like to think, in many respects.

Yet, at the same time as the EU is celebrating its 50th anniversary, the mood in Europe is far from enthusiastic. According to a report conducted by Harris and published by the newspaper “Financial Times” this week, 44% of EU citizens believe their living standards have deteriorated since their country joined the EU (!) and Brussels bureaucracy is the main subject of complaints. A couple of years ago, the process of adopting a common Constitution for Europe was stopped by french and dutch citizens, who voted no to the proposal, in a referendum.

Some blame the (too) fast enlargement of the EU, which has gone from 15 member countries in 2003 to 27 today (!). And that decided by national governments, without asking citizens. In a moment when the world has become more globalised, with more competion for investment, jobs, etc, with delocalisation of production to Asia and precarity of jobs, european citizens, and mostly in the western ‘older’ memebers, are fearing enlargement has meant an extra burden for them and feel the political unification process has been slowed down by the difficulty of taking decisions and finding a commonb ground among 27 countries and 23 official languages. Easy to get the picture…

Yet Europe has done a lot for its members – ask Irish, Spanish or Portuguese citizens how their standards of living have improved since they joined the EU (and how older members such as Germany or France have also benefited of a larger market). Or how democracy has consolidated in those countries and in the new member states from central and eastern Europe, who have to comply with many rules ensuring democracy and equal rights to be part of the EU. Europe is certainly at a crossroads nowadays and it is essential to know what we are, where we want to go, which Europe we want to build for the future generations, which is the place of Europe in the global world and how we can get there, together. And whether all members want the same… Some members wish to achieve further political integration and even build a co-federation, others (like the UK or Denmark) simply want a large market, but wish to keep their untouched sovereignty on many issues).

It will not be an easy journey. But this project which has managed to gather most European countries around a common ideal and utopia (yes, all countries wanted to get in and some are still waiting to do so – Croatia, Turkey, etc). It takes political vision, political leadership and the participation of all European citizens. I usually say that programmes such as Erasmus (a programme for the exchange of university students, who can study a whole year in another university) has done more for Europe and the consolidation of a European identity than many rules and directives. It is true and such programmes should be even reinforced, to my understanding. Also outside Europe, because Europe must remain open to the world.

What is essential now is to be able to move ahead and agree on a new Constitutional Treaty that can reform the institutions and way of working. A EU with 27 member states needs to have an efficient decision-making process which can no longer cope with individual vetoes of member states and national egoisms. And further enlargements can wait. Also citizens should be asked to participate more actively in the process, Europe should function in a more transparent and participative way. Yet citizens should take their share of responsibility. It is too easy for people and countries to blame the European institutions for any failure. All in all, union brings force, (“a união faz a força”) and together, Europeans are better equipped to win in a globalised world.

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read also an interview of Giscard d'Estaing on the The Lack of Vision for Europe in the March 26, 2007 issue of Newsweek. The father of a hoped-for EU constitution on how weak statesmen, befuddled youths, and the arrival of pesky little states disrupted his dreams for Europe. Former French President, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing presided over the European constitution his compatriots rejected in a 2005 referendum. But at 81, he is still fighting for the European project.

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And an article in portuguese newspaper Publico, "EUROPA, DOS DESAFIOS AS OPORTUNIDADES" (Europe, from challenges to opportunities) by Horst Köhler, German President, Aníbal Cavaco Silva, portuguese President and Janz Drnovsek, President of Slovenia.