One year ago, the Union of European Federalists (UEF) embarked on our Democracy is Europe: Remember to Revive journey across the Baltics and Central and Eastern Europe. Two main ideas were behind this: on one hand, to raise awareness about the central role of European values in the revolutions of 1989-1991; on the other hand, to encourage a reflection on the future of Europe, European democracy and the Rule of Law.

As part of this project, UEF launched the “1989-1991: the fall of communist regimes: what was the idea of Europe behind the Central-Eastern European and Baltic countries’ democratic transition?” essay contest. Young people, aged from 18 to 25, were encouraged to express their thoughts on the peaceful revolutions and transitions that characterized these European areas. The driving idea of this contest was not only to promote the importance that European principles played back then, but also to explore what is their impact and state of play nowadays in those parts of Europe.

During the Democracy is Europe Final Conference on 2-3 December in Brussels, the essay contest results were announced.

Mr Gustavo Álvarez, 23-year-old student from Spain, was awarded first place, followed by his Georgian fellow Mr Lasha Svanishsvili, 22 years old, and his polish fellow Ms Wiktoria Skrzypecka, 19 years old.

You can read Mr Gustavo Álvarez’s essay below.

1989-1991 the fall of communist regimes: what was the idea of Europe behind the Central-Eastern European and Baltic countries’ democratic transition?

by Gustavo Álvarez

Assuming a causal relation between Europe as a unified region and the revolutions and consequent democratic transitions in CEE and Baltic (CEEB) countries distorts the values and motivations behind these events. Framing conditions the comprehension of the argument. Therefore, it’s essential to draw the line between understanding CEEB democratic transitions through a pro-European collective ingenuity and a sociopolitical tool to avoid the return of the communist system. In the end, establishing a clear differentiation between these two perspectives aims to prove their correlation, but complementarity. It’s said, first we should acknowledge the values of the revolutions and democratic transitions in CEEB countries as a direct response in opposition to the communist regime. Only then, we could argue a shared set of ideas as the common denominator of Europe’s conception among the CEEB region.

In this case, before addressing the so-called “idea of Europe” we need to characterize how CEEB countries prevented themselves from a violent and illiterate Soviet revival. First, opposition intellectual movements appeared, inspired by political martyrs, such as Jan Palach, Romas Kalanta or Imre Nagy. These activist groups were known for their underground organization and were publicly represented by one or two individuals. For instance, the Charter 77 with Václav Havel or the Helsinki Group with Larisa Bogoraz. The revolutions they organized were non-violent, individual freedom oriented and communicated through art. Some examples could be the Singing Revolution in Estonia, or the massive demonstrations during the Velvet Revolution. This innovative way of fighting against the communist establishment represented loyalty to the ideal of freedom, sacrifice for the people and union against the oppressor. These values were translated into peaceful and democratic transitions that helped to expel new communist aspirations and consolidate the germ for a liberal system all over the CEEB region.

The above mentioned values allowed the possibility for CEEB countries to develop a democratic political system and a free market economy. These values were precedent to any European aspiration, since they first needed to develop as a nation in order to enter the EU and NATO. It’s at this stage where the “idea of Europe” enters the liberal democratic transition among CEEB states. Since the emergence of the European Union, Europe has shifted its identity from a liberal democratic reference to a utilitarian body for agreed interdependency. In other words, CEEB countries implemented national policies based on EU “association agreements” during the 90s because of the economic, legal and geopolitical advantages of joining the EU (Sierp, 2015). Europe was the means for CEEB countries to consolidate parliamentary democracy and free market economy. Europe was not the goal because it was the catalyzer. It’s said, long-term democratic transitions in CEEB countries were based on the values they inherited from the revolutions and materialized by EU’s economic resources and political advocacy. In consequence, Europe has always been perceived as the necessary economic and political tool to achieve a proper democratic transition.

During democratic transitions, Europe was portrayed as valuable in itself, but merely useful for developing functioning liberal democracies among CEEB countries. Such conceptualization caused an indirect lack of unification between CEEB national revolution values (peace, freedom and intellect) and European democratic identity. Precisely, it’s this weak, might even nonexistent, ideological bond between Europe and CEEB states which enables anti-European narratives to strengthen. The moment economic or political instability appears, Euroscepticism spreads because Europe’s liberal idiosyncrasy was not embedded, along with economic and political support, during CEEB democratic transitions. For instance, the current democracy backsliding, due to massive support to populist and anti-European movements among CEEB countries, shows there is a high-percentage of the population, mainly in the CEE region, that don’t perceive Europe’s democratic values as their own. Ultimately, the absence of the abovementioned European-CEEB ideological connection raises ignorant societies, since citizens don’t understand that rejecting European institutions is highly counterproductive due to negative economic and political effects within their country.

Following the above mentioned arguments, Europe should acknowledge that, although CEEB countries are part of the EU, a democratic transition is not fully achieved until there is a crystallization of European liberal democratic values (Cianetti, Dawson, & Hanley, 2018). In simple terms, while there’s still European countries where the majority of citizens use their vote to empower leaders who depict Europe as the enemy, a stable long-term democratic transition it’s not completed. Europe has become an effective economic tool for market and political integration, while failing at being identified as the democratic ideal in CEEB countries. Accordingly, now more than ever, it’s essential to focus on the role of the EU as a liberal democratic safeguard in order to build a long-term ideological nexus with CEEB former revolution values.

The idea of Europe behind the Central-Eastern European and Baltic countries’ democratic transition was mainly utilitarian. The idea of Europe is still under construction. Democratic transitions in CEEB countries will only be fully successful if their population empathize with the idea of Europe as a liberal democratic safeguard, as much as they do with the values of their national revolutions. The role of the EU as an economic and political catalyzer for integration needs to be complemented by an ideological bond between European and national political values. As Václav Havel (2018, p. 92) asked: “Do not these ‘post-democratic’ relationships of immediate personal trust and the informal rights of individuals based on them come out of the background of all those commonly shared difficulties?” Let’s remember the past to revive our common objectives, remain unified under polarization, keep our intellect sharp and be loyal to the values that granted our freedom.

References

We would like to take again the opportunity to sincerely thank all the young people that take their time and effort to contribute with their essays, as well as those who have supported our project.

Pier Virgilio DASTOLI, President of the Italian Committee of the European Movement (CIME), writes:

“The Quirinal Treaty between Italy and France will be signed in Rome on 25 November by Emmanuel MACRON and Mario DRAGHI.

The negotiations, launched in early 2018 by the Gentiloni government at a meeting chaired by Italian Minister GOZI and French Minister LOISEAU, and the drafting of the project had been entrusted to a group of six "wise men" including Italians Franco BASSANINI, Marco PIANTINI and Paola SEVERINO.

Among the priority themes of the agreement, emphasis is placed on research, culture, industry and defence, stressing the need to implement means such as structured enhanced cooperation in the event that unanimous decisions impede joint progress. After the Italian elections in 2018 and the formation of the Conte I government with Lega and Movimento 5 Stelle, the negotiations had been frozen, they were not resumed by the Conte II government due to the pandemic, and they were only relaunched by the Draghi government. They will finally be concluded on 25 November.

Many things have happened in the meantime in Europe and between Italy and France, including the start of the Conference on the Future of Europe, with the French and Italian willingness to consider the possibility of going beyond the Lisbon Treaty signed 14 years ago, at a time when the conditions of the world and of Europe were radically different from those of today.

This raises the question of "what to do" if some governments are not willing to negotiate and accept a revision of the Lisbon Treaty, and therefore which project, method and timetable to consider in order to overcome the obstacle of the Convention on the basis of Article 48 of the TFEU (Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union), which requires the convening of a diplomatic conference, the unanimous agreement of the national governments and the unanimity of national rectifications.

Within the platform on the future of Europe set up in September 2019 at the CNEL (National Counsil for Economic and Labour) by the Italian European Movement, the issue of differentiated integration has been discussed several times, a subject on which the Institute of International Affairs is working within the framework of a European project, while the European Movement has urged the Spinelli Group of the European Parliament to revive the essentially constituent method that the European Parliament had adopted for the elaboration of its draft constitution of 14 February 1984.

These are questions that the Quirinal Treaty should not escape, also in view of the conclusions of the Conference on the Future of Europe that could take place in May 2022 after the French presidential elections on 10 and 24 April 2022.

It should be recalled that the idea of a Quirinal Treaty was launched under the inspiration of the Elysée Treaty signed in the past between France and Germany and that a proposal has recently been put forward for a Franco-Italian-German initiative that would bring together the priorities of the two treaties after the formation of the new German government and in view of the conclusions of the Conference on the Future of Europe and the reopening of work on the reform of the European Union."

Sandro GOZI, former Italian Secretary of State for European Affairs, now MEP (Renew Europe) and President of the Union of European Federalists (UEF) writes:

“We are on the eve of an important step that will give France and Italy a leading role in Europe and a new leading role in meeting global challenges. The signing of the Quirinal Treaty will ensure a solid and structured basis for making the relationship between our two countries work, creating a series of working groups and more fluid exchanges.

There is today a great political convergence between Rome and Paris on European and international priorities. In the context of such a favourable relationship as the one established between President DRAGHI and President Emmanuel MACRON, it is therefore important to seal this special relationship with a treaty whose signature will give more strength to Italy and France to engage in joint action at the European and global level. There may still be some differences of opinion or disputes, but we will now have a set of new diplomatic tools and political mechanisms to prevent and resolve them. If we European states compete with each other, we all lose. This is why it is essential that Italy and France work together, hand in hand, starting with the development of the Conference on the Future of Europe, which will have to be followed by important reforms of the European Union.”

These two statements, reproduced here with the consent of their authors, were originally written on 17 November 2021 for the members of the "Italian Platform for the Conference on the Future of Europe.

You can read the French version here.

You can read the Italian version here.

Dear federalist friend,

As you may already know, UEF is implementing its project “#makeEuropeBloom: the Time is Now!” not only as a way to accompany and raise awareness of the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE), but also to contribute to building the New European Bauhaus.

Officially launched on Europe Day this year, #makeEuropeBloom consists primarily of painting murals at different peripheral European locations. Today, we are happy to share with you the video of the making of and the final results of our first artwork in cooperation with Marest Studio, Generalitat Valenciana and Ajuntament de València in Valencia (Spain), which was painted in parallel to UEF’s XXVII European Congress.

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PROJECT BACKGROUND

UEF took on from the very beginning the fourfold challenge to make the European institutions commit to launch the Conference on the Future of Europe (which finally happened on 9 May, Europe Day); to ensure the institutional commitment to study with respect and attention the transformative proposals of European citizens and civil society; to advocate for this Conference to represent a real opportunity for the reform of the Treaties and the European institutions; and, finally, to involve and inform as much as possible the European citizens on this first major pan-European democratic exercise.

As a response to a call for proposals by the Directorate-General for Communication (DG COMM) of the European Parliament, “#makeEuropeBloom: the Time is Now!” is an ambitious and audacious artistic project. “It is no coincidence that the time slot during which the project is being implemented matches the time span of the CoFoE. The aim of our project is to directly address European citizens in their living environment. Its very nature strives to actively accompany the CoFoE by helping to convince citizens to express themselves in this pan-European democratic process and bring forward the reformations that citizens are demanding towards a more democratic and sovereign Europe”, says Sandro GOZI, UEF President.

In addition, #makeEuropeBloom has also been devised as a response to the invitation “to set up a New European Bauhaus”, that Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, launched in her State of the Union Address of 16 September 2020. “I want NextGenerationEU to kickstart a European renovation wave and make our Union a leader in the circular economy. But this is not just an environmental or economic project: it needs to be a new cultural project for Europe. Every movement has its own look and feel. And we need to give our systemic change its own distinct aesthetic – to match style with sustainability. This is why we will set up a new European Bauhaus – a co-creation space where architects, artists, students, engineers, designers work together to make that happen”.

Arts to illuminate the European project
“UEF, combining arts and politics, strives with this project to remind all the peoples of Europe that the European integration project aims to develop their common living space and help them realise that their exchanges go far beyond the cold economic sphere, as a follow-up of the long lasting European common civilisation, by leaning on the citizens’ hearts, minds, senses and artistic sensibilities”, explains François MENNERAT, UEF Executive Board member and legal representative of the project.

A hand out to “lay” citizens
“The intention here is to reach out to those persons who appear to be persistently far away from the European perspective and from the debates triggered around the future of Europe. It thus targets, not the big capitals or the privileged quarters of urban centres, but rather deprived or peripheral areas that are still away from the European conversations. It seeks to involve those who live there, starting with the preparation of the events, in full co-operation with the local authorities and the elected representatives”, concludes François MENNERAT.

To reach its goal, UEF distributed ahead of our presence in Valencia an online survey, in which organisations of all kinds, from political parties, trade unions, neighbourhood councils to individual citizens contributed with their ideas and responses on the symbols, shapes and colours that could best capture their feelings and emotions about European democracy, which was the central theme of the pictorial work, and the future of Europe.

“With this mural, which will have a duration of at least seven years, not only has it been possible to create an innovative language by and for the EU from a contemporary and urban perspective, but it has also led to a reflection widely shared by ordinary citizens and sectors linked to education, tourism, culture, industry and think tanks on the EU and its institutions. This is how we believe we have set an example on how the future of Europe should be built”, states Alejandra ALMARCHA, UEF Secretariat Director.

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The inauguration of our mural in Valencia was attended by neighbours of La Plata, an area between the sophisticated City of Arts and Sciences of Valencia and a modest working-class neighbourhood, as well as UEF President & MEP Sandro GOZI, urban artist Antonyo MAREST, UEF Vice-President & MEP Domènec RUIZ DEVESA, Vice-President Luisa TRUMELLINI, Secretary-General Anna ECHTERHOFF and contemporary art curator Fran PICAZO.

Among the prominent European and local personalities that paid a visit: UEF Federal Committee member & Vice-President of the European Parliament Fabio Massimo CASTALDO, Co-Chair of the Conference on the Future of Europe & MEP Guy VERHOFSTADT, Mayor of Valencia Joan RIBÓ, Minister for Culture of the Government of Valencia Vicent MARZÀ, Director for Culture and Heritage of the Government of Valencia Carmen AMORAGA, former President of the European Parliament & current President of UEF Spain Enrique BARÓN, President of the European Movement in Spain Francisco ALDECOA, Regional Secretary for the European Union and External Relations of the Government of Valencia Joan CALABUIG, Vice-Director of the European Parliament Liaison Office in Madrid Juergen FOECKING and President of JEF Spain Doina STRATU.

Among all the remarkable speeches pronounced on that day, we would like to recall the Conference Co-Chair VERHOFSTADT’s encouraging words: “The EU is more than a single market or a political union, we share a common European culture.This kind of project must become Europe’s trademark. And I am convinced that the most innovative proposals to come out of the Conference will be those on how to boost European humanism, thought, art and lifestyle. […] Let’s spread our way of living and thinking through art in the framework of the CoFoE!”.

You can also share your ideas and feelings on the Valencia mural in the CoFoE digital platform, within the Democracy section.

*Media appearances:

  1. El futuro de Europa florece ya desde la Nueva Bauhaus y la CoFoE, Alejandra ALMARCHA. Huffington Post.
  2. Los federalistas europeos aterrizan en Valencia con un mural gigante, Lucas MARCO. elDiario.es.
  3. L'artista Antonyo Marest pinta a València un mural dedicat a la democràcia, Montse CATALÀ. À Punt.
  4. Valencia alberga el primer mural del proyecto Make Europe Bloom: the Time is Now!. Qué!
  5. El artista alicantino Antonyo Marest pinta un mural en València financiado por el Parlamento Europeo, Carlos ARCAYA. Cadena SER Alicante.
  6. València acull el primer mural del projecte ‘Make Europe Bloom’, sobre una de les façanes del Museu Faller. Ajuntament de València.
  7. València estrena mural “Make Europe Bloom: the Time is now!. El Turista Digital.
  8. València, Durham, Las Vegas: tras los pasos de Marest antes de ir Panamá, la próxima parada, Daniel TEROL. Alicante Plaza.
f44547db 42a0 5992 f236 991774bea658 - UEF

Coalition Treaty between Social Democrats, Greens and Liberals in Germany published

With the title "Dare to make more Progress - Alliance for freedom, justice and sustainability", the representatives of the Sozial Demokratische Partei Deutschlands (SPD), BÜNDNIS 90/DIE GRÜNEN and Freien Demokraten (FDP) presented their Coalition Treaty on 24 November 2021, after around a month of negotiations. The 178-page Treaty is intended to form the basis for cooperation between the three parties, which want to build the federal government for the next four years.

The seventh of a total of 9 chapters deals with "Germany's responsibility for Europe and the world." As in view of inhabitants largest Member State, Germany should assume its special responsibility in a serving understanding for the EU as a whole. This means that German interests should be defined in the light of European interests, according to the three parties.

One of the most ambitious goals of the so-called "traffic light coalition" is the further development of the European Union in crucial areas: for example, the Conference on the Future of Europe should lead to a constitutional convention and to a further development into a European Federation, organized decentrally also according to the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality and based on the Charter of Fundamental Rights. "The Union of European Federalists very much welcomes the clear commitment of the coalition partners to the creation of a European Federation. The call for the creation of a European Federation is our core petition that we, together with our Sections, have been calling for since our foundation 75 years ago," says Sandro GOZI, President of the UEF and MEP. "It seems that the coalition partners have read our position papers, as the coalition treaty contains further UEF positions, which one can find, summarized most recently in our Appeal 'Our federal Europe - sovereign and democratic.' This Appeal has already been supported and signed by more than 500 high-ranking politicians and personalities and is still open for signatures. I invite the representatives of the parties of the coalition treaty but also the representatives of the other pro-European parties in the German Bundestag to sign the Appeal."

Furthermore, the coalition partners intend to strengthen the role of the European Parliament, especially the right of legislative initiative. The right of legislative initiative has been requested by the UEF at the last Plenary of the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE). The coalition treaty contains also the call of a European electoral law with strong Spitzenkandidaten and transnational lists. "A unified European electoral law with transnational lists will lead to the formation of real European parties" underlines Sandro GOZI. "The clear positioning in the coalition treaty is encouraging with regard to future negotiations in the Council. In the European Parliament, we are currently discussing the Report on the Electoral Law that UEF Vice-President and MEP Domènec RUIZ DEVESA has drafted as Rapporteur."

Moreover, there is a positive particular focus on democracy and the rule of law in the coalition treaty. The European Commission is called upon to use and enforce existing rule of law instruments more consistently and in a timely manner. Liberal democracies are to be empowered to better fend off disinformation, fake news, campaigns, propaganda from as well as manipulation from within and outside the country. Unanimity in the Council should to be replaced by majority decisions, at least in foreign and security policy and the European External Action Service should be reformed and strengthened; a true EU foreign minister should replace the High Representative. Priority should be given to the Community method, but where necessary, progress is to be made only with individual Member States.

The calls and commitments towards a strong European Union and to European sovereignty in the coalition treaty of the Social Democrats, Greens and Liberals coincide in many points with the positions of the UEF. The goals are ambitious and promising. Germany can thus bring new momentum and new impetus to the necessary further deepening of the European Union. The coalition treaty has thus also raised hopes and expectations. The task now is to turn words into deeds.

You can read the German version here.

The nEUres project, Nonviolent European Resistance, was born in October 2019 from the Nonviolent Movement in Italy. Its purpose was that of spreading information on the history of Nonviolent resistance to Nazi-fascim in Europe among young people as a starting point for reflection on Civil Society. Contrary to popular belief, Nonviolent resistance does not mean only pacifism, but also the ability to be proactive on a daily basis through refusal to obey certain laws or governmental demands, with the aim of influencing the legislation or government policy. Refusal and opposition are characterised by the use of non-violent techniques such as boycotts, picketing, non-payment of taxes, and failure or refusal to cooperate.

Passing through six countries, Italy, Austria, Hungary, North Macedonia, Romania and Spain, it was possible to impart knowledge, and encourage a transnational discussion on the forms of organised and unorganized Nonviolent resistance to Nazi-fascism. The educators responsible for sharing this knowledge were trained during the first of the three planned modules, which, ideally, are expected to end with an international conference in Turin.

Despite the fact that the pandemic forced nEUres partners to resort to hybrid and/or remote ways of conducting both the workshops and the 72-hour training course, the partner organisations achieved the training objectives. The workshops dedicated to the younger generation focused on ways to reinforce Nonviolent resistance: to impart historical knowledge of cases of Nonviolent resistance in the 20th century; to enhance the capacity for critical reflection and reading of historical events from a Nonviolent perspective; to improve the analysis of conflicts, power dynamics and leadership in order to facilitate action on Nonviolent principles and techniques.

nEUres builds on Gandhi's teachings through his satyagraha (force of truth), distinguishing itself from the passive Nonviolence movements of those who prefer not to intervene and follows Martin Luther King Jr.'s six principles of Nonviolence. But nEUres and the values of freedom, peace, justice, democracy and coexistence are deeply European. We see these Values in the actions of the men and women who laid the foundations for contemporary Europe. The protagonists of this heritage would today have a European passport. Examples of these are: Jan Palach, a socialist student from Czechia who died by setting himself on fire in protest as a symbol of the anti-Soviet resistance of the Prague Spring in 1968; Hannah Arendt from Germany who, through writing, resisted and recounted Nazi persecution; Marek Edelman from Poland, an activist and politician who took part in the Warsaw ghetto uprising and later became a militant in Solidarnosc; Celeste Caeiro, a Portuguese worker, who distributed and inserted carnations into the barrels of the rifles during the 1974 revolution. These are just a few of the Founding Mothers and Fathers of the idea of Europe as a project of hope and peace.

What does it mean to be Nonviolent in Europe today?

Today, the Nonviolent struggle means defending life, dignity, and the rights of all human beings. The fight for peace is also the fight for a more sustainable and solidarity-based future, as well as the fight against climate change. The latter started with Alexander Langer, one of the first to take the issue of ecological transition to Europe. Today, Nonviolence means the strikes of young people on Fridays for Future, a global movement for climate and environmental justice driven by young Europeans. Greta Thunberg, sitting outside the Swedish parliament during school hours in her "School Strike for the Climate" was the first to set the example. Nonviolence today means opposing exploitation, as Irene reminds us in the Italian workshop "an example of Nonviolent resistance today are the worker- riders who struggle to obtain decent working conditions". Nonviolence today means opposing sovereignist and populist logics, for a Europe of solidarity and welcoming.
It is "the everyday struggle of migrants against xenophobia", says Muscas to his companions of the Hungarian workshop. Dignity and equality are the keywords.

Nonviolent resistance today is, therefore, also opposition to war and violence, racism and all forms of persecution, exploitation and oppression. It is fundamental to oppose weapons and armed organisations, and it is imperative to choose the path of truth to achieve peace. nEUres aims, through its activities, to keep alive the memory of the past in order to look with more clarity towards the future and to have the strength to act against violence in the present. The beliefs on which this project rests can be traced back to the words of Aldo Capitini, founder of the Nonviolent Movement, who stated in 1940 "to work for a liberal and social Europe, without conservatism and particularism […] for tomorrow (regardless of the outcome) the principle of a supranational economic and cultural community". In 1940 Europe was in the midst of a world war. It was unthinkable to talk about peace, and even less so a Union of States. Yet, from Ventotene to Brussels, Europe is humanity's
greatest peace project and boasts more than 70 years of peace in one of the most fragmented and quarrelsome continents.

Today, more than ever, the European Union must be democratic, federalist and a beacon for the green and digital transitions. The crises brought upon by the financial crash of 2008, the migration flows of 2015- 2016, the rise of national populism, the 2016 Brexit referendum, the Covid-19 pandemic or climate change require a paradigm shift for the survival of the Union from national selfishness to a revival of the project of Altiero Spinelli and Ernesto Rossi, that in a bitter-tasting spring like this one, wrote the Ventotene Manifesto. The manifesto was then spread across the continent thanks to the commitment of some colleagues, including Ursula Hirschmann and Ada Rossi. It is a forward-looking manifesto, which has remained relevant 81 years after its first edition and has the great merit of bringing together the ideas of three great philosophers, Kant, Robbins and Lord Lothian and of proposing new policies that have given birth to the European Federalist Movement.

A movement that was not born in the palaces of power, but within the walls of a cold house on a small island where dozens of opponents had been sent into exile by the fascist regime. A project born from a common conscience, from young people who dedicated their lives to build an idea that today lies in our hands and is our responsibility to defend: the idea of a Free and United Europe.

Written by Cecilia Comastri, UEF Project Assistant - July 2021

You can read the article in:

French

German

Hungarian

Italian

North Macedonian

Romanian

Spanish

UEF is delighted to support also this year the Jean Monnet Prize for European Integration. This initiative aims at honoring Jean Monnet’s memory and life achievements. It does so by rewarding talented individuals or groups having contributed to supporting or strengthening European Integration through a project they designed and implemented. The winning project receives a €1,500 grant.

EuropeanConstitution.eu set up the Jean Monnet Prize for European Integration to honor Jean Monnet’s life and dedication to European integration by rewarding projects that support this ideal in a concrete and apolitical manner for European citizens. The Award is under the patronage of the European Parliament and is supported by the following partners in addition to the UEF: College of Europe, Democracy International, Alliance4Europe, Schwarzkopf Foundation, Friends of Europe, European Student’s Union, Spinelli Group, EU40, BBE, European University Association, European Democracy Lab, The Good Lobby and European Alternatives. Where other prizes may reward public figures of high standing, the Jean Monnet Prize focuses on citizens’ personal engagement for Europe and activities that impact the day-to-day life of Europeans.

The Jean Monnet Prize is an open competition. It can reward any project contributing to the strengthening of European integration and of the European spirit. The Jean Monnet Prize does not reward projects that have yet to be implemented or that seek funding in order to start their implementation, this is to meant to improve the assessment of the project’s concrete impact for citizens.

There are no criteria imposed on the applicants and UEF encourages all to apply, in particular young people, women and disenfranchised groups. The application process is entirely free, and no expenses are asked of participants at any point.

2021 edition of the Prize

The call for applications will be open from 9 September to 9 October, and the results unveiled on 9 November — the anniversary of Jean Monnet’s birth.

All applications must be made online here.

No paper or email applications will be considered. Given the promising mobilisation for the Conference on the Future of Europe, we are convinced that 2021 will be a tremendous year for citizens' engagement.

For any further information you can contact EuropeanConstitution.eu at this mail.

After the sudden withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan that calls into question its ability to assure the European defense, and that further increases instability on the EU's borders and accentuates the need for Europe to assume responsibility for its own security. Following the recent meeting between Mario Draghi, President of the Council of the Italian Republic, and Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic, after which France and Italy have expressed their intention to promote an initiative to overcome the right of veto in the European defense sector.

The President of the Union of European Federalists and Member of the European Parliament, Sandro GOZI, urges for a determined improvement of the EU foreign, security and defense policy.

The intergovernmental method prevailing within the EU can’t produce a European defence and prevents any democratic control of a European force. Consequently, Sandro GOZI asks for qualified majority voting in foreign policy to be put on the EU agenda as soon as possible, as requested by the Meseberg declaration.

If there is no agreement at 27, the available countries should go ahead with the procedure of enhanced co-operation, open to the member States that want to join later. Accordingly, until defence eventually becomes a common policy of a Federal European Union, the European Council, in the format of the countries available for an enhanced co-operation on foreign policy, should meet as a European Security Council.

In order to enable the EU to perform the so-called Petersberg missions, the EU needs to establish a permanent military operational headquarters for planning, command and control of European missions. Moreover, UEF President calls for the establishment, in case an enhanced cooperation prevails, of a European intervention force in addition to the national armies or, as an alternative, the integration, in EU treaties, of the Eurocorps, putting it under the control of the European Parliament and of the EU military committee (EUMC). In this regard, the European Defense Fund - to be truly instrumental - needs a substantially increased budget through a EU own resource.

Sandro GOZI invites the Conference on the future of Europe to include the conclusions of the Strategic compass to be approved in the spring of next year, in the conclusions of the Conference, in order that the French presidency of the European semester takes the initiative to establish the European “first entry force” as proposed by 14 European member States and supported by the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, to provide, if necessary, Treaty changes allowing qualified majority voting on foreign affairs and defense in the Council and allowing for the introduction of a European “first entry force”, controlled by the European Parliament and the Council.

Europe must use the opportunity of the Conference on the Future of Europe to change and become able to take responsibility

"The survival of the EU depends on its ability to adapt to external changes. In this respect, the tragedy in Afghanistan is a litmus test also for us", says Sandro GOZI, President of the Union of European Federalists (UEF) and MEP for Renew Europe. "As Europeans", continues GOZI, "we have a duty to shoulder our responsibilities. We can choose whether to manage or suffer the migratory flows from Afghanistan, which in any case exist and will exist. If we choose to suffer them, without an effective policy to manage them, it will be a political and moral disaster. This is why we cannot afford to wait until all the countries agree to accept the refugees; we would only waste time, there will always be a few governments against. The time has come to take responsibility for deciding by majority vote, involving a group of countries and using EU funds. If we decide together it will be easy to manage the phenomenon, there will be no invasion. If we wait for unanimity we will remain prisoners of our impotence".

"In this moment the EU", continues GOZI, "is committed to the process of the Conference on the future of Europe, to discuss without taboos the changes needed to adapt Europe's capacity to act to the challenges of the present day. It is clear that what is happening in Afghanistan should also make us reflect. The United States has been criticised, but NATO's indecision and improvisation are also blatant. This means that we Europeans must become autonomous and acquire the ability to fight to protect our values and interests. The goal we must set ourselves is to build a European sovereignty, through a federal political union, proceeding with the states that believe in this project. Concretely, this means to share at European level some key competences in the economic and political fields, to create a federal budget, to build a real common foreign policy - starting from the ever-closer cooperation to prepare also in this field the federal transition - and to create an army of the European Union, to achieve a proper strategic autonomy in defense and security."

"The Conference on the future of Europe", GOZI concludes, "is an opportunity that we cannot risk missing, all the more so when a tragedy like this one of the Afghan people shows us the urgency to change in order to act and take control of the political processes. Our political future and our very civilization are really at stake".

An art-project organised by the Union of European Federalists and co-funded by the European Parliament

Abstract

MAKE EUROPE BLOOM: the Time is Now! (project website here) is a project organised by the Union of European Federalists and co-funded by the European Parliament.

This project is being carried out in the context of a political campaign at both European and national levels to raise awareness on the importance of the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE), as a framework in which to advance the reforms that can create the conditions and changes that citizens are demanding.

Officially launched on Europe Day 2021 together with our Appeal "Our Federal Europe: sovereign and democratic", MAKE EUROPE BLOOM: the Time is Now! is carrying out activities in different European cities. Murals are being created until June 2022 all across Europe.

Building on President of the Commission Ursula von der Leyen’s 2020 State of the Union speech, this project is also contributing to setting up the New European Bauhaus by mirroring citizens’ feelings on Europe through art.

In order to meet our innovative approach, we count on renown urban artists that accompany us to the locations helping us to make Europe bloom with their art. Our idea is based on replicating a series of the large-scale “The Future is Europe” mural on Rue de la Loi in the European neighborhood of Brussels. This time, the murals are being drawn in places where EU-related conversations do not normally happen.

From Creation to Dissemination

  1. PRE-PRODUCTION: an online survey is distributed to local and intergenerational participants, local artists and those who wish to participate in this activity through our national sections and partners. Artists then create something from the results of the survey;
  2. PRODUCTION: the mural is finalised with the participation of locals. UEF liaises with local authorities, EP (liaison) offices, chambers of commerce and local private entities in order to place the murals in the most effective and visible places.

Venues that host the murals are visited by Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), national decision makers and representatives from civil society. A cross-party group of MEPs, especially members of UEF Europe and The Spinelli Group in the European Parliament, and those from the country or region concerned are encouraged to participate in each local event.

A final report will be written and translated into English, French, German, Spanish, Italian and the local languages of the events. The final content will be shared and disseminated in our network. Likewise, we plan to organize an exhibition in the European Parliament with the graphic content from this project, making into a virtual exhibition on our website.

Doing so will not we only bring Conference on the Future of Europe (#CoFoE) debates to locations where they do not normally take place, it will also serve our organisation, huge networks of our own sections, our partner CSOs, and the European Parliament to identify citizens’ political needs and how to communicate them better in the EU bubble.

The murals

The four murals are painted in:

“We have taken the first step in the creation of the federalist caucus of national and European parliamentarians who share the view that the Conference on the Future of Europe is an opportunity to transform the EU”, said MEP Brando BENIFEI, President of the Spinelli Group, summing up the more than two hours of open and fruitful debate that took place last Friday with colleagues from Member States. "This was a successful kick-off. I am delighted by the great interest from national parliaments".

"We have fought hard to get the Conference. Now we have to make the most of it. This means also no taboos on its outcome. That is also why we need to mobilize federalist and pro-European forces across Europe," said MEP Sandro GOZI, President of the UEF and Board Member of the Spinelli Group. In this perspective, he also stressed "the dialogue between the European Parliament and the national parliaments is crucial, both to exert political pressure on governments and to bring the debate to the local and regional level”.

The meeting was organized by the Spinelli Group, in cooperation with the Union of European Federalists (UEF), who invited the federalist and pro-European members of the parliaments of the Member States to its Plenary Session on 16 April 2021. The meeting was attended by a large group of national MPs from many EU countries, as for instance from Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Romania and Spain. The Plenary Session was also attended by the Presidents and Secretary Generals of the UEF Member Sections.

MEP Guy VERHOFSTADT, Co-Chair of the Executive Board from the European Parliament's side, also attended the meeting, stressing the need for the EU to grow stronger – not only to cope with the pandemic or the economic crisis, but because otherwise we could not do it in front of today’s superpower. He also called on all federalist and pro-European forces and activists to engage actively in the newly launched online platform, which he presented yesterday, 19 April 2021 in a live press conference, encouraging them to submit their events, their positions and comments, thus feeding into the discussion process, up to the Conference Plenary Assembly.

The many interventions in the debate confirmed the common will to work in order to make the process of the Conference a political game changer for Europe. As MEP Domènec RUIZ DEVESA, Vice-President of UEF and Board Member of the Spinelli Group, summarized it “Our goal is to build the federal economic and political Union that will make the current fiscal union established with the decision on the Next Generation EU permanent and fully democratic”.

The next meeting of this newly launched network will be organised soon and will be focused on identifying the political priorities to be put at the forefront of its battle.

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