Constitutional Treaty awaited” “” “

A Europe that places among its founding values the dignity of the person, the equality of human beings, freedom and respect for reason, and that is inspired “by the cultural, religious and humanistic inheritance” of the continent (having decided to pass over in silence the Christian roots of its history). A community of peoples and states that aspires to have a single “voice” on the international stage, but that within itself is blocked in various sectors by the persistence of the unanimous vote. The Constitutional Treaty (or more simply the Constitution), which gives juridical personality to the EU, was approved during the European Council of Brussels on 17-18 June 2004. After the official signing of the document (Rome, Campidoglio, 29 October 2004), the next step is to proceed to its ratification by all 25 member states of the EU, either by parliamentary means or through popular referendums. Assuming there are no setbacks, the Constitution will come into force no earlier than 2006 or 2007. FROM THE CONVENTION TO THE COUNCIL OF BRUSSELS. The Constitution is the result of the work of the European Convention on the future of Europe (2002-2003), an Intergovernmental Conference (2003-2004) and various European Councils. Among the elements that characterise the voluminous document – running to some 400 articles – we should recall the growth of the legislative powers of the European Parliament, the reinforcement of the Commission, the extension of Community policies, the creation of the role of “permanent” President of the European Council (elected for a term of two and a half years) and EU Foreign Minister, who will also be vice-president of the Commission. The Constitution, however, maintains a strongly “intergovernmental” character: it prescribes that on various matters (for example, foreign policy, taxation, some key issues of social policy and immigration) the decisions of national governments, expressed in Council, should prevail over “Community” positions, usually represented by the European Parliament and the Commission. THE “motto” IN THE PREAMBLE; NO “CHRISTIAN ROOTS”. The Constitutional Treaty opens with a Preamble, in which (among other things) it is affirmed that “Europe is a continent that has brought forth civilization; that its inhabitants, arriving in successive waves from earliest times, have gradually developed the values underlying humanism: equality of persons, freedom, respect for reason”. Then the Preamble speaks of the “cultural, religious and humanistic inheritance of Europe”. It also provides a “motto” of the Union, “unity in diversity”, which is added to other symbols of the Twenty-Five: the blue flag with the twelve gold stars, Beethoven’s Hymn of Joy and the “Festival of Europe”, annually celebrated on 9 May. It is just in the Preamble that various authorities (first and foremost John Paul II) had asked for an explicit citation of the “Christian roots” of Europe, on which no agreement was reached. YES TO PEACE AND SECURITY; no TO SOCIAL EXCLUSION. Article 2 is devoted to the values of the EU: “The Union is based on the values of human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights”. Article 3 spells out the aims that the nations that belong to the “common home” pledge to pursue: “The Union resolves to promote peace, its values and the well-being of its peoples. The Union offers its citizens a space of freedom, security and justice without internal frontiers and a single market in which competition is free and unrestricted”. In this sense the EU works for the sustainable development of Europe and combats social exclusion. In the world the EU intends to pursue peace, security and sustainable development and to act according to the principle of solidarity. ALL THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF THE CITIZENS OF THE UNION. The Constitution then sanctions the fundamental rights and defines the principle of “European citizenship” that “is added to national citizenship and does not replace it”. In the same part of the document are also defined the functions of the Union and its institutional framework; the role of the individual EU institutions are also defined. The document also incorporates (in Part II) the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the Union (dignity, freedom, equality, solidarity, citizenship and justice), already approved at Nice in 2000.