Why this “charter”?

“Europe will be more democratic with the Treaty of Lisbon, because citizens will have the power of petition” to promote new EU laws and policies, declared Margot Wallstrom, Vice-President of the European Commission, in addressing with great conviction the Forum on the future of Europe recently held in Dublin. Ireland will be the only country to ratify the new treaty through a referendum, and the debate on the question is taking place with the considerable involvement of public opinion. On the contrary, the debate is languishing in the rest of the EU: the ratification by parliamentary means decided by all the other member states will probably produce a positive result, but it tends to alienate citizens from the new “fundamental charter”.Twelve points to explain Lisbon. Margot Wallstrom arrived in the Irish capital on 28 February. To the participants in the Forum on Europe she gave an upbeat speech, as she often does in touring the length and breadth of the EU in her role as “ambassador” of integration (she also holds the Commission’s portfolio for “strategy of communication”). She spelt out twelve key points that would make the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon advantageous for citizens, for member states and for the EU itself. They include: greater safeguards guaranteed to citizens thanks to the charter of Fundamental Rights annexed to the Treaty; the increased role of national Parliaments, with the power to block any EU norms in conflict with the principle of subsidiarity; and greater importance assigned to the European Parliament with the extension of the power of co-decision. “Brussels isn’t a monster”. The Swedish Commissioner also spoke of improved capacity for EU intervention in sectors that closely impact on citizens’ daily life, such as security, energy and the protection of the environment. She insisted that, thanks to the Treaty, the EU would be “more transparent” in its decisions and closer to citizens, and that “it would no longer be possible to depict Brussels as a monster that subtracts power from national governments”. Prudently, the Vice-President of the Commission skated over the fact that the EU would continue not to have a single shared foreign policy, and, to the delight of her audience, recognized that the power of veto on various sectors, such as welfare policy and tax – questions on which member states would continue to have a free hand – had not been abolished at Lisbon. Five ratifications, lack of debate. If in Ireland – a country that has greatly benefited from membership of the Community and just for this reason has developed a high level of “euro-enthusiasm” – there’s no shortage of occasions to discuss the Lisbon Treaty, in the other 26 member states there’s been a lack of debate. The national procedures for ratification are continuing: five national parliaments have already given the green light (Hungary, Slovenia, Malta, France and Romania), others are about to do so: 27 “yes” votes are necessary for the new Treaty to come into force on 1st January 2009. Since the text of the Treaty has been removed from popular judgement, discussion has mainly focused on what politicians will occupy the command posts in the EU identified by the text: the “permanent” President of the EU Council, the foreign policy chief, and the next President of the Commission, a post due to fall vacant next year. Internet helping to promote integration. For this reason the Commission is multiplying occasions to “explain” the Treaty, through forums, conferences, books and pamphlets, radio and television broadcasts, competitions for schools… The medium most used however is the Internet: the EU has created many sites to “publicise” the Lisbon Treaty, with fact files and blogs. In particular the website www.europa.eu/lisbon_treaty contains the complete text of the Treaty in all the official languages of the Union, related documentation, updates on the situation of national ratifications, and announcements and results of events realized in the 27 member states on the question. “In a constantly changing, ever more interconnected world, Europe is grappling with new issues: globalization, demographic shifts, climate change….”, says the website. “By acting as one, Europe can deliver results and respond to the concerns of the public”. “When European leaders reached agreement on the new rules, they were thinking of the political, economic and social changes going on, and the need to live up to the hopes and expectations of the European public”. The Treaty “will alter the structure of the EU’s institutions and how they work. As a result, the EU will be more democratic and its core values better served”. Questions and answers. The most interesting and curious parts of the website are however two: first, “the Treaty at a glance”, with a simplified presentation of the text; and second, “Questions and answers”, where citizens can find answers to such questions as: “why Europe needs the treaty”, “how it will change citizens’ lives”, what are the main institutional changes introduced at Lisbon, whether “the treaty provides for the creation of an army” or whether it “will weaken social advances in the EU”.