Year of citizens: active participation"For us, active citizenship means primarily active involvement of citizens as participation in the life of their communities, and thus in democracy, in terms of activity and decision-making". The passage is taken from the ‘Manifesto" endorse by some fifty associations for 2013, in the framework of the European Year of Citizens. European civil society organisations have created a civil society Alliance aiming to highlight the significance of the Year, to mark the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the European Union Citizenship under the Maastricht Treaty, November 1st 1993. "Active citizenship – states the document published on the website http://ey2013-alliance.eu/ – is more than giving to charity, voting at elections or volunteering. Definitions of participation that focus on political participation or a narrow understanding of volunteering fail to capture the diversity of people’s engagement across Europe". "To give active European citizenship its full meaning and scope, and to help downsize the gap between citizens and the EU institutions, it is necessary to take account of the new prospects opened up by Article 11 of the Treaty on the European Union for citizens’ participation in the democratic life of the European Union". According to the Alliance, active citizenship includes the exercise of fundamental rights, participation to democratic life and elections, "civil dialogue", involvement in local governance issues, measures aimed at social inclusion. The document goes on: "Participatory democracy meets the present-day needs of European democratic governance across the Union by supplementing and reinforcing representative democracy". "Involving organised civil society in policy-shaping and the preparations of decisions strengthens the democratic legitimacy of public institutions, of their work and activities". Moreover, the Lisbon Treaty "has a decisive potential to be particularly important", for an "open, transparent and regular dialogue" between Europe’s governing bodies and civil society aiming at ending the "democratic deficit" voiced by critics, while providing active European citizenship".Marseille and Koice: European Capitals of Culture"The European Capital of Culture has been a fantastic EU success story for more than 25 years: the title is a unique opportunity to boost a city’s cultural vibrancy and long-term development, as well as being hugely important for tourism, job creation and urban regeneration". Androulla Vassiliou, EU Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth, announced that Marseille (France) and Koice (Slovakia) are the Capitals of European Culture 2013. The respective programs for the Year will be inaugurated on 12-13 and 19-20 January. Vassiliou added: "This is the moment that Marseille and Koice have been preparing for. The opening events will mark the beginning of what will be a tremendous year of cultural activities, aimed not only at local people from the city and surrounding region, but also at those coming from much further afield". In particular, "Marseilles-Provence 2013" will be inaugurated on 12 and 13 January 2013 with four festive highlights: a public opening ceremony in Marseille, the opening of a contemporary art exhibition in Aix-en-Provence, a treasure hunt in Marseille-Provence and a fireworks display in Arles. Koice will open its festivities, on 19 and 20 January at various locations of the city, including the State Theatre, the Steel Arena, the Podium as well as various cultural venues. The local authorities of Koice "will profile the city as the crossing of old routes between East and West".European parliament, a year in picturesFrom the election of the new President of the Assembly (German Martin Schulz replaced Polish Jerzy Buzek), which took place January 17, 2012, to the awarding in Oslo of the Nobel Prize for Peace, December 10 last year. The activity of the European Parliament for the year 2012 is contained in these two dates (EP activity resumes after the Christmas break, January 7, with preparations for the plenary session January 14 to 17), represented in a photo gallery on www.europarl.europa.eu website. MEPs were engaged on the side of the response to the economic crisis, but they have also engaged in several confrontations with the EU Council of Ministers on the closure of the 2012 budget, the definition of the 2013 budget and the multiannual financial framework for the period 2014-2020, postponed to 2013. But Parliament focused also on the single European patent, agricultural policy, citizens’ rights and consumer protection. It has approved several resolutions in the field of fundamental rights, in which the question of freedom of religion and worship both in Europe and in the rest of the world emerged with increasing urgency.
