A twofold awakening

The political summits of the second half of the month of June will no longer hit front pages of national newspapers. Neither the G8 summit of June 17-18 nor the European Council of June 27-28 will trigger passionate reactions. TV networks will to their duty, namely, by broadcasting beautiful footage of Lough Enre, on the border of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland for the first event along with the smiles of the EU heads of government and state gathered in Brussels for the second meeting. But the event will remain unnoticed by the large audience, to whom the event could even cause feelings of disillusionment. These behaviours may appear unjustified, given the importance of the items of the debate, but they are understandable. These summits are perceived as distant and out of the reach of citizens. Present government leaders seem far from expressing "those thoughts, which long before having been expressed, dwelled in the hearts of peoples". (Simone Weil).On the agenda of the G8 meeting in the United Kingdom figures the promotion of global trade understood as an engine for growth and for job opportunities. A major initiative is expected to promote the automatic exchange of information on tax revenue and to step up the accuracy of information provided by multinationals to tax authorities. Finally, the G8 leaders will present initiatives to increase transparency of income from extraction industries. In short, these are issues which only NGOs have dealt with for years. As relates to the end of June European summit, in 2012 it had been described as a strategic time to strengthen cooperation on economic reforms and to improve awareness of the social dimension of the Eurozone. The presentation of reciprocal contracts projects between monetary union Countries is also possible, as contract projects were conceived as a form of financial support for major structural reforms. G8 leaders are set to address the question of banking union, while with the worsening of the crisis and the elimination of youth unemployment is the primary item on the agenda of the meeting. This impressive list is enough to underline the exceptional contribution of the summit to an ever more integrated euro zone. Moreover, a feeble reaction on the part of the population at large is only to be expected. Not to mention the fact that the G8 meetings are always cryptic. Philosopher Simone Weil wrote in 1943 a set of reflections for general De Gaulle, which were eventually published with the title The need for roots. What the philosopher wrote 70 years ago on the art of governance is still true today: "No action is ever implemented in the absence of batteries capable of providing the needed amounts of energy. Wanting to lead human beings – others or oneself – towards goodness, showing the way without ensuring sufficient energy, is like putting the foot on the accelerator of a car without fuel".European motivations, European consciences need to be awakened. Just as we confide that participants in high-level meetings intend to promote justice and solidarity, in the same way it should be acknowledged that at the beginning of summer 2013 no message resounds in people’s hearts. At present, the person who best expresses the feelings of Europeans comes from Argentina. We shall only mention what Pope Francis said past May 26: "The idols of power, profit, money, over and above the value of the human person, has become a basic mode of operation and decisive criterion in organization. It is forgotten and people still forget that above the business logic and parameters of the marketplace, there is the human being and there is something which is due to man, by virtue of his profound dignity: the opportunity to live with dignity and participate actively in the common good".