European elections ” “”Gray zones”

The European Parliament elections of May 22-25 are marked by well-defined features, along with open issues and some “gray zones”. It’s clear, for example, that 400 million voters, in one of the world’s most challenging tests in democracy (maybe second only to Indian elections), will elect 751 MEPs who will animate the European Parliament, an institution with legislative and budgetary functions, representing EU28 Member countries, for the next five years. Within the complex institutional architecture of the EU, which includes also Council and Commission, the hemicycle in Strasbourg has also the responsibility of “monitoring democratic life”, as stipulated in the Treaties. From this perspective the EP’s powers and responsibilities have increased in recent years, to the point that, as provided for in the Treaties, the vote will influence the choice of the next president of the EU Commission. Another unquestionable aspect regards the timing of the elections. Greatly because of the economic downturn and of its severe repercussions, which have been afflicting the Old Continent for the past six years, Euroscepticism has spread at a fast pace. In fact, the EU is deemed responsible for the management of the crisis, forgetting that it was precisely the EU – called into question by Member States – that tried to remedy fiscal imbalances. Short-term interventions were carried out to rescue bankrupting States, while other long-term measures have been adopted to prevent equally dangerous crises from breaking out in the future. Such Euroscepticism is one of the elements that mantle the election with questions: how many voters will go to the polls? How substantial will be the phenomenon of abstention, which usually represents disappointment and detachment on the part of citizens with regard to politics, in this case tEuropean politics? How much weight will political formations variously described as anti-European, nationalist or populist carry in the polling stations, and in the composition of the future Assembly? And once they take office, will these forces ally with each other to fight the construction of a united Europe, or will they act in broken ranks, losing, in fact, the ability to influence the decisions of the EU? There is a further aspect that the ongoing electoral campaign has not yet clarified. Both on the “pro-European” side (including several national parties that declare affiliation with the political families of the EPP, Socialists and Democrats, the Greens and the Liberal Democrats), and on the “europerplexed” front as well as the most “anti-European” parties (the French National Front, the British Independents, the 5 Stars Movement and the Northern League in Italy, the True Finns, just to name a few…), it is not always clear which European project is supported: Federalist? Confederalist? Strengthening or lessening the powers of Parliament and the Commission? With a higher or leaner EU budget? Call for an extension of ECB powers or not? Election time is only a few days away. It’s time to speak out. To say on which side they stand. Political parties should make it known along with their national leaders, heads of government and State. Citizens should be aware of the various positions and of what is at stake. It will be up to citizens to decide who they support – identifying the path to promote integration, respectful of the principle of “unity in diversity”, founded on the values of solidarity and subsidiarity, or the path of a return to nation-States, in full ownership of their own sovereignty, never alone, ever lonelier, before the growing challenges of globalization. Given the upcoming elections, national episcopates, the European bodies of the Christian Churches and a large number of lay associations of several EU countries, have expressed a strong encouragement for the construction of the “common home”, signalling the limits emerged with European integration in order to remove them for a fairer Europe, more open, based on shared values. The sign coming from the Christian Churches in Europe was not expected, and it now takes on a significant added value.