MISSEDLINK

ten Principles for a democratic EU Treaty - ATTAC: LINK ¤ ATTAC

• "the European ATTACs deem the present form of the European Union a serious obstacle to democratic achievements"

 

 

 

 

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• "fundamental rights, social security, and environmental sustainability"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "it suffers from a lack of democracy, legitimacy, and transparency"

 

 

 

 

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• "and is governed by a set of treaties which force (neoliberal) trade policies on member states and the whole world"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "in this situation, it is vital for democracy that social and political movements respond by demanding concrete alternatives for the European construction"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

start a democratic process:

• "any new Treaty shall be elaborated and adopted democratically"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "a new and democratic Assembly, directly elected by the citizens of all European member states"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "shall be mandated to elaborate, with the effective participation of national parliaments, a proposal for a new Treaty"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "any new Treaty should be legitimated by referenda in all member states"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

improve democracy:

• "any new Treaty should be built on the best existing democratic principles"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the present EU is not built on a clear separation of powers and suffers from a deep democratic deficit"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the European Parliament can neither initiate laws nor establish a budget"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "nor does it have a vote in a series of policies despite being the only democratically elected entity at the EU level"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "whereas the Commission, which is not elected, is the only institution that can propose laws"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the principles of any new Treaty shall be:

• "human dignity, rule of law, representative and participatory democracy"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "economic and social justice, social security and inclusion, solidarity"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "gender equality and gender democracy, sustainability, and commitment to peace"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "clear separation of the executive, legislative and judicial powers"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the monopoly of the Commission to propose laws should end. The legislative initiative should be open to all EU institutions and citizens"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the European Parliament should get the right to propose and co-adopt legislation for all EU policies"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "and also the exclusive right to elect and dismiss the EU Commission and its separate members"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the national parliaments should gain an effective role in European (and national) legislation"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the text of a Treaty shall provide a clear description of the competence of the EU"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "and an equally clear statement on the limits of that competence with regard to national states and local authorities"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the European Central Bank (ECB) should be submitted to democratic control"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the main purposes of its monetary policy shall be economic justice, full employment and social security for all European citizens"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "moreover, the Eurogroup should assume its responsibility, authorized by the present Treaties, in defining exchange rate policy"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

install transparency:

• "at present, citizens encounter difficulties in exercising their right to obtain information"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "discussions of the Council and the Permanent Representatives Committee (COREPER) are frequently closed to the public"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "lobbying is a pervasive phenomenon that undermines democracy"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "all meetings, committees and working groups of the Council and the Permanent Representatives"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "should be open to the Public"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "access to information for all European citizens should be guaranteed"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "clear limitations to lobbying should figure in the Treaty as well as mandatory registration and disclosure of interests and financing for all lobbyists"

 

 

 

 

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• "members of the European Parliament, members of the European Commission and members of committees"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "a new Treaty should be short, self-explanatory, and understandable by the common people"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

develop participation and direct democracy:

• "a new institutional Treaty should include the fundamental right to direct participation of citizens in public affairs"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "it should offer understandable, usable and far reaching forms of direct democracy"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "for instance it might propose the following rights: - a certain share of the total population in a certain number of member states can propose a law that is debated and voted on in the European Parliament"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "a certain share of the total population in a certain number of member states can demand that the European Parliament organize a referendum in all member states, and the result of the popular consultation must be binding"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "limitations can be placed on the influence of corporate interest on EU institutions and decision-making through transparency and limitations of privileged access"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "mandatory consultation of social movements and NGOs should instated for all EU legislation, on the same basis as consultation of other interest groups"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the first referendum in all member states of the EU should be the one on the new Treaty"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

improve fundamental rights:

• "any new Treaty should be established on the basis"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "of or as an improvement to the most progressive fundamental rights already existing in international treaties"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "especially the International Bill of Human Rights, the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR)"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the Turin version of the European Social Charter and the European Code of Social Security"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "guaranteeing fundamental rights in the Treaty"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "in the EU "Charter of Fundamental Rights" important basic rights are missing, some are watered down in their wording"

 

 

 

 

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• "strongly limited by the explications in the final act, or cannot be claimed in court"

 

 

 

 

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• "for these reasons, cannot be called fundamental rights"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "fundamental rights as listed in the ECHR, in the European Social Charter and the European Code of Social Security"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "should be enforceable through national or European courts"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the EU should accede to the ECHR"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "so that its institutions are also subject to the European Court of Human Rights"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "it should be explicitely clarified that these fundamental rights as well as the principles of the Treaty"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "take priority over all other EU primary and secondary law"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "fundamental rights should not be restricted by national or EU law or by the personal interpretation of a Convention’s Presidency"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "any new Treaty shall stress that every person should be guaranteed equal access to social and labour rights"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "regardless of the country of origin"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "European citizenship should be given to all residents in Europe"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the aforementioned rights should also be respected in the external policies of the EU (e.g. security policy, migration policy, environmental policy, trade policy)"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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protect and improve democratic achievements:

• "democratic achievements, social, civil and worker’s rights, and rules for the environment and public health"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "are under severe pressure from provisions in earlier and current treaties, especially the principles of "competition" and "liberalization""

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "any new Treaty should not endanger these conquests and give people in Europe, parliaments and governments a tool"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "to further develop these democratic achievements on a cooperative basis"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the right to collective bargaining, the right to strike"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "and ILO core labour standards (International Labour Organization) should be elevated to the status of enforceable fundamental rights"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "each member state should be allowed to adopt and sustain more ambitious rules"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "in areas such as social protection, labour standards, environment, protection of special groups"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the European Union shall consider itself as a cooperative (and not competitive) union"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "whose goal is constantly to improve environmental, social and labour standards"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "in order to fulfil the constitutional principles of social security and sustainability"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "rules to counteract fiscal and social dumping should be established"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "it must be stated that property rights carry obligations and the use of property rights must always simultaneously serve public welfare"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "economic democracy and participation should be improved at all levels"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

offer space for an alternative economic order:

• "any new Treaty should respect the aforementionend fundamental values and democratic principles"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "it should offer space for implementing alternative policies"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "instead of fixing one specific economic model like former treaties did and current treaty do"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "repeatedly stipulating an “open market economy with free and undistorted competition""

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "this has no place either in a constitutional or an institutional treaty"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "whatever economic model and regulation is chosen, should be left to a democratic policy-making process"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "a Treaty should not fix a specific economic model and should allow alternative choices at all levels"

 

 

 

 

 

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• ""free" competition should not be a universal principle of the EU"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the definition of areas where "free" competition is allowed and of those where it does not apply (e.g. supply of potable water, education, health, agriculture)"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "should be decided by democratic processes on national and EU level"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "in no case should such definitions be constitutionalized"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "European law, e.g. competition law, should not undermine the right of member states to define, organize and finance public goods"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "e. g. water supply, health care, education, or public transport"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "to the contrary, it should be a crucial aim of the European construction to provide and improve public goods at all levels"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

define goals instead of means:

• "a true, vibrant democracy determines the means by which to achieve the respective objectives of its constitution"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "stipulating the concrete policies in the constitution itself is inappropriate"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the objectives of a transport policy should be "sustainable mobility" and "equal access to mobility for all""

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the objectives of an agricultural policy should be "sustainable agriculture""

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the maintenance of smallholder farming as well as the production of healthy and sufficient food"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "not the "increase of productivity", "rationalization" or "the best possible utilization of productive factors, especially of labour""

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the "priority aim" of the European Central Bank (ECB) should not be "stability of prices""

 

 

 

 

 

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• "but economic justice, full employment and welfare for all"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the ecological sustainability principle should be prior to market freedoms and the logic of profit"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "it should guide energy, transport, and agricultural policy"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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race to the top in social rights and taxation:

• "in a region like the EU with economies deeply integrated through liberalisation (trade, finance and investment)"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "member states are presently engaging in a race to the bottom in vital areas like taxation and social policy"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "to counter this, it is important that countermeasures can be taken at the EU-level, and that a race to the top is facilitated by specific provisions authorized by a new Treaty"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "measures to combat tax evasion and tax competition should be facilitated"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "ambitious minimum standards should be agreed on the EU-level particularly as regards taxation of corporate and capital income"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the flawed social policy of the EU should be replaced"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "by a transparent, enforceable set of ambitious social minimum standards and rights"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "these regulations should take into account the differences of economic capabilities, e.g. through "corridors""

 

 

 

 

 

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• "setting higher standards for richer member states and lower standards for poorer member states"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "such rules should be implemented in such a way that they do not preclude higher standards in any member state"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

establish obligation to peace and solidarity:

• "concerning the question of security, the aim shall be "peace" (in the broadest sense)"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "any new Treaty should clearly define a strong political ambition of Europe:"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the EU should be a key actor for the definition of a new international and multilateral order dedicated to the building of peace"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "and to the denouncement of war and militarization as means of settling international disputes"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the independence of the EU from Nato should be asserted"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "absolute respect of the International Law, especially the Charter of the United Nations"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Non-Proliferation Treaty"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "nevertheless, the EU should promote a democratic reform of the UN"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "these principles were elaborated by some 15 European ATTAC organizations"

 

 

 

 

 

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• "many differences were overcome and others were treated in a way that does not block further progress"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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• "it is intended to open debate in Europe"