Treaty of Rome: 60th Anniversary

[tabbs]

Sixty years ago, on 25 March 1957, the Treaty of Rome was signed in the Italian capital. It established the European Economic Community (EEC) which later became the European Union.

While not everybody in EUrope is in the mood to party these days, it is interesting to see that there are initiatives of citizens who do not want the European idea to be trashed by nationalist anti-EU movements and parties. In many German and a few other European cities, people get together every Sunday to show their support and also concern. This Pulse of Europe started as a grassroots initiative in Frankfurt, and these days thousands of people demonstrate in a peaceful and fun atmosphere. Even if your voice is not great, you are invited to sing the Song of Joy to the music of the European Anthem ...

There are other groups around here, such as We are Europe or the Loud Europeans (German) - and I am sure that, if you asked each supporter of such an initiative about concepts of how the EU should be in the future, you would get many different answers. The common denominator, however, is that letting the Union fall apart is not the answer to European issues.

Also, on the day of the Treaty of Rome anniversary there will be a "March for Europe" gathering in Rome. See the program here. Yes, all roads lead to Rome but there will also be demos and happenings in many other cities throughout the EU.

Christian

[ART]

The common denominator, however, is that letting the Union fall apart is not the answer to European issues.

I celebrate 9 May - Europe day of each year as a national holiday, complete with day off from job.



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[claudio vda]

Last Sunday I was in Rome and since this week-end I will be attending regularly to Pulse of Europe Bremen.

A pic from Rome

[tabbs]

Great, both! This Sunday I will be @PoE here in Düsseldorf. And just around the corner there is (and will then be) a Greece Festival, with music, various foods and more. How nicely arranged.

Currently Pulse of Europe plans to have such demos or meetings every Sunday until the French elections. After that, maybe once or twice a month. I also like the idea of an "open stage" - basically everybody who shares the basic PoE ideas can come up and talk. Last week there was, among others, a woman from Scotland who talked about the Brexit vote and the current Scottish plans to have an independence referendum again. According to her, not a single constituency (voting district so to say) in Scotland had a Leave majority ...

Christian

[claudio vda]

Pulse of Europe is a great initiative.
Sadly, it is spreading just across Germany, a little bit in BeNeLux and France, few sprinkles in Portugal, Ireland and Sweden and that's all.
I really hope that Pulse of Europe will grow up also in other EU countries, e.g. Italy, Poland, Greece or Finland.

I would like to quote two of the speech that I heard in Rome - Bocca della Verità on 25th March.

Guy Verhofstadt (Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe)
"Today there will be another beautiful declaration. We are tired about beautiful declarations, we need a road map to a Federal Europe"

Giorgio Anselmi (Movimento Federalista Europeo)
"Journals usually refer to Federal Europe as a dream, but it is not a dream: it is a need. We are not dreamers, we are realistic. The real dreamers are those who think that a fragmentation in little nations can bring us to something else than a war"

[ART]

I really hope that Pulse of Europe will grow up also in other EU countries, e.g. Italy, Poland, Greece or Finland.

First meeting in Italy, Genoa.
http://www.ilsecoloxix.it/p/genova/2017 ... rope.shtml

[tabbs]

While I am basically in favor of a federally structured European Union, it will in my opinion only work if the principle of subsidiarity is observed to a greater extent than what we currently experience. Also, and even more importantly, the Pulse of Europe people are not a bunch of federalists. What unites them, or us, is the idea that leaving or trashing the European Union is absolutely the wrong way to go.

PoE does want to encourage a debate about the status and the future of the EU, but does not have - and does not intend to have - a concept like a party program. It is about demonstrating that (contrary to what Le Pen, Wilders, etc. suggest) there are many Europeans who want to live in this Union regardless of different approaches when it comes to what could be improved. It is about encouraging parties that (and politicians who) have ideas, maybe even visions, for Europe's future - and make them relevant in their campaigns and "everyday" politics.

I have read articles about Pulse of Europe that say the idea is too blurry to have a long lasting effect. And no, I do not plan to spend every future Sunday in my life holding an EU flag or balloon. But I hope that at least a few people will think twice about voting for parties that have a dedicated anti-EU agenda, and that at least some of our national parties decide to move "things EU" from page 78-or-so to page 1 of an election program ...

Christian

[claudio vda]

I totally agree that Pulse of Europe is just an answer against Euroskepticals and without a concrete program about Federalism or whatever else, but on the other hand Bremen Marktplatz is just 10 minutes away from my home and between sitting on my sofa dreaming about a better Europe and going to Marktplatz for 1 h... well, I choose to go to Martplatz for 1 h

I totally agree that Pulse of Europe is not enough, but let's have a start.

[ART]

I will be concise: in a shitty time like this any initiative is welcome, even a relatively modest PoE.