EU: The "war on freedom and democracy"
01 November 2001
The EU Summit of prime ministers on 15 December in Laeken, Belgium, adopted a "Declaration" on the future of the European Union. This speaks of the EU and Europe as:
the continent of humane values, Magna Carta, the Bill of Rights, the French Revolution and the fall of the Berlin Wall; the continent of liberty, solidarity and diversity.. the European Union's one boundary is democracy and human rights
Yet, as the prime ministers agree noble ideals, almost every one of the EU member states is facing one of the greatest assaults on civil liberties and democratic standards they have ever faced.
An EU built on democratic sand?
The justice and home affairs acquis in the EU - which covers policing, customs, legal cooperation, immigration and asylum - is comprised of the Trevi acquis (1976-1993), the Maastricht acquis (1993-199) and the Schengen acquis (1990-1999). The democratic input, by national parliaments and civil society, into the acquis was virtually nil - and the much-vaunted Tampere Summit Conclusions (October 1999, see Statewatch vol 9 no 5) were equally discussed and agreed in secret.
Moreover, the EU applicant countries are obliged to adopt these acquis and the Tampere Conclusions without question.
EU response to protests, “foreigners” and policing
The response of the EU governments to the protests in Gothenburg (see Statewatch, vol 11 no 3/4 and this issue page 18) and Genoa (see Statewatch, vol 11 no 3/4 and this issue page 4) has been to agree to place groups under surveillance (Justice and Home Affairs "Conclusions", 13.7.01) and to lay plans to bring together all the national para-military police units (see Statewatch vol 11 no 5). Now a plan is underway to create an EU-wide database on the Schengen Information System (SIS) of "suspected" protestors who will be banned from travelling to future protests (see page 16). Dissent and protest are allowed, subject to surveillance and militaristic policing.
The EU is planning to create a database (also on the SIS) of all third country nationals inside the EU, both residents and visitors, and if they over-stay an "alert" will be put against their names for detention and removal. Such a database, when supplemented by national SIRENE bureaux "intelligence" could be used to put their activities under surveillance.
In line with the US/Bush letter to the EU in October the idea of creating a new European Border Police Force has moved centre-stage. The European Commission, which put forward the definition of terrorism covering protests (see page 11) has now put forward a whole series of ideas to restrict refugees and asylum-seekers' rights to safeguard EU "internal security".
There is much talk in the Laeken Declaration of the role of national parliaments, so when the Europol Convention (1995) is revised for the first time, as is planned, it will be the last time that national parliaments will have any say - they are to be excluded from having a say in future changes which will be the sole preserve of EU governments.
The "war on freedom and democracy"
On 29 November Mary Robinson, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Council of Europe and the OSCE, said:
we call on all governments to refrain from excessive steps, which would violate fundamental freedoms and undermine legitimate rights... The purpose of anti-terrorism measures is to protect human rights and democracy, not to undermine these fundamental values of our societies
The reaction of the EU, and its member governments, to 11 September will have a marginal effect on combating terrorism, whereas the effect on civil liberties and democracy in Europe may be permanent. The EU says, in the, Laeken Declaration, that it wants to play a:
stabilising role worldwide and point the way ahead for many countries and people
The example being set by the EU is not one that any democracy would want to follow.
See Statewatch’s "Observatory" on: www.statewatch.org/observatory2.htm