Democracy & Human Rights

The subject of Belarus is one that has been frequently discussed by MEPs and other EU ministers and officials over the last month. At the end of February, the EU council voted to increase diplomatic sanctions against the former Soviet Republic, freezing the assets and preventing travel to EU countries for a further 21 officials, in protest at human rights abuses in the country and the jailing of political prisoners. Just a day later, the Belarus government asked the EU ambassador and the Polish ambassador to leave Minsk; in a show of solidarity, ambassadors from all the other EU nations left with them.

Then, on 19th March, the EU condemned Belarus for the execution of two young men, Dmitry Konovalov and Vladislav Kovalyov, for the bombing of a Minsk railway station in 2011. Both had confessed, but it was later claimed that these confessions were extracted under torture. Belarus is the only country in Europe that still has the death penalty, and calls from the international community for the two men to be reprieved were ignored. High Representative Catherine Ashton sympathised with the victims of the metro attack, but noted that “the two accused had not been accorded due process including the right to defend themselves". Further diplomatic sanctions were imposed on 23rd March, freezing the assets of 29 companies and 12 individuals.

The man behind all of this is Belarus’ President, Alexander Lukashenko. Formerly the manager of a Soviet collective farm, he became a politician in 1990 and was elected as President of Belarus just four years later. Since then he has systematically introduced new laws and changed the constitution to increase his own powers, and since he became President, Belarus has not held a poll which has been considered fair by international monitors. It was described by Condoleezza Rice in 2005 as “the last true remaining dictatorship in the heart of Europe”.

And what of those who dare to oppose or stand up to him? They are brutally repressed and imprisoned, and that’s if they’re lucky. Over the last 18 years, prominent opponents and critics of Lukashenko have been abducted, have died in suspicious circumstances or have simply disappeared without trace, and are presumed to have been murdered.

In 2004 he removed the limitation on the number of presidential terms he could serve, effectively making himself President indefinitely, and in true North Korean style, he even appears to be grooming a successor. When he makes public appearances, it is not unusual to see a small figure trotting at his side. This is his youngest son Nikolai, or Kolya, born in 2004, probably to Lukashenko’s private physician, Irina Abelskaya (the identity of Kolya’s mother has never been officially confirmed). He has two adult sons, Viktor and Dmitri, but it is Kolya who appears to be the chosen one. Bizarrely, he accompanies Lukashenko to meetings with other leaders and attends military parades in full regalia. Perhaps most extraordinarily, after the aforesaid bombing, the President took the small boy with him to view the devastated scene.

But, as the Arab Spring demonstrated, the world at large has not been kind to dictators recently. Lukashenko certainly seems to be paranoid: Ihor Makar, a former security officer, told EUobserver that Belarus spends three times more money on the President’s private security than it does on the health service. It is also reported that only 20% of the Belarusian population still support the man who likes his citizens to call him “batya” (Daddy). With the EU turning its back, Lukashenko is relying on the support of Moscow. For the moment, it seems as though he has it: Russia is promising to stand by Belarus in the event of more sanctions. But relations between the two nations are not always smooth; in recent years there have been disputes over gas and a smear campaign against the Belarusian President in the Russian media. Should relations falter again, Lukashenko will be very isolated indeed.

With his bad comb-over, his dodgy moustache and his mini-me, he seems in some ways like a absurd comic creation, a spoof character from a film. But nobody is laughing, and as the pressure on Lukashenko mounts, it can only be hoped that his regime will soon crumble, and democracy can be allowed to prevail in a country that has been too long without.

Image source: Expo Socialism on Flickr

10 days left for the European Elections. 400 million European citizens will be eligible to elect 736 MEPs. The European Parliament is the only institution that the citizens can elect directly. The 7th elections will take place in June. Moreover, on 19 May, in a try for creativity and engagement of how young people experience the European idea, the Polish youth project “YOUrope needs YOU’ was awarded the first prize in the European Charlemagne Youth Prize (ECYP) competition.

Image: Aegee : YOUrope Needs You

Robert Hajsel, head of the European Parliament’s office in Slovakia offered this as an explanation for the extremely low voter turnout at Slovakian polls for the 2004 European Parliament elections. In the lead up to the June EP elections, low voter turnout has been a widely discussed topic across the EU. Concern is perhaps greatest in Slovakia, where only 17% of citizens voted in 2004, the state’s first time participating in EU elections. This was the lowest number in any member-state since EP elections began in 1979. Hajsel claims that Slovaks didn’t vote because they were satisfied with the EU as is – ‘if you fully trust and support something, you don’t want to change it and if you don’t want to change it, you don’t care to come and vote.’

Image: www.flickr.com/ antaldaniel

VoteWatch.eu is an independent website that aims to make EU decision-making more transparent. Employing complex statistical methods developed by scholars from LSE and Université Libre de Bruxelles, it tracks attendance and voting records of MEPs in the European Parliament. Citizens can view this analysis by nationality, national political party, or European party grouping. Votewatch.eu is a particularly useful tool for citizens considering who to support in the upcoming EP elections.

Image: www.flickr.com/ *bene*

150 EU citizens from the 27 Member States will meet with top policy-makers tomorrow in Brussels for the 2009 European Citizen’s Consultations. The citizens will hand them their recommendations concerning the economic and social provocations that the Union faces. This event involves 250 000 online users and 1 600 randomly selected citizens from all the Member States whose task it is to recommend actions at the EU level. The recommendations will include “calls for wide-ranging measures to boost Europe’s economy, tougher supervision of the financial markets, more focused spending on research and innovation, increased investment in sustainable energy, the fight against poverty, promoting a better work/life balance, and action on education.”

European Citizens´ consultation

The European Union celebrated on Saturday 9th of May, the anniversary of Schumann Declaration that set the European integration in motion in 1950. In a celebrating mood of the Festival of Europe’s Open Day, the European Institutions opened their doors to the public, holding a series of events such as educational activities and series of cultural events. The main aim of the activities was to bring the European Union closer to its citizens and to inform them on the positive impact the Union has on their lives. This year’s celebration has been of great importance as it is only a few weeks before the European elections (4th – 7th of June). In the celebratory climate, President Hans-Gert Pöttering said: “European politics affect every aspect of your daily lives: the environment, health, consumerism, work, equal opportunities… There are decisions to make in every one of these areas, and the European representatives elected by the citizens will have to make those decisions for the next five years. This is what is at stake on June 7: the choice is up to the voters!”

Source: European Commission Audiovisual Service

The website of this week is known to all YouTube. The latter has teamed up with the EuroNews in an attempt to cover the 2009 EU elections. It is an effort to increase the interest and the participation of the EU’s citizens to the elections of June. In the framework of EU 2009 Elections Communication Campaign, YouTube launched the Questions for Europe video which encourages voters to “share their views and preoccupations.” Moreover, the video asks for the voters questions, informing them that “we’ll make it our business to find the answers, whether it’s seeking expert advice or even relaying your questions to the MEP candidates themselves.” The outcome did pay off considering that in two days the channel managed to become the third most subscribed reporter channel in France.

The 2008 European cultural year has been all about intercultural dialogue. The European Union as a unique interplay of different cultures, languages, religions and traditions has been the focal centre for discovering the other throughout 2008. The European Commission supported different European, national and thematic projects with a budget nearing 2,4 million euros. It focused on migration and integration issues, education and youth projects, and many others. More than 300 projects applied. The resonance of this community project was very positive at the end of the year. Without a doubt, it has contributed to raise awareness on the wealth of European diversity. However, it cannot dissimulate that most European citizens remain sceptical towards the EU and only few are in touch with European projects. 2009 will focus on the themes of creativity and innovation.

Information about the different projects 2008 can be found under: European Year of the Intercultural Dialogue

Photo: www.interculturaldialogue2008.eu

We announced it last week with the launching of the new website: after months of preparation, the Euros are finally on the Italian web….and watch out because it’s really something!!! A truly moticated team with already over fifteen members. Led by Marco Amici (Editor in chief), Guido Sala Chiori (deputy editor) and giulio Bolaffi (responsible for the Italian Society), Gli Euros will enable you to discover European current affairs with a bit of sun and a flight of literature (and gesticulations,…which we leave to your imagination…). Italian or Italians-to-be? Don’t hesitate and without delay visit the Euros’ Italian website!.

Nicolas Sarkozy is on his way to Ireland. On 11 July the hyperactive French President will land in Dublin on his first visit to a EU member country after taking over the rotating Presidency of the Union. The agenda of the meeting consists of one issue. Mr. Sarkozy is to discuss the Irish no to the Lisbon-treaty with his Irish colleague, Prime Minister Brian Cowen. One can, however, not help fearing that Mr. Sarkozy in his usual style will accidentally let a word or two slip on the Irish situation and make a politically complicated situation even more delicate.

It is almost too exciting. In ten days – 12 June – the future of the Lisbon Treaty will be decided in the North-Western corner of Europe. That day, Ireland holds a constitutionally prescribed referendum on the new treaty. At the moment the numbers are adding up for the “yes” camp. However, the latest poll revealed that the gap between those for and against has narrowed to 8 per cent, with 41 per cent intending to vote “yes” and 33 per cent stating that a “no” is their vote. The remaining 26 per cent were undecided. In addition the “no” camp is leading an intense campain, drawing on all possible historical connoations with one poster bearing the slogan “People Died for your Freedom. Don’t Throw it Away”. The poster and its slogan refers to the 1916 Easter Rising’s declaration of a Republic, one of the foundation stones of Irish independence and neutrality. It is going to be a close race.

According to new polls only 35 pct. of the Irish are in favour of the Treaty, 31 pct. are against and 34 pct. are in doubt. This means that the Irish could actually reject the Lisbon Treaty. It it not going to take many stories in the media about EU-fraud or regulations on cucumbers to win over those in doubt to the sceptics. Or how about trade liberalisation? Irish farmers threaten to take the referendum as a hostage if ongoing WTO-talks on trade liberalisation lead to the cuts in farm subsidies that Trade Commissioner Mandelson has negotiated. This shows how unpredictable referenda on European issues are. In response to the farmers’ threat Irish PM Bertie Ahern has pulled out the big gun one month before the referendum, stating that a no would be a “disaster for the country”. The history of European referenda does not exactly prove that European voters favour such aggressive rhetoric – quite the contrary. It could actually end up with a no in Ireland.

The ratification process of the Lisbon treaty is on tracks. In the end of April Portugal, Denmark and the lowerhouse of Germany’s parliament ratified the new treaty. That brings the total number of countries that have ratified to ten. While the Europeans know that something is going on they generally have absolutely no idea what the treaty is all about. In most countries the politicians keep quiet on the subject, afraid to open Pandora’s Box, and the media are silent as well. It may seem as a good idea today not to consult the Europeans on the treaty, but it could come back as boomerang in a few years from know and hit very, very hard.

The decisive Irish referendum on the Lisbon Treaty in two months is approaching slowly but surely. In a recent poll two thirds of the Irish stated that they were still undecided on whether to support or reject the treaty. The numbers leave a considerable margin for the campaign that will intensify over the next months. A campaign that is bound to become ugly, populist and with every subject imaginable being used as arguments to reject or accept the treaty. After all, Ireland is the only chance that the sceptics all over Europe will have to block the new treaty. The stakes are high.

The British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, rather known for his euroscepticism has been caught claiming that EU membership was good for Britain. Brown is getting pumped up for the tough battle to come in Westminster when he will have to convince MPs to adopt the Lisbon treaty. The Tories demand that the approval of the treaty be put to a public vote and their leader David Cameron claims that if he reaches 10 Downing Street before the 27 member states have ratified the treaty he will hold a referendum on the issue. The prime Minister told business representatives in London that a strong European engagement was needed to secure business, jobs and trade. According to him, the Lisbon treaty allows Europe to deal with the issues that really matter to the European citizen: stability, growth, competitiveness and jobs. He argues that the UK will be much more effective in influencing EU policy by staying in the game than it would on the sidelines.