“Civil society is one of the ways in which our human nature can be exercised in its entirety”
Vàclav Havel
Twenty years after the introduction of the concept of “citizenship of the European Union” under the Treaty of Maastricht it appears that the concept of European citizenship is somehow not fully engaged and understood. As a result of that, the European Commission has designated 2013 as the European Year of Citizens which will be dedicated on the central role that citizens play in determining the future of Europe and its outlook.
Especially in times of economic turmoil and instability on a worldwide scale, Europe more than ever before is confronted with major challenges. The latter predisposes people to lose their confidence and trust in the European edifice, to become sceptical about their power to influence EU decisions, leading to growing apathy and less activism in the decision-making process. Such a trend is unequivocally highly detrimental to the spirit of the EU as it significantly damages the quality of the decisions taken, the Union’s long-term development as well as the whole concept of democracy being a fundamental principle and a criterion for membership.
Citizenship is an indispensible part for the development of a given state and also the only mechanism for forging a strong common identity. If that essential requirement of active and fully engaged citizenship is lacking any given state is prone to suffer unpredictable decline and deterioration of the political fabric.
Starting from a legal perspective, Article 2 of the Treaty on the European Union (formal name of the Treaty of Maastrich) has enshrined the principles of democracy, the rule of law, equality and respect for human rights as the foundation of the EU. The latter is instrumental for making citizens more aware of the democratic process but also as a mechanism for providing citizens with a sense of belonging to the European Union especially in times of financial instability, social unrest and incrementally spreading apathy. Furthermore, Article 10(3) and Article 11 of the Lisbon Treaty enshrined the provisions on democratic principles which provided new rights for civil society and the obligation of all EU institutions to promote democratic participation and openness in the decision-making process. Unfortunately, civil society currently remains either partly unaware of the same or uninterested to fully take advantage of their rights since they hardly see any merit in doing so.
As a result of that, the main objective of the European Year of Citizens is the promotion of active, participatory citizenship in terms of “Participation in civil society, community and/or political life, characterized by mutual respect and non-violence and in accordance with human rights and democracy”(Hoskins and Kerr). For the successful fulfilment of the latter, however, full awareness should be raised not only of citizens’ rights but also of their political obligations. Such objectives are undoubtedly the premise for the creation of a stronger and more politically united union in which citizens frequently exercise their democratic rights and feel part and parcel of the grand project, thus being able to build the vision of Europe 2020. The latter will further aim to strengthen the feeling of belonging to the EU which will narrow the bridge between people from different EU members states making them realise their explicit similarities. The year also focuses on the application of a bottom-up approach in making policies which reflect the needs and interests of its citizens, on the rule of law, equality, transparency, solidarity, peace and respect for human right. If only half of those objectives are fulfilled, the European Year of Citizens will make the European union stronger than ever thus the future of the grand project will become brighter and citizens’ lives easier and happier.
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