Newropeans, the first trans-European
political movement for the democratisation
of the European Union has been
launched. It will present candidates
in all EU member states in the
2009 European elections.
The party has been created because
Europe and democracy are too important
to be left in the hands of national
parties and of bureaucrats alone
and because democratising Europe
is the task of all European citizens.
Newropeans is the result of 20
years of work for Europe and will
present candidates at the 2009
European elections in all EU member
countries all with the same programme.
The Newropeans, who were mostly
born after the Treaty of Rome,
are convinced that the current
political crisis in the European
Union is the result of the increasing
inability of European leaders and
institutions to respond to European
citizens' expectations.
This crisis of legitimacy increasingly
nurtures national and European
populisms. This is why the European
Union must rapidly transform its
institutions, methods of functioning,
and its political actors, to put
citizens in the driving seat and
to allow the European Union to
regain its legitimacy.
Following the successes of the
last 50 years of European construction,
the challenge today is no longer
to prevent war in Europe but to
find ways to govern democratically
and legitimately a political entity
made up of 500 million people,
of almost 30 different nationalities,
cultures and languages.
If the European Union cannot rise
to this major challenge, it may
well collapse and provoke a 'crisis
of democracy' on the whole European
continent.
For Newropeans, the first step
in achieving democratisation is
to build up a vast trans-European
political movement which directly
involves European citizens in the
European debate. In the next European
elections 2009, Newropeans will
give citizens the chance to vote
for European democracy which extends
beyond national borders and debates.
For 2009, Newropeans is targeting
5 to 10% of the vote at European
level and the creation of a parliamentary
group with 50 to 75 Members of
the European Parliament (MEPs).
Newropeans will be a political
force for democracy as experienced
in the history of all European
countries when citizens fought
to bring democracy to their country.
Newropeans will stand only in
European elections. The movement
sees itself as a catalyst allowing
the transition from a post-war
EU built by administrations and
national parties into a democratic
EU where the citizens and peoples
are the motors of major European
decisions, served by a competent
and effective political class,
anchored in the values of democracy,
justice and openness to the world.
Once this historical goal is achieved
within 10 or 20 years, Newropeans
as a force for democracy will have
no reason to continue and will
be dissolved. But to reach this
goal is a huge challenge.
To
join Newropeans or for more information
on building a new way
for democracy in Europe contact
us: contact@newropeans.org
Franck Biancheri
Paris (France)
