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04-05-2016
”It would be crazy to walk away from Europe”
The UK campaign ”Stronger-In-Europe” hopes to win the June 23 Brexit referendum on a positive message, says its campaign spokesperson in Scotland John Edward in an interview with Bruno Kaufmann, board member of Democracy International and people2power-editor. Listen to the...
03-05-2016
The EU Citizens' Initiative: Any legal leeway for success?
The European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) shows a very poor track record of success: Since becoming operational in 2012, only three out of 56 presented ECIs finally reached the European Commission. Is there leeway to improve this rate of success?
Maria Celeste Petrini, a PhD...
19-04-2016
ECI tests EU’s faith in democracy
20 April 2016 is the fifth "ECI Day" taking place in Brussels. On the occasion of the one-day-conference, scholars, practitioners and academics gather to discuss the workings of the European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) and how to improve the only instrument of participatory...
18-04-2016
How the Curse of the Quorum Poisoned Democracy
On Sunday, 17 April 2016, Italy held a referendum on the question wheter to allow unlimited oil drilling. The popular vote was defeated as it did not reach the necessary turnout quorum of 50 per cent. Our board member Bruno Kaufmann observed the referendum in Rome and comments...
14-04-2016
Will the Queen still be an EU citizen after 23 June?
In the upcoming UK EU membership on 23 June, Nigel Smith will advise the campaign “Vote Leave” as “an old wise head” as he calls it. Democracy International interviewed the Scotsman on 14 April 2016, just one day after the Electoral decision appointed "Vote Leave" to lead the No...
12-04-2016
A Dutch direct democrat on the Ukraine Referendum
On 6 April 2016, the first national citizen-initiated referendum in the Netherlands was held. With a turnout of 32.2 percent, 61.1 percent of the Dutch voted against ratifying the Association Treaty that the EU wants to conclude with Ukraine. The referendum was made possible...
07-04-2016
Dutch citizens vote against EU-Ukraine Treaty
On Wednesday, 6 April 2016, 62 per cent of Dutch voters decided in a national referendum to reject the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, while 38 per cent voted for it. The turnout quorum of 30 per cent was met: 32 per cent of the Netherlands's 12.5 million citizens participated...
01-04-2016
EU Commission blocks democratic reform
In February 2016 the European Commission declared it would not improve the legislation of the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI). This refusal occurred in spite of demands by the European Parliament and by thousands of people from all across Europe to reform the instrument of...
23-03-2016
“The referendum issues just aren’t getting through”
The following is an interview with Josiah Mortimer on the United Kingdom’s upcoming referendum on EU membership on 23 June 2016, as well as on the quality of the referendum debate and the urgent reforms required to make both the UK and the EU more democratic.
Josiah Mortimer...
15-03-2016
Mind the gaps, Brittania
With 100 days to go, the Brexit referendum is on track and offers great democratic opportunities. But this historic popular vote appears unnecessarily rushed and features elements of a top-down direct democracy approach, reports Democracy International board member Bruno...