According to Mehr Demokratie the financial crisis may lead to a crisis of democracy. Currently a very small group of people - some heads of state and government - are making more and more decisions, while national parliaments are losing their influence - and the citizens have hardly any influence at all.
Appeal to the Constitutional Court
Mehr Demokratie will ask citizens to sign a constitutional complaint. This is a special feature of the German Basic Law. Anyone who believes that his or her basic rights have been or are being violated by the state may use it. But as the procedure is complex, it is highly recommended to have good lawyers draft the reasoning. Mehr Demokratie has found two well-known professors who will plead the case:
- Herta Däubler-Gmelin: Justice Minister between 1998 and 2002; and
- Christoph Degenhart: University of Leipzig; tenured professor for public and administrative law.
Now every German citizen can add their signature to this complaint. The procedure is entirely free of charge.
In recent years the Germany Constitutional Court has made several decisions which had a big impact even on questions of European integration - for example in 2009, with a spectacular ruling concerning the Lisbon treaty. It did not rejected the treaty itself, but insisted that the national regulation must ensure more influence for the German parliament than was envisaged by the German government.
Europe needs more democracy
It is high time to involve the citizens and give them a say in Europe. Mehr Demokratie has is building up an alliance to achieve this goal. The campaign is a continuation of the common efforts of many committed democracy activists to achieve this goal.
