the global coalition for democracy

SOS Europe – Campaign by Democracy International

SOS Europe – Campaign by Democracy International

21-08-2013

Alpbach, Austria, 21.08.2013: the organisation Democracy International offers solutions to the European Union’s deep crisis of confidence. Today at the European Forum Alpbach in Austria, an interdisciplinary conference for science, politics, business and culture, Democracy International presented the campaign for a more democratic EU. Key demand is a new EU convention. 

„Europe is in deep crisis. Much more is at stake than the stability of our money, banks and financial markets. At stake is people’s confidence in European democracy and politics and hence in the EU itself, its institutions and capacity to find solutions” declares Gerald Häfner, chairperson of Democracy International and Member of European Parliament. 

Recent polls by the European Commission reveal citizens’ dramatic loss of trust in the EU. According to the standard Eurobarometer of spring 2013 about two thirds of all EU citizens have no confidence in the EU. 29 per cent have a negative image of the EU. In 2007 this figure was low at 15 per cent. 

“We must decrease the huge gap between citizens and politics. Europe will only succeed as a project of the citizens while it will fail as a project of the political elites. We need to discuss broadly which direction the European project is to head to and which constitution it is to have. A new EU convention that includes citizens and parliaments is the right means for more democracy in the EU” demands Gerald Häfner. 

Democracy International, also the „global coalition for direct democracy“, has started preparing a campaign for a new EU convention to be led by a broad alliance of young Europeans, academics, entrepreneurs and civil society representatives. Core demands are that the members of the EU convention are elected democratically and that the convention has adequate time for serious and thorough deliberation including proposals from civil society. The draft proposal that the EU convention will elaborate is to be ratified by referenda in all EU member states.

Website Info

Democracy International is a registered association in Germany
(eingetragener Verein e.V.).

Gürzenichstraße 21 a-c
50667 Cologne
Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 221 669 66 50
Fax: +49 (0) 221 669 665 99
Email: contact@democracy-international.org

Amtsgericht Köln
VR-Nr. 17139

Full website information here

Data protection - Datenschutz
 

Bank

Democracy International e.V.
IBAN: DE 58370205000001515101
BIC: BFSWDE33XXX

Bank für Sozialwirtschaft
Konto: 1515101
BLZ: 37020500

 

Sign up

to our news, analyses and features on direct democracy worldwide!

Subscribe

Follow us