The European Commission is reportedly planning to harden its stance against member states who fail to adhere to democracy and the rule of the law.
The European Commission is reportedly planning to harden its stance towards member states who fail to adhere to democracy and the rule of the law.
This move, to be discussed by Commissioners at the end of August, would look at ways of ‘enforcing the observance of fundamental values set out in the EU treaty’, to be followed up by a conference in November ‘bringing together other EU bodies as well as policy makers, judges, lawyers and experts’, according the Financial Times.
The Commission is mulling measures, proposed by the European Parliament last week, which include a ‘Copenhagen Commission’ of independent experts to conduct constant monitoring of all EU states to guard against democratic backsliding.
The so-called Copenhagen criteria are standards on democracy and fundamental rights that all aspiring EU members must meet. Sanctions may include withholding EU funds.
That report was on Hungary, whose democratic breaches have made headlines in recent months. But the Commission has indicated it doesn’t want to be seen to be picking on any particular country.
Perhaps Italy should be next? Here, the heart of original EU, some of the key problems flagged in the rogue new members to the east are painfully evident. For some 20 years now, Italy’s democracy, press freedom, and the independence of the judiciary have been under constant attack, while corruption and organised crime have been flourishing.
The chief culprit in all of this is multi-billionaire Silvio Berlusconi. Although no longer prime minister, he’s still very much at large as leader of one of the largest parties, which is now in a ‘grand coalition’ with the centre-left Democratic Party.
Berlusconi, who has been PM three times since he ‘entered the field’ with his Forza Italia party 20 years ago, has been using office to tackle a seemingly endless stream of legal problems, and to protect his estimated £5.6 billion of private wealth that derives from his huge business interests.
He has also ensured – through control of private TV and political influence over state broadcaster RAI – that his version of events are the truth for millions of Italian households.
Berlusconi is really not the kind of character any country considered democratic would allow anywhere near public office. Over the past year he has received three criminal convictions, for tax fraud, sex with an underage prostitute and wiretapping.
And so Italy maintains its well earned popular reputation as Europe’s banana republic, a country where, according to Italian investigative journalist Marco Travaglio, one its richest citizens has secured no less than 37 ‘ad personam’ laws, where a top politician has relentlessly criticised judges for simply doing their job, and who has undermined, through his actions and words, respect for one of the state’s key functions – tax collection.
Yet confronted with the scandal of this out-of-control oligarch, spearheading ‘a fundamental rights and rule of law crisis’ in the heart of the EU, Brussels has chosen to remain silent, time and again.
Events last week demonstrated yet again just why it should speak up. In an incredible scene, the Italian parliament halted proceedings in protest at a decision by the supreme court aimed at preventing the media magnate from evading – as he has done on a number of occasions in the past – a four-year jail sentence on a technicality.
The real danger is that fundamental principle will be trumped by the desire for political ‘stability’ – today to satisfy the demands of the markets and the Troika for a grand coalition that can implement unpopular ‘reforms’ and austerity measures, just as 20 years ago Berlusconi’s self-interested entry into politics was accepted as the country sought to consolidate the public finances ahead of Italy’s entry into the Single Currency.
It is to be welcomed that EU institutions plan to get tough on member states that flout democratic norms and where illegality reigns. But if is to avoid accusations of double standards it needs to be applied to all, regardless of size and clout.
And when in the name of tackling the sovereign debt crisis the Commission and ECB are placing the burden of adjustment on the little man, doing something about one of Europe’s wealthiest and most arrogant men might even win back some of the EU’s lost credibility, both in Italy and elsewhere.
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18 Responses to “It is not just Hungary that the EU needs to tackle on democracy breaches”
David Lindsay
We need the disapplication in the United Kingdom of anything passed by the European Parliament but not by the majority of those MEPs certified as politically acceptable by one or more seat-taking members of the House of Commons.
Thus, we should no longer be subject to the legislative will of Stalinists and Trotskyists, of neo-Nazis and neo-Fascists such as Marine Le Pen, of members of Eastern Europe’s kleptomaniac nomenklatura, of people who believe the Provisional Army Council to be the sovereign body throughout Ireland, or of Dutch ultra-Calvinists who will not have women candidates.
Jacques Cheminade, a supporter of Lyndon LaRouche, managed to collect the signatures of 500 civic dignitaries in order to make it onto the ballot for the last French Presidential Election. Next up, a Strasbourg seat. Isn’t the EU marvellous? Such a moderate, centrist cause, isn’t it?
Ed Miliband should propose this legislation at the same time as he calls for a straight In-Out referendum on the day of next year’s European Elections, but to come into effect regardless of the outcome of that or any other referendum.
Richard Gadsden
Your map’s wrong. Croatia is a member now.
Stevan Harnad
…IPSOS CUSTODES…
1. http://www.politics.hu/20130618/fidesz-maintains-10-point-lead-against-socialists-in-latest-poll/
2. http://www.nepszava.hu/articles/article.php?id=661295&referer_id=ezt_beszelik (IPSOS Poll)
3. I speak and read Hungarian.
4. Chris Smith is a two-issue NJ congressman: ready to praise anyone who is against abortion and same-sex marriage.
5. To repeat: Thanks to Fidesz’s egregious example, the EU will now develop uniform standards, procedures and sanctions to deal with departures from EU values in any EU countriy.
6. All minorities need to be protected; that is one of the core EU values.
7. No need to put my name in quotes: it is not a pseudonym like “Sylvain.”
I should have added in my prior comment that the almost touchingly absurd notion of “indo-European racism” is alas an all-too-widespread a symptom of that longstanding persecution complex in that plurality of Hungarians that Fidesz (opportunistically) and Jobbik (sociopathically) accrue their respective 25% and 6% allegiance by opportunistically inciting and exploiting. The rest of Fidesz’s electoral success (if any) is thanks control of the media (not 100% but overwhelming), the courts (fortunately still far from 100%, thanks to what’s left of the decent and honest Hungarian judiciary) and Hungarians’ livelihoods (nationalizing pensions; ruining or illegalizing and then nationalizing businesses and real estate and then redistibuting it to Fidesz cronies).
Yes, the human rights and economic future of the Hungarian people need external protection from the EU — protection against the relentless and increasingly unopposable dismantling of democracy by the incomparably more corrupt Fidesz supermajority that they credulously voted in in 2010, thinking that it would protect them from what now looks like the blessedly milder corruption of their former government.
sylvain
1. http://www.politics.hu/20130602/latest-szazadveg-poll-shows-fidesz-broadening-lead-over-rivals/
2. Well, knowing the fact of who is mr. Tavares’s cheef, a former ultra-leftist guy, who admits loving little children, I can imagine that a man, who enrols himself under the lead of such a man, can lie too about what he said earlier.
5. To repeat, where was EU when other states made, or aproved older fascist laws against Hungarians? Why they were not concerned? Or state fascism is not so important like the alleged totalitarism of mr. Orban? But after that also EU still is quiet about the sufferings of the Hungarians! Nothing shows that they changed their stance about Hungarian minorities! Because if now they not saying anything about the Hungarian minority, when in the same time attack with lies Hungary, why should I believe you, that after that they will do something? I read also the amnesty International reports about Romania, Serbia and Slovakia. It contained many concerns about Romas and other issues, but never one word about the situation of the Hungarians, in a time when in Serbia did not pass a day without Hungarian people were beaten on the streets by Serbian gangs armed with sticks or sparys! This is why I wrote about racism. Because Hungarians to are a little different than the European nations. They speak another language than Indo-european. Ok, maybe you can say that this is not a racism, but having so many clues, I can very easily believe that this is a discrimination, based on race or language, because it is too obvious! Or why EU not said anything about the fact that before 2010, almost all the media was in the hands of the leftist parties? All what you say is something that I do not want to write here, because it is ugly.
6. So why does not protects Hungarians?
All what did you wrote here about the controll of the media, redistributing properties, etc., you have no proove, you just say the same thing what the liar leftist politicians and newspapers say. Lets ask you something. How about the fact that after the end of communism all the properties and money merged in the hands of the former communists, who changed their masters from Moskova to Brussels?
Mr. Stevan, lets ask you something: why should i believe that so called Hungarian supermajority is worse than the EU supermajority, which does nothing else than put its hands on economy and bring all the winnings outside, without paying any taxes (with other words robbing the country), confiscating the energy and gas companies, to put huge costs on contributors, because a huge part of their profit has to be taken out, or putting their hands on the National Bank of Hungary, saying that it should not obey to the Hungarian Government, but to the European bank or the IMF? So why than is called “National”? Why is that good to us? Because it ends all domestic firmas and aggriculture, bringing the unlimited rule of the multi national corporations, and bringing foreign (french, English, Austrian, etc.) vegetables and fruits (although Hungary is rich in this, but the costs of these foreign vegetables being cheeper, because they use more chimical drugs in them to grow faster, causing at the end more cancer to the population), doing this to smash the domestic economy? This is what Hungarians need? You know, we had enough of the control! Were was your EU, when Ottomans, Austrians, Germans or Soviets occupied Hungary? We do not need any other control, because every control means the robbing of the country and people by the controler. Your Baroso or Reding (whos secret talks about how would she help to disscredit the Hungarian government if they win again in 2014, knows everybody) or Tavares work for international lobbies, banks, and companies. We do not need these people to say what we should do and who to obey! 500 years of continous occupation was enough. We do not want a new one, one even more dangerous than those before! Today the occupation is different than before: today they do not take the land with guns, but they control the country economically and politically, they throw the country in a so huge debt, that it cannot pay the debts back in hundreds of years, and under the economical, political and monetary control of other states, making the simple Hungarians sclaves. We do not need any other control, leave us alone, or want another 1848 or 1956 revolution? We can do one if you want… You can crush us, but than lets see, what will say the other rival powers about the EU? And do not forget something. Yes, all our revolutions were crushed, but after some years, less than 50 years, the powers that crushed us, crumbled themselfs too, and one of the main causes of this were our revolutions, that weakened their positions in such a way that ended them. Do not forget that Hungarians are a revolutionary nation…
David Edenden
The EU Commission is very confused.
It has no business meddling politically in the affairs of Hungary or any other EU member. Presumably, the EU has a constitution and it is up the the judiciary to determine whether a government is acting within the bounds of the law.