While EU leaders celebrated in Berlin the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, TEAM held its annual general meeting in EU-free Switzerland. The following are two statements by TEAM’s AGM concerning the future of Europe:

European leaders must respect the will of the people

The process shaping the EU constitution was an undemocratic and symbolic act for the European Union, and the EU constitution itself is a clear result of such a process. The French and Dutch No to the EU constitution was a victory for the democrats across the whole of Europe. Several EU governments have tried to ignore the result and have continued the ratification of the EU constitution without referendums and wihout any real public and balanced debates.
The EU’s “period of reflection” was in most countries just a manoeuvre to gain time for the union.
The German EU presidency has pushed for a Berlin declaration as a way to resurrect the EU constitution. But EU leaders will fail if they think that they are doing Europe a favour.
A European cooperation must respect the national democracies and the cultural differences, and give time to public debates before decision making by the peoples of Europe. Neither the EU of today nor the EU constitution is such a cooperation. A democratic European cooperation framework cannot be built without the approval of the citizens and on undemocratic foundations.
Therefore, the TEAM AGM demands that the national governments in Europe start to listen to the citizens of their own countries. Citizens must be asked in fair and balanced national referendums, and the union cannot ignore its own rules - the Principle of Unanimity on EU treaties, which demands that the Union treaty can only be changed with a unanimous decision by all the Member States. It is therefore necessary to respect the French and Dutch No to the EU constitution.

European countries can learn from Switzerland

Switzerland has found a way to cooperate with other European countries in areas such as trade, education and research. The Swiss have at the same time secured their unique model of direct democracy and placed themselves outside the EU’s custom union and the EU’s military project.
This position gives Switzerland possibilities for lower customs tarrifs for the world’s poor countries and for a more active foreign policy.
Switzerland has also the possibility to move forward in such areas as health and environment to the benefit of Switzerland and the world.
And Switzerland is not less European because of its position outside the EU. The TEAM AGM believes that the Swiss model for cooperation can inspire the rest of Europe. Switzerland shows that it is possible to remain democratic and still be a cooperating European country.

For more information please contact:

TEAM coordinator Jesper Morville; phone: +45-3963 3537
Swiss organizer Lukas Reimann; phone: +41 78 648 14 41