This WE I was planning to write about Anna Wintour, the editor in chief of American Vogue who inspired the character impersonated by Glen Close in The Devil wears Prada. I sow a documentary on her just come out: The September Issue. But on Friday I went to a conference on the future of Europe and I changed my mind after the speech of Giuliano Amato.
Giuliano Amato is a former Italian PM and Vice-President of the Constitutional Convention of the EU. He the centered the problem : who is charge of the future of the EU, citizens or experts?
2500 years ago Plato, the Greek philosopher, asked the same question in The Republic, his most famous dialogue on the ideal State. Plato divided society in workers, today the equivalent of citizens who contribute to wealth production; guardians, who would be today the army reduced to a marginal sector as its function has been outsorced to the Americans; finally, philosophers, whom today we call political and intellectual elite, the experts.
Plato didn’t have any doubt on who was in charge of the polis – the ancient Greek city-state: philosophers, the experts!
At the conference organised by Centre for European Reform and Business for New Europe – 2 top London-based think tanks – Amato followed the Greek master giving the same answer, 2500 years later: the European elite – from member states and Brussels – has to lead Europe because they know what they do and make the best choice.
If Europe has been led by the experts so successfully for the last 50 years, why citizens seem so unhappy with the EU? Excluding the last Irish referendum, pools and election torn-out confirm a negative trend. Citizens don’t understand, trust and like the EU? How would you explain this, Prof. Amato.
We might argue that citizens are actually too spoiled and demanding. They don’t understand and just complain, but insulting citizens never pays back in a democracy.
On the contrary, I would question the so-called Monnet method or neofunctionalism: leave to the experts to develop Europe focusing on specific issue and find a compromise. Hasn’t the EU become so successful that its impact on our lives can’t be delegated to non-elected experts? The end we all know that between freedom and efficiency the first one always prevail. We are ready to give up on our comfort to defend our independence and decide on how we want to lead our lives.
Moreover, we live in a globalizing society that our elite seems not understanding better than us neither being able to control more effectively. Without mentioning the global financial crisis, my favourite scholar Manuel Castells reminds us in his last effort Communication Power the States and its representatives are not the only players anymore.
In our network society, as Castells calls it, power is disseminated and responsibility as well. Therefore, we need everybody on board to lead Europe in the future. The agents of State are not enough. This gives me the opportunity to repeat my mantra: the third sector is an emerging player in the European project. EU and State officials must pay attention and start making partnerships if they want to keep their jobs. Citizens have already recognized this as the Barometer of trust has confirmed: NGOs are the most trusted organisations in the world!
There is another good reason: the European project has to be opened up to everybody and bring innovation and creativity in. there is a general sense of sclerosis – not surprising in ageing society. Only new blood can wipe out. the Lisbon strategy would be a good starting point. As Roberto Mangabeira-Unger told one day, Europe should be an open space for the maximum of experimentation. He was the teacher of Obama and now advisor of Lula. He knows something about innovation.
If this is can be done all the new generations will come on board. As a German young journalist – my age – commented after Amato’s speech, it’s not true that young European are disenfranchised and disinterested in the European project but they are interested in a different way.
We are not like our parents ready to listen the instruction and follow blindly. Sorry we want to lead sharing success and failures. We don’t like hierarchy and we are ready to share responsibility. We are the Erasmus generation the future of Europe.
