Federalism

European Federalism

History

European Federalism was born out of the necessity to halt the scourge of war that has plagued the European continent over many centuries. World War II plunged Europe into an unprecedented spiral of horror and extremism that has caused an intolerable human and economic tragedy for our societies. Too often is it forgotten that the creation of the European community was the only possible panacea to guarantee an everlasting peace among its long-term rivals who have not descended into armed conflict ever since. Firmly integrated into an economic community in which disputes are solved solely by the rule of law, European countries have learnt to cooperate through common institutions and embarked on an adventure that has no equivalent in the history of humankind. In the course of a few decades, stability, prosperity and democracy have spread progressively over the continent, rendering the dream of a united and peaceful Europe possible. Yet, the process of integration is far from achieved…

What started as an economic project to develop a single market ensuring the freedom of movement of people, goods, services and capital, has, on the one hand, still not been extended to the entire continent and, on the other, still not been followed by sufficient political and social integration. This inconsistency leads to several discrepancies in policies and gaps in institutional decision-making that can only be closed by the construction of a full-fledged democratic European federation, which is the logical final stage of the process of building an ‘ever closer Union’. Globalisation continues to erode national sovereignty and because states realise they are losing their grip on the many complex problems arising in their societies, they have started to pool some of their powers together. However, the transfer of certain competences has not been accompanied by a parallel transfer of democratic legitimacy to the European level. For this reason, Europe still is perceived to be too far away from the Citizens, who do not really know which decisions are taken at the European level because they neither feel democratically involved in the decision-making procedures nor do they realise how Europe influences their daily lives and could further improve their standard of living.

The performance of the current European Union thus falls short of what all Europeans are entitled to expect and many institutional and policy-making reforms still have to be implemented for Europe to become a beacon of international democracy for the world and achieve the Kantian idea of Universal Peace at global level. Hence, the rationale for European Federalists to advance their cause!

Philosophy and Principles

The goal of European Federalists is the creation of a democratic European Federation. European Federalism implies the negation of all manifestations of nationalism and the avoidance of intergovernmentalism, yet, this by no means corresponds with an orthodox ideology that focuses solely on the creation of some kind of federal super-state. Federalism follows from a historical process towards growing economic, political and social inter-dependence. It developed as a response to the long-standing question of how to link different communities in order to pursue jointly objectives that are unobtainable alone, without submerging their distinct identities. In Federal systems, each level of government is thus supreme within its own policy remit and has the maximum authority to deal with the problems that arise at – or can best be solved at – that level, while respecting the spheres of action of other levels or bodies. A Federation is, on the one hand, different from unitary states, which can impose their sovereign will on their regions, and it is, at the other hand, different from a confederation or a loose international organisation, in which the last word belongs ultimately to the member states alone. European Federalism can be generally described as the attachment to a complex and balanced system of supranational governance that tries to guarantee the highest standards of democracy and transparency, combined with effective decision-making bodies which deliver at the appropriate level tangible solutions to societal problems. In short, a healthy mix between democracy and efficiency is thus central to Federalist philosophy. The concept is therefore neither monolithic nor static. Eventually, the dissipation of borders within Europe and the evaporation of Citizens’ affiliation with the old-fashioned nation state will spread over the globe and flow into the establishment of a World Federation as a means of settling conflicts among states and ensuring Universal Peace.

Being always independent from any political colour or party ideology, European Federalists do have in common their desire for a ‘stronger Europe’ as opposed to a ‘weaker Europe’. They see Federalism as a strategy towards increasing political integration in various sectors of society, as common effective and democratic decision-making, as ever more international solidarity, coordination and harmonisation and as the incremental shifting of competences towards a supranational level whenever necessary, while respecting the principle of subsidiarity wherever possible. They are convinced that cooperation at a higher level is in the enlightened self-interest of any federated unit because it avoids duplication of resources as well as unnecessary competition.

European Federalism can be communicated as a message of European brotherhood that rests on the following five pillars:

1. Democracy and Participation

Every law should result from the will of the people, expressed either through elected representatives or directly when possible. Only a legitimate and representative Federal parliament can pass democratic laws that will benefit the highest number of people.
All Citizens and member states must have the right to participate in the decision-making process at the Federal level in a manner proportionate with the population of their countries. Laws must enjoy the support of a double majority of representatives: of Citizens and member states.

2. Subsidiarity

The Federal level must have the authority to carry out satisfactorily the functions it has been assigned. However, power should never be exercised on a level higher than necessary. According to the principle of subsidiarity, decisions always have to be taken as close as possible to the Citizen while allowing for Community action when an objective cannot be satisfactorily achieved by national states acting alone and can only be effectively tackled at the supranational level in order to deliver optimally for the Citizen.

3. Autonomy and Division of competences

Federal laws have primacy and are directly applicable. While all federated entities have the autonomous right to organise themselves within their field of competences in the way they see best fit, they must not jeopardise the general interest and cohesion of the Federation.

The spheres of action of local, regional, national or European bodies should be clearly outlined because only a lucid division of competences between the different levels of decision-making will avoid the concentration of too much power at one level or with one body. The distribution of powers over different decision-making levels guarantees peace within the federation and this in turn leads to peaceful behaviour towards other states.

4. Peace, the Rule of Law and Human Rights

The main aim of Federalism is Peace. Peace is not just interpreted as the absence of war; it is the situation in which war is completely unthinkable as a means to solve any conflict. For this, states must respect International Laws forbidding them to go to war.

The Rule of Law is contrary to the rule of the strongest. The relations between member states of a Federation must thus be firmly based on international law and the principle of the separation of powers, both horizontally (between the legislative, executive and judicial branches) and vertically (between the federated and federal levels), should strictly apply to guarantee a checks and balances system.

The recognition and protection of Human Rights, including those of minorities, are not only vital in guaranteeing democracy, peace and justice, but also the unity of peoples as well as their diversity.

5. Unity in Diversity

This motto conveys the idea that Europeans are united in working together for peace and prosperity, and that the many different cultures, traditions and languages in Europe are a positive asset for the continent and important for its dynamism.

Unity in Diversity also implies that the integrity of integration must be maintained and a closed federal core hence rejected. The exclusive pooling of powers of a small number of member states outside of the ‘acquis communautaire’ would be divisive and contrary to the spirit of the Federation. If certain member states wish to move forward more rapidly than others they can find recourse in the option of Enhanced Cooperation which is by definition always open to anyone wishing to join at any time.

Federalist theory

Federalism proposes a decentralised, self-managed society, in which all persons affected by a decision may participate in making it. All decisions must be reached by democratic institutions at the most appropriate level.

The achievement of international democracy can only happen through the establishment of federal systems in Europe and in the world respecting the principles of federalism which can be found in the writings of Proudhon, Kant, Spinelli and others.

In today's world, traditional government based on the concept of the sovereign nation-state is not able to deal with the many problems which arise from increasing interdependence. The challenges and opportunities posed by increased interdependence can only be addressed through the adoption of democratic solutions at all levels of government: from the supranational down to the subnational level.

National states as we have known them in the past have become increasingly centralised, whilst at the same time their inability to deal on their own with the issues facing their citizens has contributed to a growing sense of alienation. Increasingly, citizens are beginning to feel that the national political arena is irrelevant for many of the real issues which concern them, as more and more areas of politics acquire a significant international dimension. Up until now, the efforts of nation states to solve such problems by means of traditional intergovernmental cooperation have proved inadequate.

At the same time, the growing centralisation in national capitals has contributed towards a perception that decision-making lacks transparency and popular participation. Many problems which can only be adequately dealt with at a local level are not being solved. Furthermore, regional differences and cultural diversity are being stifled.

In order to deal with these it is necessary to elaborate common policies to be democratically established and efficiently implemented through integrated, supranational institutions. In this sense, a reshaping of the sharing of powers and competences among national and supranational institutions is urgently needed. Without accountable institutions and a truly democratic decision-making process, operating according to the rule of law, any supranational union will remain inefficient and unable to meet the real demands of its citizens and deal with the challenges of our interdependent world.

World Federalism

Please visit the World Federalist Movement for more information about World Federalism:

• World federalism calls for the division of international authority through the separation of powers among judicial, executive and parliamentary bodies.

• The League of Nations, the UN, and the European Union all represent institutional responses to the problems of international anarchy and war.

• At that time, people began to realize that representative bodies could be used to determine international policies. Federalism moved beyond national borders.

• States rely on these international organizations to regulate their disagreements and deal with their common problems; however advancement is still needed.

• World federalism now faces the challenge of showing that it is capable of taking the lead in transitioning toward world government.

• The ultimate goal of world federalists is world federation.

• During the Cold War, world government lay in the vague and distant future, but today it has become a feasible goal. World federalists take up that challenge.