*** JUSTINE LACROIX, KALYPSO NICOLAIDIS (Eds.): European Stories. Intellectual Debates on Europe in National Contexts. Oxford University Press (Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP, UK. Tel: (44-1865) 353250 - Fax: 353741 - email: reviewrequests.uk@oup.com - Internet: http://www.oup.com ). 2011, 409 pp, £60. ISBN 978-2-246-73381-2.
On the back of the book, five of the world's leading academics - Timothy Garton Ash, Jürgen Habermas, Andrew Moravscik, Pierre Rosanvallon and Philippe Van Parijs - heap praises on this book, and rightly so. Emerging from a multinational research project, "Reconstituting Democracy in Europe," funded by the European Union's Sixth Framework Programme in Research, the book brings together twenty-four professors and researchers from all four corners of Europe, experts in domains as diverse as political theory, public law, philosophy, contemporary history, political sociology and even literature to examine what public intellectuals, the people who influence public opinion through their writing or their speech, be it in their area of competence or well beyond, have made of the European Union and the European integration process since the end of the 1980s.
In the introduction, the book's editors, Justine Lacroix, professor of politics at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, and Kalypso Nicolaïdis, who teaches international relations at Oxford University - start by giving an overview of the debate about Europe over the centuries, explaining that the idea of federalism was inspired by Biblical covenant principles first developed by Johannes Althusius at the turn of the seventeenth century for the newly emerging States, and explaining the virtual absence of intellectual debate about the European project during the Cold War. Since the Maastricht Treaty, intellectuals have been re-discovering Europe as a subject of study and two major debates have emerged - the first, recurrent, debate sees supranationalists arguing for a unified continent in opposition to 'those who defend European nations as the only legitimate political units,' the other debate being a more complex form of the first, seeking a third, transnational way that reconciles both sides of the argument. These three schools of thought are found in each of the countries researched, every school, however, being influenced by the culture of the country in question. The book confirms the authors' intuition that the intellectual debate about Europe is different in every country due to the traces left by the nation's history and the way politics and social life, for example, are organised. To this end, the ideal would have been for the research to have covered all European countries, but this was not possible, much to the authors' regret.
The work is divided into six sections. In the first, the status of European intellectuals is studied in connection with the European integration process, Francis Chenaval (political theory at the Université Libre de Bruxelles) demonstrating that "the productive tension between particularity and universalism seems to remain the hallmark of (European) intellectualism," while Ulrike Liebert (political science at Bremen University) analyses “the dialectics of national intellectual discourses on Europe from the perspective of the controversial issue of democratic legitimacy in Europe,” and Michael Freeden (politics at Oxford University) looks at the perpetual question of what an intellectual is exactly, which enables him to stand back and put into perspective the so-called democratic deficit that people say is affecting the European Union. The second part of the book examines three EU founding nations, Germany (Jan-Werner Müller pointing out that German 'politicians, while using idealistic pro-European rhetoric, often advance Germany's interests in Europe's name' a very pithy comment given what is going on at present), France and Italy. The following section looks at Member States which joined at a later stage, namely the United Kingdom (Georgios Varouxakis demonstrates that the picture of intellectuals that arises in the UK is not as simple as merely for or against), Ireland, Greece and Spain. In the latter, joining Europe is seen as a way of perfecting national democracy. Then the book examines the countries that 'returned' after the fall of the Iron Curtain, namely Poland, Romania and the Czech Republic, the latter described as torn between nationalist, isolationist and ethnic forces, from Vaclav Klaus to the humanist vision of Vaclav Havel. The overview ends with two countries that are not (yet) members of the EU, Norway and Turkey. The analysis of the various countries confirms that each country as its own vision of Europe and the European project, making unity in diversity fully justified.
Michel Theys
*** RICHARD CORBETT, FRANCIS JACOBS, MICHAEL SHACKLETON: The European Parliament. 8th edition. John Harper Publishing (27 Palace Gates Road, London N22 7BW, United Kingdom. Tel: (44-1767) 604951 - email: custserv@turpin-distribution.com - Internet: http://www.johnharperpublishing.co.uk ). 2011, 437 pp, £25, €30. ISBN 978-0-9564508-5-2.
First published back in 1999, this book is now in its eighth edition. It has become a true reference work, as pointed out by Jerzy Buzek and Herman Van Rompuy in their respective prefaces. In over 400 packed, user-friendly pages, the authors describe in detail a European institution they know from the inside. Labour politician Richard Corbett was an MEP for many a long year, who now works as an advisor to the European Council on constitutional issues. After being head of the European Parliament's unit for Environment, Public Health and Consumer Protection Committee, Francis Jacobs now heads the EP's information office in Dublin. After being one of the founding fathers of the European Parliament's online television channel, Michael Shackleton now heads the EP's information office in London. The authors are therefore great experts with many years of experience under their belts. They tell the tale of the European Parliament since the first European elections in June 1979, explaining the continual expansion of its powers and its role in the institutional changes following the 1984 Spinelli Treaty until the time of MEPs' hands-on involvement in the Convention. The organisation of each European election in turn is examined in detail, along with changes to political parties, the EP's internal structure and how its operates - particularly the permanent feud about where its plenary sessions should be held (Strasbourg or Brussels). Undeniably a classic!
(PBo)
*** Fresh Thinking. Fondation Européenne d'Etudes rogressistes (40 rue Montoyer, B-1000 Brussels. email: info@feps-europe.eu) and NetworkMedia (30 Stresemannstrasse, D-10963 Berlin. Tel: (49-30) 25594179 - Fax: 25594199 - email: info@nwmd.de - Internet: http://www.nwmd.de ). 2011, No. 1, 40 pp.
There is more to this first issue of a new quarterly review published by a foundation working or progressive ideas and parties than meets the eye. In the accompanying letter, former Italian prime minister Massimo D'Alema explains that never before in contemporary history has Europe come under such pressure, be it from globalisation (that 'undermines the credibility of the model that served as a framework holding up the welfare state' in Europe) or from the recent democratic crises that have rocked the political foundations of the EU, which no longer seem able to support the structure. The way the heads of the Foundation see it, this new review will help restore a connection with citizens of Europe whose heart is on the left, getting them to participate in the democratic debate at EU level. Whether all Europeans whose heart is on the left will be necessarily able to read the review (written in English) is a moot question. The first issue provides an interesting series of articles on the ever more controversial topic of poverty.
(MT)
*** NIKOS SKOUTARIS: The Cyprus Issue. The Four Freedoms in a Member State under Siege. Hart Publishing (16C Worcester Place, Oxford, OX1 2JW, UK. Tel: (44-1865) 517530 - Fax: 510710 - email: mail@hartpub.co.uk - Internet: http://www.hartpub.co.uk ). Modern Studies in European Law series, No. 25. 2011, 224 pp, £55. ISBN 978-1-84946-095-8.
Based on a doctoral thesis, this extremely high quality book examines how the European Union's legal system deals with the de facto division of the island of Cyprus, examining the legal solutions used to get round partition and the impact they have on the concept of European citizenship, respect of human rights and the fundamental principles of EU law, particularly the functioning of the Internal Market. To what extent can the EU acquis be affected by settlement of the Cyprus question in the future, and to what extent can it deal with it? What mediating role can the EU play here, taking account of the views of three Member States at the same time, those of Cyprus, Greece and the United Kingdom, along with the views of a candidate country (Turkey)? These questions run through this politically committed but resolutely scientific book on a highly sensitive issue. The author starts by describing the legal and political challenges and making a realistic, balanced analysis. In the second chapter, he describes the legal and historical backdrop following the collapse of the Annan Plan, comparing the Cyprus question with other geographical areas where exceptions are made to the application of 'Community acquis,' like the French overseas dominions, the Åland Islands, the Channel Islands and Greenland. Now associate professor at the European and International Law Department of Maastricht University in the Netherlands, Nikos Skoutaris then examines the impact of the division of Cyprus in the light of European citizenship, fundamental rights and the freedom of individuals to circulate. Pointing out that the two-zone approach is favoured when seeking a solution to the dispute between Greek and Turkish Cypriots, he says that the European Union should be prepared to allow exceptions to the rules in these matters into the long-term. He looks at the freedom of circulation of individuals and the fact that even more crucially than the situation for individuals, the main challenge to be overcome is to prevent the economic isolation of the Turkish section of the island while avoiding anything that might look like recognition of the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus (currently recognised by Turkey alone). In the final part of the book, the author discerns the role that the European Union could play in solving the dispute. According to Prof. Marise Cremona, who backed the author throughout the period of writing up his thesis, one of the main lessons of the work is that Cyprus shows how important it is that countries sort out their domestic problems before joining the EU. It also demonstrates the limitations of the special conditions applied by the European Union.
(PBo)
*** FRANK TETART: Nationalismes régionaux. Un défi pour l'Europe. De Boeck (39 rue des Minimes, B-1000 Brussels. Tel: (32-2) 5480713 - Fax: 5480714 - email: commande@deboeckservices.com - Internet: http://www.deboeck.be ). 'Le point sur… Politique' series. 2009, 112 pp, €12. ISBN 978-2-8041-1781-8.
Senior lecturer at 'Sciences Po' in France, reader at the European Institute of Geneva and Paris I University, Frank Tétart analyses regional nationalisms in this work from the viewpoint of geopolitics, with his focus on Europe. In a very clear, pedagogical manner, he clarifies and highlights the national dynamic in its manifestations in history, politics and culture. In the first section of the book, he defines the concept of nationalism and the various concepts of 'nation' in order to understand where nationalism comes from and what national identity is based on. He pays particular attention to two mobilising factors in this respect, namely territory and language because, as he explains, territory is at the heart of political rivalries and language, through its territorial specificity, is often used to justify them. The second part of the book looks at modern nationalism, including recent nationalisms (like the former Yugoslavia), regional nationalisms, (Flanders, Scotland, Catalonia and the Basque Country) and the special case of Northern Italy where all the national referents have been invented. He also examines Ossetia and Abkhazia.
(MT)
*** PIERRE BLAISE, ALAIN DESMARETS, THERESE JEUNEJEAN: Comprendre la Belgique fédérale. De Boeck (see above). "Les carnets citoyens" series. 2011, 74 pp, €13-50. ISBN 978-2-8041-6434-8.
This 'Citizen's Notebook' relates the history of what is at times described as the improbable country of Belgium, along with its many institutions. The authors explain the various stages that led to the emergence of a federal State and the special nature of the Belgium federal State. The administrative divisions of the country, how democracy and the decision-making process function, budget and judicial issues are described in a very clear and reliable manner. The content and layout are designed with younger people in mind, but the book will also be of interest to anyone who has moved to the capital of Europe and wants to learn more about their host country.
(MT)
*** Causeur. Causeur.fr (9 rue Léopold-Robert, F-75014 Paris. email: info@causeur.fr - Internet: http://www.causeur.fr ). June 2011, No. 36, 48 pp, €5-50. Annual subscription: €55.
This issue of the monthly publication that has a high profile on the Internet covers topics like Polish plumbers (much in demand in Germany where people 'are on the lookout for immigrants, preferably blond immigrants,') and various aspects of modern racism. There is naturally a hefty report on the Dominique Strauss-Kahn scandal.
(MT)