On Tuesday 4 July, the European Parliament once again paid tribute to Simone Veil, who presided over the first European Parliament elected by direct universal suffrage in 1979.
“A French woman, a European, a minister of State, an Auschwitz survivor, a great figure of our time, a politician, a woman. In her extraordinary life, she was all of that and much more. The history of her life is the history of our continent”, said the current President of the institution, Antonio Tajani (our translation).
He also stressed that Veil had “accompanied the young Parliament through its first steps, pointed it in the right direction, laid the foundation for its future development”, reiterating that she had always wanted it to be a political Parliament. “Thank you, Madam President, thank you for everything you have done for us and for those who will come next”, Tajani concluded.
Guy Verhofstadt, leader of the ALDE group of the European Parliament, said that Veil had always “argued for reconciliation based on the shared values of liberal democracy and the rule of law”. From 1984 to 1989, Veil led the Liberal group of the European Parliament.
Tajani will attend the official service in honour of Veil, in Paris this Wednesday. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)