Nice, 08/12/2000 (Agence Europe) - The demonstration of European Federalists (UEF and JEF) for a European Constitution gathered together around ten thousand citizens and was able to unfold in an atmosphere of calm, Thursday in Nice, despite some damage and violence committed by rioters. It finished with a "European tribunal" during which various personalities spoke. The German Social Democrat and President of the Union of European federalists, Jo Leinen invited the EU Heads of State and Government to "open the door and let the citizens participate in the European building process". "Europe may or may not be federal", he said. The French Christian Democrat Alain Lamassoure announced: "What matters is not the decision have little effect taken in the European Council; what will change Europe are the citizens in the streets". The German Green elected in France, Daniel Cohn-Bendit hoped that the citizens may elect, before the end of this decade, a "President of the United State of Europe". "We want a European political, economic, social and ecological power", he added. For the Mayor of Rome, Francesco Rutelli, "it is the time to be courageous for Europe". "We do not want a Europe of small steps and fallacious speeches, but a free, responsible and democratic Europe", he continued before adding that "the gathering of demonstrators from all political affiliations reflects that citizens desire to build the Europe of the future above the traditional cleavages".
The forum organised by several civil society organisations in the Nice cinema (see EUROPE of 2 December, p.4) furthermore gathered together 2,000 people who where thus able to express their concern and expectations in the face of the European building process.
Unanimous condemnation of violence
During their press conference on Thursday afternoon, President Chirac, President Prodi and Lionel Jospin condemned the acts of violence perpetrated on the sidelines of the European Council in Nice. There where two types of deeply different demonstrations, underlined the French Prime Minister: the peaceful demonstration of trade unions, which wanted to firmly say, but democratically that they want a "more attentive and voluntarist" Europe in the social field (and I hope that the Nice summit will prove to them that the Presidency is decided to make a step forward in this field, he added), and the demonstration, this morning by some "small violent groups" which, it seems, went so far as to try to "interrupt the summit" (but this being above their means, in Europe and in France, noted Mr Jospin, in a thinly veiled allusion to the consequences of the demonstrations in Seattle). Among the demonstrators, there where those who wanted a binding Charter of Fundamental Rights and those who criticise the content of the Charter, underlined Mr Jospin.