WEEKLY SUPPLEMENT / European library

*** ERIC CARPANO: Etat de droit et droits européens. L'évolution du modèle de l'Etat de droit dans le cadre de l'européanisation des systèmes juridiques. L'Harmattan (5-7 rue de l'École - Polytechnique, F-75005 Paris. Tel: [phone] - Fax: [phone] - E-mail: [e-mail] - Internet: http: //http://www.editions-harmattan.fr ). "Logiques juridiques" series. 2005, 662 pp, €51. ISBN 2-7475-8158-6.

A slightly adapted doctoral thesis for the European University Institute in Florence, this book is both a prime achievement and an intellectual delight. The author has postgraduate qualifications from Université Jean Moulin Lyon III in France, and as Prof. Thierry Debard explains in the preface, he decided to tackle a particularly difficult subject in his doctorate by taking on the flagship notion of the rule of law in European legal systems. Prof. Debard points out that everything is problematic in this ambitious area, even the subject matter of the rule of law itself, requiring hard theoretical work, and deciding on the exact scope of the research both in terms of past research and in terms of the author's aim of looking at the European dimension - which itself requires vast documentation to take account of both the diversity of the various national legal systems and the two arms of the European project, the European Community and the 'conventional' Council of Europe side. There is also the problem of having to mesh purely doctrinal analysis with looking at the positive law of the legal systems in question, and finally deciding on a model for such immense subject matter that defies pigeon-holing …

Eric Carpano shows himself to be a master in the way he tackles this decidedly crazy challenge. His comparative study focusses on seven Member States, Germany, Austria, Spain, France, Italy, Portugal and the UK, because in these countries discourse on the rule of law has been turned into doctrine or positive constitutional law, the discourse is relayed by other connected concepts, like the 'Republic' or "règne de la loi" in France or the rule of law in the United Kingdom, and because the development of European law has clashed with fundamental principles of national public law or has led to the development of various principles. Eric Carpano divides his research in this field into two sections. In the first, he looks at the rule of law, studying how it has changed under increasing Europeanisation of legal systems. In other words, he studies how the theory and model(s) of rule of law have changed in Europe from what is stipulated in doctrine and positive European laws. The thesis he defends is that as a unanimously shared concept among European countries, the values and principles of the rule of law have been assimilated and then rendered autonomous by European Law which, in turn, conveys a certain model of the rule of law, itself contributing to changing national rule of law structures and consequently to the emergence of a European model of the rule of law. In the second section, the identification of this European model of the rule of law enables the author to model changes in the Europeanising of public law around the big principles structuring the model where the idea of establishing the rule of law 'dominates' contemporary European public law. In Eric Carpano's view, the fundamental role of the individual in European Law and the attention European Law pays to actually protecting the individual's rights are but one of many illustrations of this.

Through his in-depth research, Eric Carpano brilliantly argues the case, as Prof. Jacques Ziller notes in the postscript, for the existence of a specifically European concept of the rule of law. Over and above national diversities in this field, the author demonstrates, as he explains in the conclusion, that the idea of the nation state is retreating in Europe with a new kernel of meaning taking form around the idea of ensuring individuals are given pride of place in law (which, in passing, also means settling accounts with the pseudo rule of law states of German dictator Adolf Hitler, or Franco's Spain or Salazar's Portugal), since fundamental rights are both the founders and the re-founders of the rule of law. He describes fundamental rights as a fan-belt for the transmission of the development of the rule of law. The author comments that European Law has played a decisive role in the convergence of national models of the rule of law, with its demanding conception helping enrich national models. Gradually European public law is being formed and the Europe described by Voltaire in 1852 as a grand republic divided into several states sharing the same principles of public law and policy is being re-built, the same Europe that the future Constitutional Treaty for Europe should seal, concludes Eric Carpano. Another reason for regretting the current mess and remaining optimistic …

Michel Theys

*** ROBERTA CARNAVALE, STEFAN IHRING, CHRISTIAN WEISS: Europa am Bosporus (er-)finden? Die Diskussion um den Beitritt der Türkei zur Europäischen Union in den britischen, deutschen, französischen und italienischen Zeitungen - Eine Presseanalyse. Peter Lang (1 Moosstrasse, Postfach 350, CH-2542 Pieterlen, Switzerland. Tel: [phone] - Fax: [phone] - E-mail: [e-mail] - Internet: http: //http://www.peterlang.de ). "Europäische Hochschulschriften - European University Studies - Publications Universitaires Européennes", Série Sciences politiques, No. 510. 2005, 158 pp. ISBN 3-631-53837-5.

Three young researchers based in Germany analyse public debate on Turkey joining the EU in this dense and concise monograph. They look at broadsheet and other quality press articles in the UK, France, Germany and Italy following the election of the Erdogan government in Turkey and before the decision by the December 2002 European Constitution. One of the book's great selling points is the way the authors set out the arguments for and against Turkey joining the EU under nine headings - Turkish domestic politics, geography, history and culture, religion, geostrategic affairs, demographics, immigration and the economy. The authors illustrate how and to what extent these domains are covered or ignored by the various types of media in the countries in question. This very interesting book with its innovative, rational approach to debates that are often too 'us and them' or emotional, includes in-depth interviews with Turkish and German correspondents and reporters (including Günter Seufert, author of the well-known book "Café Istanbul"). (PB)

*** IWONA KIERETA: Die Migrationsproblematik im Rahmen des Beitritts Polens zur Europäischen Union unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Bildungspolitik als Steuerungsinstrument. Peter Lang (see above). "Studien zur Pädagogik, Andragogik und Gerontagogik" series, No. 58. 2005, 369 pp. ISBN 3-631-53940-1.

The effect on immigration of Poland joining the European Union is studied in this empirical research by a young economist from Aachen University in Germany. The author studied at Poznan Business University in Poland. Kiereta examines academic and theoretical scenarios, deals with the special case of education and makes use of very well-documented EU, German and Polish sources. An excellent contribution to rational debate on the impact of immigration between Poland and the EU15.

(PB)

*** EUGENIE TRÜTZSCHLER VON FALKENSTEIN: Mittelosteuropa - Nationen, Staaten, Regionen. Die Erweiterung der Europäischen Union aus der historischen Perspektive. Peter Lang (see above). "Schriften zum Staats- und Völkerrecht" series, No. 113. 2005, 509 pp. ISBN 3-631-53568-6.

The emergence of nationalist ideas in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary, the European Union and Council of Europe's regional policy, and political decentralisation and the empowering of regions and communities in the five countries are studied in this academic monograph. It opens with a description and look back in history at these five Middle Europe countries, along with their national identities, regional structures, and ethnic and language minorities. (PB)

*** TRAIAN SANDU (Ed.): Illusions de puissance, puissance de l'illusion. Historiographies et histoire de l'Europe centrale dans les relations internationales de l'entre-deux-guerres. L'Harmattan (see above). "Cahiers de la Nouvelle Europe" series, No. 2. 2005, 292 pp, €25-50. ISBN 2-7475-8438.

Fruit of a study day organised at the Sorbonne by the Hungarian Inter-University Study Centre, this book looks at the history of Middle Europe in international relations between the two World Wars. In the opening essay, Traian Sandu explains that there is little French literature about the history of Middle Europe in the 1920s and 1930s. The following dozen essays by authors from the new schools of history in Middle Europe help fill the gap by providing new methodological approaches and combinations of approaches. As Prof. Elisabeth du Réau suggests in the preface, the rediscovered history of Middle Europe in the inter-war years is useful when it comes to understanding Middle Europe, a part of Europe that is still too often ignored. (LD)

*** YVES ZURLO: Ceuta et Melilla. Histoire, représentations et devenir de deux enclaves espagnoles. L'Harmattan (5-7 rue de l'École - Polytechnique, F-75005 Paris. Tel: [phone] - Fax: [phone] - E-mail: [e-mail] - Internet: http: //http://www.editions-harmattan.fr ). "Recherches et Documents -Espagne" series. 2005, 320 pp, €28-30. ISBN 2-7475-7656-6.

Ceuta and Melilla are now infamous and tend to be citied as one unit as two cities recently in the media spotlight. But a cursory glance at the two Spanish enclaves in Morocco cannot provide full understanding of what is really at stake in Ceuta and Melilla. Dr Yves Zurlo, a Spanish specialist, has published this book based on his 2002 thesis on an area he feels passionately about. As the book shows, the history and current situation of the two cities deserve special attention in the light of EU priorities like the connection between the EU and its Mediterranean neighbours, immigration and the dialogue of cultures. Spain took control of the two cities at the time of the Spanish reconquista. They are still the subject of Moroccan demands and have great importance in the national image of both Spain and Morocco. Ceuta and Melilla have a role to play in the idea of both Franco's españolidad and Franco's africanismo, whereas Morocco focusses on the two enclaves' military history and the fact they are enclaves. But the two cities are also flagships for "convivencia" given the generally peaceful cohabitation of different ethic and religious groups (Spanish, Moroccan, Jewish, Hindu, Christian and Muslim). Writing this very detailed book, the author tapped both Moroccan and Spanish source material (including the press and school textbooks reflecting the political line) and carried out interviews during his trips to the two enclaves. The book includes some subject matter in Spanish not translated into French. It is certainly one of the most detailed books around on the question of Ceuta and Melilla, where some of the problems with the European Union are concentrated. (FRo)

*** ALFRED BOSCH: L'Europe au Miroir Africain. Lettres à Olu. L'Harmattan (see above). "Points de vue" series. 2005, 105 pp, €10. ISBN 2-7475-7368-0.

At this time of the year when people are looking for Christmas presents, if you are looking for a reader-friendly book about Europe, this book is a must-have. A writer and history lecturer at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Alfred Bosch describes the European Community as seen by African eyes through a series of letters with an imaginary Nigerian friend, Olu. Olu thinks Europe must be a kind of paradise, but Bosch replies that it isn't really. The author sets out his personal views on the European Garden of Eden, expressed magnificently and humbly, describing the phoenix that emerged fifty years ago from the hot ashes of horror. Jean Monnet, a lover of peace, managed to get European countries to change from being a pathetic club of defeated nations to become a happy gang, to the extent that the warm, noisy pub of yesteryear is simply a peaceful old people's home today. A club where the well-off keep poverty (meaning immigrants from the South) at bay and hide from their guilty consciences by taking refuge in Europe's geographical appendix, which the author describes as Asia's genitals. He writes that parts of Asia, after raping half the planet and depositing their sperm in so many wombs in far-flung climes, are now gazing inwards at secret pleasures. They feel like they are the most threatened parts of the world and are scared of sharing their long-lasting fertility. Maybe you'll correct me, Olu, but I am very concerned that we're still talking about genitals as we get more mature and approach old age. The author continues in this creative vein, dismantling a whole series of little faults characteristic of Europeans, like being 'prisoners of Eros', being obsessed about love but practising hypocritical monogamy. Alfred Bosch only partially believes in the Sacred Union of Member States, writing that from the inside, there seems to be plenty of common market but precious little common sense. To put it another way, he writes that Europe still marches to the tune of its national anthems and is therefore taken hostage by its Member States and national egotism. The behaviour witnessed in recent weeks and months does nothing, of course, to contradict this! (MT)

*** Magazine. Agence européenne pour la sécurité et la santé au travail (33 Gran Via, E-48009 Bilbao. Tel: [phone] - Fax: 794383 - E-mail: [e-mail] - Internet: http: //osha.eu.int). 2005, No. 8, 32 pp.

The European Agency for Health and Safety at Work looks in this issue at noise pollution. Far from simply being a cause of discomfort, once it reaches a certain level, noise at work can cause extra stress, cause accidents by interfering with communication and impact badly on health by causing irreversible hearing problems. These health problems, from whatever cause, are the leading cause of invalidity in Europe and the loss of hearing from work is one of the most widespread work-caused illnesses. A directive to protect workers against noise pollution should be transposed into domestic legislation by February 2006 at the latest, but much remains to be done in this area. This issue is part of the Stop Noise campaign launched by the European Agency for Health and Safety at Work. It describes the directive and changes in measures to protect hearing, looking at noise in the office (including sound-proofing advice) and creches and childcare centres and noise problems for classical musicians, who tend to be reluctant to wear earplugs or sound barriers.

*** Revue du Marché commun et de l'Union Européenne. Editions techniques et économiques (3 rue Soufflot, F-75005 Paris. Tel: [phone] - Fax: [phone]- E-mail: [e-mail] - Internet: http: //http://www.editecom.com ). October-November 2005, No. 492, 62 pp. Annual subscription: €202.

The review opens with an article looking at the reasons for insufficient R&D in Europe and solutions for improving R&D performance, so important for the Lisbon Strategy. While the EU grants twice as many degrees and qualifications in science and engineering than the United States or Japan, there are less than half as many science and engineering jobs in Europe than in the US or Japan. In the EU, not enough research is turned into commercial applications and there is not enough funding. There is also an article on the EU's Neighbourhood Policy, which is rather scattered and facing new challenges with the latest round of enlargement. Other articles look at what the EU is doing to ensure energy supply in the future, the cross-border merger directive and reducing the gulf between US and EU lobbying methods.

*** Rivista di studi politici internazionali. Rivista di studi politici internazionali (40 Lungarno del Tempio, I-50121 Florence. Tel: [phone]). October-December 2005, No. 288, 188 pp. €15-50. Annual subscription: €62.

One article in this magazine looks at changes in international ethics and the meshing of collective and state security since the end of the Cold War and since the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001. It calls for readers to drop the false idea that a clash of civilisations is beginning. There is an article on citizen rights in the Constitutional Treaty and other articles on the connections between the Church, the state and democracy, the establishing of pan-European and Mediterranean transport networks, parliamentary diplomacy and the commitment to Europe of one of the founding fathers of Europe, Alcide de Gasperi. The articles (in Italian) each have a short summary in English and French. As usual, the magazine includes two dozen book reviews.

*** Paneuropa Intern. Paneuropa-Union Deutschland e.V. (17 Dachauer Straße, D-80335 Munich. Tel: [phone] - Fax: 594768). November 2005, No. 10, 4 pp. Annual subscription: €95.

The November issue looks at the Hong Kong WTO Summit, pointing out the importance of farming in the talks, the subject of fraught negotiations between the European Union and the United States in particular. Most of this issue looks at the demand made during the XXIVth Europatag by Bernd Posselt, President of Paneuropa, to step up the ban on forced deportation and assimilation of populations. It calls for respect of the basic rules of the world and European order on respecting minority rights to be ensured to avoid repeating the deportations and genocides that cost the lives of 250 million people last century. The newsletter also looks at Romanian and Bulgarian parliamentarians attending the European Parliament as observers and reprints a hard-hitting comment by Otmar Karas, member of Paneuropa and Vice-President of the EPP, to Tony Blair about the British Presidency.