Why Italy Was for Europe - On the History of the 1989 Advisory Referendum

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georg Kreis
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
History Of ◽  
Direct Elections ◽  
Historical Accounts ◽  
Draft Constitution

In June 1989, Italian citizens had the opportunity to express their opinion about whether the European Parliament (EP) should draw up a constitution for an European Union. This referendum is the starting point and focus of the engagement with Italy’s view on the question of Europe. The «historic» event is hardly ever mentioned in general historical accounts; in non-Italian scholarship, it has gone almost completely unnoticed. The present study aims to counteract this. It distinguishes between two different histories leading up to the referendum: an immediate history that begins in 1979 with the first direct elections for the EP or in 1984 with the adoption of a draft constitution at the end of term of the first EP; and a longer history that begins in 1941 in the middle of the war with the Ventotene Manifesto or in 1945. The excurses into these two pasts are followed by a brief look at what has happened since the referendum.

Obywatele Unii Europejskiej – wyborcy Parlamentu Europejskiego – parlamentu ponadnarodowego

2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 147-162
Author(s):  
Stefan Marek Grochalski
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
Legal Regulations ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Democratic State ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Direct Elections

Parliament – an institution of a democratic state – a member of the Union – is not only an authority but also, as in the case of the European Union, the only directly and universally elected representative body of the European Union. The article presents questions related to the essence of parliament and that of a supranational parliament which are vital while dealing with the subject matter. It proves that the growth of the European Parliament’s powers was the direct reason for departing from the system of delegating representatives to the Parliament for the benefit of direct elections. It presents direct and universal elections to the European Parliament in the context of presenting legal regulations applicable in this respect. It describes a new legal category – citizenship of the European Union – primarily in terms of active and passive suffrage to the European Parliament, as a political entitlement of a citizen of the European Union.

scholarly journals Rewriting a History of Open Universities

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyungmee Lee
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Technological Innovation ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Autobiographical Narratives ◽  
The Past ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
History Of ◽  
Historical Accounts ◽  
Distance Educators

This article reports eight distance teachers’ stories about teaching at two open universities over the past two decades with a focus on their perceptions and feelings about the changes in their teaching practice. This qualitative study employed a methodological approach called the autoethnographic interview, aiming to document more realistic histories of the open universities and to imagine a better future for those universities. As a result, the paper presents autobiographical narratives of distance teachers that dissent from the general historical accounts of open universities. These narratives are categorized into three interrelated themes: a) openness: excessive openness and a lost sense of mission; b) technological innovation: moving online and long-lasting resistance, and c) teaching: transactional interactions and feelings of loneliness. The paper then presents a discussion of useful implications for open universities, which can serve as a starting point for more meaningful discussions among distance educators in a time of change.

PROVIDING A CONSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR WITHDRAWAL FROM THE EU: ARTICLE 59 OF THE DRAFT EUROPEAN CONSTITUTION

2004 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 407-428 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Friel Raymond
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Member State ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
European Council ◽  
The European Union ◽  
European Constitution ◽  
Article 59 ◽  
Qualified Majority ◽  
The Eu ◽  
Draft Constitution

After almost 50 years in existence in a variety of different forms, the EU finally has an express proposal on the table dealing with the potential withdrawal of a Member State. Article 59 of the draft Constitution states that any Member State may now ‘decide to withdraw from the European Union in accordance with its own constitutional requirements’.1 The Member State would have to formally notify the European Council of this decision. The Council and the Member State would then enter into negotiations on a mutually agreeable basis for withdrawal, including a framework for the future relationship between the EU and the Member State. The results of this negotiation would require approval by a qualified majority of the Council after obtaining the consent of the European Parliament.2 In any event, withdrawal would occur not later than two years following the notification unless extended by agreement between the Member State and the European Council.3

Testing the Second-Order Elections Model on the 2019 European Elections in Romania

2020 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 359-374
Author(s):  
Nicoleta Lașan
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
Second Order ◽  
National Elections ◽  
European Elections ◽  
New Type ◽  
Treaty Of Rome ◽  
Direct Elections ◽  
European Parliament Elections

"The Treaty of Rome adopted in 1957 included provisions on the elections of the then European Parliamentary Assembly elections, but it took more than two decades for the members of the European Parliament to be directly elected. Immediately after the first direct elections of the European Parliament in 1979, the second-order elections model was conceived in order to understand the new type of supranational but less important elections. The model includes several hypotheses deriving from the idea that in the European elections there is less at stake, so instead of having genuine EU elections, in reality there are now 27 simultaneous national elections. The paper tests the second order elections to see whether its hypotheses are valid in the case of 2019 EU elections in Romania. Keywords: European Union, European Parliament, elections, Romania, 2019."

6. The European Parliament: The power of democratic ideas

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Shackleton
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
European Union ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
Lisbon Treaty ◽  
Democratic Deficit ◽  
Historical Evolution ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Direct Elections ◽  
National Governments ◽  
The Eu

This chapter examines how the power of the democratic idea drives change in the European Parliament’s (EP) powers. The EP, the only directly elected institution of the European Union, derives its authority from national electorates rather than national governments and is therefore a transnational institution. Since the first direct elections in 1979, the EP’s powers and status have grown dramatically, culminating in the changes agreed under the 2007 Lisbon Treaty. Nevertheless, the EU is perceived to be suffering from a ‘democratic deficit’. This chapter first traces the historical evolution of the EP before discussing its decision-making. It then considers how the EP aggregates interests, what influence it exercises, and what kind of body it is becoming. It concludes by assessing various perspectives about the EU’s democratic deficit. The chapter stresses the importance of consensus mechanisms within the EP as well as those that link it to other EU institutions.

The Oxford Handbook of Modern German History

2012 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Federal Republic ◽  
Literary History ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
German History ◽  
Federal Republic Of Germany ◽  
The European Union ◽  
German Politics ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
History Of

The Oxford Handbook of Modern German History is a multi-author survey of German history that features syntheses of major topics by an international team of scholars. Emphasizing demographic, economic, and political history, this text places German history in a denser transnational context than any other general history of Germany. It underscores the centrality of war to the unfolding of German history, and shows how it dramatically affected the development of German nationalism and the structure of German politics. It also reaches out to scholars and students beyond the field of history with detailed chapters on religious history and on literary history, as well as to contemporary observers, with reflections on Germany and the European Union, and on ‘multi-cultural Germany’. Covering the period from around 1760 to the present, this book represents a synthesis based on current scholarship. It constitutes the starting point for anyone trying to understand the complexities of German history as well as the state of scholarly reflection on Germany's dramatic, often destructive, integration into the community of modern nations. As it brings this story to the present, it also places the current post-unification Federal Republic of Germany into a multifaceted historical context.

scholarly journals Democratizando a integração: eleições diretas para os parlamentos europeu e do Mercosul/Democratizing integration: direct elections to the European and MERCOSUR Parliaments

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 384-406
Author(s):  
Bruno Theodoro Luciano
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Key Words ◽  
Legal System ◽  
Regional Integration ◽  
Hypothesis Test ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
Direct Election ◽  
Direct Elections ◽  
Comparative Model

O presente estudo investiga comparativamente dois modelos de integração regional, o Mercosul e a União Europeia, no âmbito de seus parlamentos regionais, o Parlamento do Mercosul (Parlasul) e o Parlamento Europeu, enfocando o papel da inserção das eleições diretas no ordenamento jurídico regional. A hipótese trabalhada é de que a inserção do critério de representatividade direta nos parlamentos de integração traz dinâmicas novas ao papel, à atuação e às configurações dessas instituições parlamentares regionais em seus respectivos processos de integração. Dada a incompletude das eleições diretas no Mercosul, a comparação entre os parlamentos voltar-se-á para os períodos que antecederam os pleitos europeu e mercosulino. A partir do modelo comparativo e do teste da referida hipótese, pretende-se discutir se as estruturas dos dois projetos de integração produzem limites ao desenvolvimento de instituições democráticas supranacionais.Palavras-chave: Integração Regional. Democracia. Parlamento Europeu. Parlamento do Mercosul. Eleições diretas. Abstract: The  present  study  investigates  comparatively  two  models  of  regional  integration, Mercosur and European Union, and their regional parliaments, the Parliament of Mercosur (Parlasur)  and  the  European  Parliament,  focusing  on  the  role  of  the  inclusion  of  direct election  within  the  regional  legal  system.  The  working  hypothesis  is  that  the  insertion  of direct elections in integration parliaments generates new dynamics to the role,  actuation  and  configurations  of  these  regional  parliamentary  institutions  in  their integration processes. Regarding  the non-completion of  direct  elections in  Mercosur, the comparison between  parliaments  will emphasize  the  period before  the European  and  Mercosur’s elections. Based on comparative model and hypothesis test, it  is  discussed if  the  structures of  these  two  integration projects produce  limits  to  the development of supranational democratic institutions. Key-words: Regional Integration. Democracy. European Parliament. Parliament of Mercosur. Direct Elections.DOI: 10.20424/2237-7743/bjir.v4n2p384-406 

scholarly journals The Time of European Discontent: The EU's changing framework

2019 ◽  
pp. 68-82
Author(s):  
Petr YAKOVLEV
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Radical Change ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
History Of ◽  
New Phase

While 2019 marked the beginning of a new phase in the history of the European Union, its specific political and economic markers are still not quite clear. International relations of EU member states are also undergoing radical change, and regional and global alliances are being reset. In fact, the whole domestic and foreign policy framework, which has existed in Europe for several decades, is essentially changing. That was clearly demonstrated by the elections to the European Parliament. The new EU leadership will have to find adequate responses to numerous economic, social, diplomatic and military challenges.

Le rapport Tindemans et les élections européennes

Res Publica ◽  
1970 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 345-371
Author(s):  
Jean-Claude Willame
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
National Level ◽  
European Parliament ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Political Union ◽  
Formal Support ◽  
The Hague ◽  
Direct Elections ◽  
Heads Of State

The Tindemans report on the European union and the decision to organize direct elections for the European Parliament have been two important events in European afjairs in 1976. This article analyses the origins, developments and bearing of these two events.Although his mandate was initiated and encouraged at the highest level - that of the European heads of state - , Mr. Tindemans' attempt to propose concrete steps in order to achieve a real political union in Europe did not get through. It received a rather cold reception from several states who opposed some of his proposals on different grounds.At the Conference of The Hague, Mr. Tindemans was able to get a formal support to his ideas, but no decision was taken to implement any of them.The decision to organize direct elections for the European Parliament, which can be seen as a concrete step toward the implementation of the long awaited European union, is facing the same kind of resistance at the national level. Although the Nine have all agreed to do everything possible to organize these elections in the spring of 1978, there are still unsolved problems which are both technical and political. Moreover, even if they are taking place, it is not at all sure that they will bring about substantive changes in the role and functions of the European Parliament.

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