We All are Europe - AESAEC

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Important events, dates and facts 1950-52: Based on the so called Schuman Plan, the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was founded to ensure joint control over coal and steel production, the two most important areas in the armaments industry. One of the main reasons for its foundation was to prevent a country preparing for a new war by having common control of these areas of production. France, West Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands were the founding members of this Community. In 1952 Italy joined and the six countries all signed the Treaty of Paris (23 July 1952). 1957: With the Treaty of Rome, the ECSC developed into the European Economic Community (EEC), providing Europe's first real common European market. 1973: The United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and Denmark joined the EEC. 1980-1986: Greece (1980) as well as Spain and Portugal (both 1986) became new members. 1990: With the reunifciation of the two Germanies the former Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR) / German Democratic Republic (GDR) also became part of the Community. 1993: By virtue of the Maastricht Treaty the EEC turned into the European Union and due to general economic, political and social developments related to the end of Cold War tensions, some EFTA (European Free Trade Association) states and even countries from the former COM- ECON (Council for Mutual Economic Assistance) also became interested in obtaining full EU membership. The European Union then entered into a very dynamic period of enlargement, more than doubling the number of its member states over the following 14 years. This caused Hans-Dietrich Genscher, former German Foreign Minister, to say that “the nicest achievement of the European Union is its enlargement”. 1995: The former EFTA countries Austria, Finland and Sweden joined the EU. 2004: Malta and the Republic of Cyprus (i.e. the southern, Greek part of the island), former COM- ECON members, the Czech Repubic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, the former parts of the Soviet Union Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, and, last but not least, Slovenia, a Yugoslavian republic, all became new member states. 2007: With the entry of Bulgaria and Romania the list of the 27 member states of the EU was completed. However, the enlargement process of the European Union must not be seen as finished. Currently official accession negotiations are in progress with Croatia, Macedonia and Turkey, and discussions with other countries in the western Balkans may soon follow. Treaties and Strategies Treaties are the primary source of European law and they are also the legal basis for common policies. All policies relating to older people are thus dependent on the treaties, these being instruments of progressing European integration. Some of them you have already read about above, however below is a summary of the most important treaties in the EU’s history: The Treaty of Paris (1951) establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). Its main objectives were to eliminate various barriers to trade and to guarantee peace and safety in Europe. 34
Module 1 – The European Union and its Relevance for Senior Citizens Treaty of Rome (1957) establishing the European Economic Community (EEC). The main aim of this treaty was the creation of a common market between the member states. It introduced the free flow of capital and workers between members. The Treaty of Maastricht (1992) was a major step in the development of the European Community. It created the European Union and led to the creation of the Euro. The treaty created what is commonly referred to as the pillar structure of the European Union. This concept of the Union divides it into the European Community (EC) pillar, the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) pillar, and the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) pillar. The latter two pillars are intergovernmental policy areas, whereby the greater power lies with the member states, whilst with the European Community pillar the Union's supranational institutions — the European Commission, the European Parliament and the European Court of Justice — hold most of the power. All three pillars combined together are called the European Union. The Treaty of Amsterdam (1997) meant a greater emphasis on citizenship and the rights of individuals. It sought to achieve more democracy in the shape of increased powers for the European Parliament, a new approach to issues of employment, a more integrated community in terms of freedom of movement, security and justice, the beginnings of a cohesive Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and the reform of EU institutions in the run up to enlargement. The Treaty of Nice (2001) reformed the institutional structure of the European Union to withstand eastward expansion. The Amsterdam Treaty was originally intended to have tackled this aim; however it failed to do so at that time. There was doubt for a time whether the treaty would be brought into force after its initial rejection by Irish voters in a June 2001 referendum. This referendum result was reversed in a subsequent referendum held a little over a year later. The Draft Constitutional Treaty (Rome 2004) was intended to establish a Constitution for Europe and was signed by 53 senior political figures from the 25 EU member states. In most cases heads of state designated plenipotentiaries to sign the treaty, however some presidents also signed on behalf of countries which hold the status of a republic. The Reform Treaty of Lisbon (2007). Changes included more qualified majority voting in the Council of Ministers, increased involvement of the European Parliament in the legislative process through extended co-decision making with the Council of Ministers, eliminating the pillar system and the creation of a President of the European Council with a term of office of two and half years and a High Representative for Foreign Affairs to present a united position on EU policies. If ratified, the Treaty of Lisbon would also make the Union's human rights charter, the Charter of Fundamental Rights, legally binding. 3 The Lisbon Strategy is, apart from the treaties, also a highly important concept in connection with the objectives and aims of the AESAEC training course. Due to its importance it needs to be considered by senior citizens, when preparing a European project proposal. The strategy was set out by the European Council in Lisbon in 2000 and is also known as the Lisbon Agenda or Lisbon Process. It is an action and development plan for the EU, important for all social groups, older citizens included. Its aim is to make the EU "the most dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy in the world by 2010, capable of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion, and with respect for the environment". Now, one year away from 2010, we know that this plan was much too ambitious to be fully implemented successfully. However, it has produced some success and good results in the fields of education and lifelong learning, in the general development of EU citizenship, in economic growth and in job creation within the EU. In respect of the four pillars of the Lisbon Strategy, the focus is now as follows: • member states should strive to adopt measures to promote creativity and enterprise with a view to making Europe the most creative environment in the world 3 During the development of this course book (November 2009), the Czech Republic, as the last of the 27 EU member states, signed the Reform Treaty of Lisbon, which means the treaty will now come into force. 35
Page 1: We All We All are Europe Participat
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Page 7 and 8: Contents Part A: The Pedagogical Co
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AESAEC - Glossary AESAEC - Glossary
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We All are Europe - AESAEC

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