The need to trigger a change of the current EU system:
An immense political "depression" is gaining force throughout the European electorate

European politics is far from being excellent. An immense democratic/political "depression" is in the midst of being created in the very heart of European continental politics. The 200 million voters that chose not to participate in 2004 Europeans elections are the proof. The Euro has broken the certainty of 350 million Europeans. Europe has entered their pockets, and seemingly, just as rapidly, entered their heads as the evidence that important decisions were escaping their national boundaries. The Euro is the link that joined tens of millions of Europeans in discovering that their work, their social system, their health system, and the economic growth of their country depended essentially on European decisions made in common, and no longer on national political parties. We have hence moved from abstentions of "disinterest" in 1999, disinterest in a Europe perceived as far away and without consequences on daily life, to abstentions of "rejection" in 2004, rejection not of European Construction but of the "political offer" presented at the time of the European Parliament's deliberations. Caught between their hopes and their fears for the EU, Europeans are still longing for projects and visions on a continental scale. However, the national political classes much like the community's institutional system continue to ignore this evolution. And the result is that abstentions are setting new records. The vote-sanctions are becoming the norm in European Parliamentary elections. The populists and extremists benefit mechanically from this situation: abstentions enable them to obtain important victories in terms of elected representatives even if they continue to represent only a small fraction of the entire elected body: the inconsistencies between that which is offered by the traditional national political parties and that which is needed by Europe creates a unique opportunity for the extremists to attract the attention of the electorate.

Case for action: the democratisation of Europe is the central challenge for the next stage of European Construction

The difference between the political "offer and need" is illustrative of the fact that the EU cannot manage its own historic transition, its passage from the phase of constructing the European Community (1951-2004), to the phase of management, and governance of the European Union. However, this change is the very proof of the founding fathers' successful endeavour. The mission assigned to the community project in the 50s has been brilliantly accomplished. The two main challenges have been met: the continent is close to being fully unified and all European member states are democratic. However, this accomplishment appears in tandem with the emergence of the new central challenge: how to govern a community of approximately 500 million citizens with close to 30 different nationalities, languages and cultures? This is the central problem that the European Union must confront during the next twenty years. The resolution of all the other problems will depend on the capacity of the EU to respond to the question of its own democratization. Of course, the challenge is immense and without historical precedent. Neither the invention of American democracy (which took place among an homogeneous culture of a few millions people), nor the attempts at democratizing large human collectives like India or China can seriously help Europeans realise their democratic needs, needs that represent the new frontier in terms of both size and diversity.
 
 
The goals and pitfalls for a European democracy in the 21st century: role-model and diversity

As in many other eras of our history, the decades to come challenge Europeans to invent democratic governance on a continental level. If we are able to succeed, not only will we have been able to accomplish the transition to the second stage of European Construction thereby presenting the best homage to our founding fathers, continuing along the path that they first created, but we will also have brought a gift to the rest of the world, and to numerous other continents that are adventuring in the same direction as Europe, an essential message, that of proving that a concrete integration of a continent and democracy is indeed possible. This mutual learning process will further contribute to facing the challenges posed by globalization that are even vaster in terms of management, size and diversity.

If the EU elite does not rapidly become conscious of the nature and magnitude of this challenge, then, the democratic depression that we feel already today may win the day potentially forcing both the EU and democracy into one of those collective catastrophes that seem to define European history.
 
To summarize, with the current enlarged EU, we are reaching a level in terms of population size and diversity which will be not be drastically modified in the coming 20 years. Happily because we, as united Europeans, will face a set of historic challenges which are absolutely new in world’s history.

First of all, we will have to find the ways and means to make an almost 500 million citizen- strong EU work efficiently and democratically. Nowhere ever before has such a large number of people with such a large diversity of cultures, histories, nationalities and languages faced this challenge. Institutions, elites, citizens, political and social organisations, media … everything or almost has to be invented from now on in order to succeed in the coming decades. Institutions inherited from the EU construction age (1951-2004), like the almost only bureaucratic Euro-elites they generated, already witness the fading away of their power and monopoly regarding EU decision-making and shaping up. New institutions, like the European Central Bank, are paving the way: no more lifelong Eurocrats, established as node of network of national institutions (Central Banks System) and fitting with a polycentric political and institutional network (getting out of the Brussels/Luxemburg/Strasburg triangle). But of course the main challenge (connected though with the previous elements) will be to establish a genuine democratic process to rule the continent. New trans-European political parties, unions, NGOs and media are urgently required to provide the necessary channels and instruments for citizens’ voices to be expressed in a consistent way (consistent with the new size of population and the level of power) and to effectively impact decision-making processes. This evolution will meanwhile generate a new kind of trans-European leaders able to understand, feel and represent those 500 millions citizens.

The first trans-European political party to improve the EU system by leading to an inner democratisation

The European parliament consists of MPs that are affiliated to their national political parties. It seems European politics – Council and Parliament – is a matter of national governments and national parties. But where does this leave the mature European citizen? It should be clear for the citizen who is taking which political decisions on European level, because European decisions are having a direct impact on each of us. After having noticed that it was useless to advise on these matters the EU institutions or the national political elites, even as the highest levels, and rather than waiting for Godot, we decided, as a group of active European citizens, to take the challenge of democratising the EU into our hands. This is why, in June 2005, we decided to create the first trans-European political party (Newropeans), a political movement whose aim is to be the catalyst of the EU democratisation as well as the first democratic expression of a political vision of Europe in the 21st century world.
Till now the European parliamentary system is dominated by the national political parties. The voter is not able to choose politicians from other member countries. Furthermore the caucuses of the European Parliament are complicated and in-transparent to the voter (e.g. Swedish Greens have the same position than the German Conservatives). It is a lack of the system that MPs and parties cannot be held accountable for the decisions they made on European level.

In order to change the system within its frameworks, Newropeans will present candidates in all EU member states with the same programme in the 2009 European elections. In democracy, politics is essentially about elections. So we think that it is more than time to bring politics to a truly European level. The party has been created because Europe and democracy are too important to be left in the hands of national parties and of bureaucrats alone and because democratising Europe is the task of all European citizens. We are convinced that the current political crisis in the European Union is the result of the increasing inability of European leaders and institutions to respond to European citizens' expectations. This crisis of legitimacy increasingly nurtures national and European populisms. This is why the European Union must rapidly transform its institutions, methods of functioning, and its political actors, to put citizens in the driving seat and to allow the European Union to regain its legitimacy.

Following the successes of the last 50 years of European construction, the challenge today is no longer to prevent war in Europe but to find ways to govern democratically and legitimately a political entity made up of 500 million people, of almost 30 different nationalities, cultures and languages. If the European Union cannot rise to this major challenge, it may well collapse and provoke a 'crisis of democracy' on the whole European continent.

The first step in achieving democratisation is to build up a vast trans-European political movement which directly involves European citizens in the European debate. In the next European elections 2009, Newropeans will give citizens the chance to vote for European democracy which extends beyond national borders and debates. The target is to achieve 5 to 10% of the vote at European level and the creation of a parliamentary group with 50 to 75 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs). This could lead to a political force for democracy as experienced in the history of all European countries when citizens fought to bring democracy to their country. The idea is to stand only in European elections. The movement sees itself as a catalyst allowing the transition from a post-war EU built by administrations and national parties into a democratic EU where the citizens and peoples are the motors of major European decisions, served by a competent and effective political class, anchored in the values of democracy, justice and openness to the world. Once this historical goal is achieved within 10 or 20 years, Newropeans as a force for democracy will have no reason to continue and will be dissolved. But to reach this goal is a huge challenge.

Trans-European, time-limited, focused, made by the new European generations, pioneering all aspects of e-democracy ... and ready to face the historic challenge of voters throughout the continent, this is part of the concept.

Last but not least, if anybody still thinks that the European Socialists or the European Conservatives are anything close to a trans-European political force, let's ask oneself what Tony Blair was doing at the UMP congress in Paris? What Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel have politically in common? Or what exactly Zapatero and Brown are sharing in terms of political vision?
European politics is still to be invented. And we think that it should be invented by its citizens. With Newropeans, we have hit the road leading to EU democratisation.