NEWS
(Nederlandse Wereldwijde Studenten) invited two PvdA specialists on
their annual meeting to reflect upon the current state of the
European Union. Michiel van Hulten, former Party Chairman, Member
of the European Parliament, and René Cuperus, known Euro-skeptic,
joined the student association that brings together ambitious
Dutch talents studying all over the world.
Going international during your studies did not get any easier. In
the wake of recent budget cuts, the Dutch government scrapped the
Huygens study grant triggering objections from NEWS who called this
move an 'ambitieboete'. The Huygens study grant enables
100 Dutch students to study at top universities abroad while
inviting around 300 foreigners and potential 'kennismigranten' to the Netherlands.
Next to that, agenda point number 1 in Brussels these days is the
Greek debt crisis that threatens to become a
contagion even for Italy, Europe's third biggest economy. To tackle
this issue, Merkel, Sarkozy and Co. juggle with immense bailout
packages meant to appease speculators on financial markets.
Legitimacy Crisis
Regarding the European debate, René Cuperus asserts that the EU is
not only going through a financial, but a legitimacy crisis.
According to him, the EU has grown to an "imperium van 500
miljoenen inwoners" even referring to the decline of the Roman
Empire between 150 and 500 AD.
His party colleague, Michiel van Hulten, agrees that recently
European politicians had done a poor job explaining decisions made
in Brussels and the European Council. This, however, did not pose a
threat to the legitimacy of the institutions itself. Rather, it was
about the EU leaders who needed to become better at translating
what is happening at a European level to their citizens.
Cuperus suggests much more radical change. His vision entails that
the power of the EU institutions is curbed and given back to
national bodies. After all, Europe was to be found in the capitals
of Europe like "Berlijn, Stockholm, Amsterdam en Madrid, niet in
Brussel".
Populist 'Nullijn'
Disagreement between the speakers became especially apparent when
it came to the question of solidarity. Cuperus advocated a very
strict definition: national institutions should take care of the
poor and sick. Van Hulten put forward that solidarity also has to
occur on an international level, especially in the European
community which shares common values and concepts of democracy and
society.
In this context, Van Hulten also commented on the call for
freezing the EU budget and consequently establishing a financial
'nullijn'. Such a policy was recently supported by former Higher Education Minister
Ronald Plasterk (PvdA) and is also the goal of both Socialists (SP)
and populists (PVV). Van Hulten concluded that Plasterk
"populistische redenen kiest, om bij de PVV en SP kiezers te
scoren".
Furthermore, he addressed another financial issue currently
debated in the Netherlands. Van Hulten stated that it cannot be
that the Netherlands demands that it contributes only as much to
the EU as it receives. "Sommige mensen hebben meer pech dan
anderen. Dat gebeurt ook binnen Europa, internationaal." If all EU
members start demanding this, little will be left of the European
community.