Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-10-03-Speech-2-035"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20001003.2.2-035"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"I would like to thank President Prodi for his powerful speech. It reflected a great vision shared by many of us. I also support what he said regarding the innovative value of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which enshrines the indivisibility of fundamental rights, overcoming the traditional distinctions between civil rights, economic and social rights and rights in new areas, and affirms the equality of men and women in all fields of human activity.
However, today, the Charter is essentially a symbol, the symbol of the passage from the Europe of the single market to the political Europe, from the Europe of States to the Europe of the citizens. Made up of different peoples and nations which wish to retain their different traditions, languages and religions, the European Union’s identity is based not on belonging to the same ethnic group, the same land or the same race, but on shared principles and shared fundamental human rights. This is the model of European civilisation which, after centuries of bloody conflict, has guaranteed us lasting peace between our peoples, and it is this peace and this social model which is our gift to the candidate countries, whom we do not ask to share our traditions or beliefs but to accept the same rules as we do in order to safeguard the freedom and dignity of every human being.
The unprecedented method – as it has rightly been described – followed in drawing up the Charter produced rapid results, thanks to the participation of the representatives of the peoples and their governments, the involvement and achievement of consensus among all the elements of civil society which wished to express their opinions, the transparency and collegial nature of the proceedings, the willingness to listen to different positions and the acceptance of sound compromises. The debilitating semi-secret or confidential negotiations which characterise the intergovernmental method do not produce the same results.
Now, this symbolic document is a milestone in the process of constitutionalising the European Union – for, in my opinion, the Union’s Constitution will not come into being in a single document all in one go, but will be the result of the gradual consolidation of the common institutions and the definition of shared fundamental rules – and it must become practically enforceable law.
Thanks to the Treaties, the Union has become an area of freedom, security and justice. This cannot continue to exist without an obligation to respect clearly proclaimed fundamental rights. It is the responsibility of the States, who are guardians of the Treaties, to establish this constraint by conferring legal status upon the Charter in the most appropriate way.
The Charter is the soul of the Union and it cannot remain suspended in limbo indefinitely: it must be incorporated into current legislation. The governments must take human rights seriously and enforce them firmly and effectively to the tangible benefit of the European citizens. Only then will the citizens begin to look upon Europe as their common home."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples