Newborn Congratulation

The "€ ballot" to the policy factory for the 2009 elections: a successful kick-off event

(This is a great opportunity to write the first German entry in this blog A translation for the English version of the blog there later.)



Sunday evening I was at the kick-off event of € ballot, a voluntary initiative of the student policy factory in Europe in Berlin.

€ The ballot has set itself the goal of young people throughout Germany for the European elections to interest and delight, (have been recruited for the 80 young "ballot" as an ambassador and trained) in particular debates in 80 German cities, but also print, audio, and video materials to be distributed all over Germany and shown .

The event to start the action tonight was a complete success, without compromising!

were invited representatives of Germany's five political parties represented in Parliament.


From left :

• MEP Alexander Graf Lambsdorf (FDP / ALDE)
  
• MEP Dagmar Roth Behrendt (SPD / PE)
  
• Hajo Schumacher (Moderator)
• MEP and European Parliament President Hans-Gert Poettering (CDU / EPP)
  
• MEP Gabi Zimmer (LEFT / VEL )
  
• MEP Rebecca Harms (Green)

The atmosphere was excellent, and the mixture of young people, over 200 were determined, excellent.

One can talk about elections, politics and young people a lot of stupid and intelligent stuff, but have in the room because I felt nothing of disinterest, lack of passion, politics.

If passion brings together for European policy and a willingness to engage in a common cause more than 200 young people, then little is left of such negative talk. And since the Euro-skeptics can and down the country down and lash out like mad, so much positive atmosphere they can not make their whole life!

The candidates (and the leader) seemed to be in a space policy in Europe and enthusiastic young people feel good. The discussion was open, direct, and especially within Europe, and even if sometimes had to break through the typical politician's speech, seemed the but five MEPs to be able to adapt quite well to the audience.

Only Pöttering made several times is not a good figure, muttering to Rebecca Harms, told extravagant stories, intended to prove his political beliefs (but were just boring), and also drove one of the questioners on the mouth. If I did not choose one for tonight, then Poettering.

I could write a lot about the event , but because that would clearly too long, here just a list of questions or topics that the young viewers interested in the hall, to which she replies and comments from the candidates wanted:

• low turnout as a result of lack of information or lack of identification?
  
• militarization of the EU?
  
• initiative for the European Parliament?
  
• meaning of the Federal Parliament in relation to the EP?
  
• Different value of the vote in different Member States without Nations
  
• Europe - Europe of the regions?
  
• role of religion in Europe?
  
• why no less quarrel between politicians?
  
• inclusion of Turkey into the EU?
  
• reduction of agricultural subsidies?
  
• opinion about the Lisbon Treaty?
  
• referendum for amendments?
  
• length of the ballot (because quite long in some states) back
  
• as prosperity in Europe?
  
• on the views of youth organizations in European politics?
  

The five on the panel picked because of the large number of questions out they liked best, and so the answers were mostly from relatively satisfactory, which the hall took well-meaning, with frequent but sincere applause, regardless of who the answer came.

One thing that was stressed "across party lines", the special role of the individual members of the European Parliament :

Unlike in national parliaments, with their group pressures and a governing majority has, MEP, is the unanimous opinion, a lot more freedom in the majority of procurement, even across party boundaries, and also what the personal As for voting. Politically, this seems to be very pleasant, and it had not seemed as if only one is of the five would be on the podium his job in Strasbourg / Brussels exchange for a seat in the federal or in a German state parliament.

Overall, a really successful evening has given me a lot of fun, and I can only hope that the 80 ballot to take this enthusiasm with "in the province" and there still inspire many more young people to Europe and the European elections!

Merci to the ballot and the whole policy factory!

(Note: The author of this blog is not part of the ballot initiative, but has been writing since last July on his English Europa-Blog on activities in advance of the 2009 European elections .)

Addendum : course you can see everything negatively and make it small as to sueddeutsche.de - but more Europe does not create one by dry German journalism, which is able to put such an action even in a European context!

Congratulations, Mr. Reese, packed for lack of enthusiasm in objective journalism!

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PS. I had found in an earlier post that the Information Office of the European Parliament is not really dominated by the European elections.

The representative of the Commission (which returns this week to Brussels and replaced by Matthias Petschke is, however, has noted today that had been since October, the entire financial and human resources made available to the Commission's Representation Office to the EP for the European elections are available. To me nothing is noticed is not that nothing happens.

I also have the Europe House now views from a distance, and at least over there you can not see it that - and when - are the European elections.