Since late last year in an interview with L’Espresso , (English version here) Yanis Varoufakis and his like-minded colleagues in Europe have made it known to the world that they have been putting together the basis for a pan-European movement. This video, as well as an interview with EL Mundo (English here) and a recent article in The Guardian explain further. The aim of this movement is one that we’ve many of us have been hoping would arise; a movement to fight for democracy in the European Union, to democratise what has become an ever more democracy-free zone.

There are a numerous examples of this, from the extensive ‘Brussels bureaucracy’, to the immense unchecked powers of the Eurogroup and the ECB, to the mere fact that the European Parliament cannot even table new laws. Directions for the Union are set in behind-closed-doors meetings in which the will of the people is ignored, and decisions are made through a very technocratic process, disguising a contempt for the democratic process with the idea that these decisions’ merits are a matter of fact and must be accepted. The experience of SYRIZA last year shows that regardless of what people cry out for, there calls go unheard. This manifested itself in numerous ways, from movements on the left trying to break the iron grip of German-imposed Sparpolitik (austerity) in the south (SYRIZA, Podemos), and right-wing movements in the north arguing that powers need to be repatriated by the national level (UKIP, FN, AfD). The main point is that democracy has slowly but certainly been vanishing from the European level. Meanwhile Europe has been battered by a series of crises (especially in 2015), which have been exacerbated by and have exacerbated these movements. Centrifugal forces are tearing our Union apart which started as an alternative to the destructive chauvinism, racism and barbarism which had ravaged our continent for centuries.

So steps in Yanis Varoufakis and his colleagues and supporters. The former Greek-
Finance Minister was at the centre of these centrifugal forces last year, witnessing the democratic deficit first hand, along with the euro crisis, the subjugation of Greece and everything that is making the Union buckle under the strain. DiEM25’s manifesto (see below) argues that the technocrats of the Union have not only separated the Demos from democracy (taking the Kratos for themselves), but have then gone on to enforce foolish and destructive economic policies. The democrats of Europe have therefore perhaps the most important goal in the history of the Union, in the recent history of Europe – to retake European democracy (Jürgen Habermas would be proud). If, by 2025, this has not been completed, then, DiEM25 argues, the Union will be on a one-way trip to disintegration, all the achievements in peace, prosperity, cooperation and unity will have been lost, and Europe will retreat into the clutches of the nationalism. How will they stop this? In the long-term, by bringing the democrats of Europe together and by 2025 forming a constitutional assembly which will restore the democratic process at the European level by infusing the Union from the ground up with democracy. In the short-term however, this means gathering together those who want to retake our democracy at the Volksbühne in Berlin, to launch the movement on 9th February. The event (beginning at 19:30 GMT), will be live streamed, and recordings of the other events taking place throughout the day will be put online.

I’ll be honest, I’m a little overwhelmed. When looking across the water to America, I can see in Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign a plan to restore America, to revolutionise it and restore the people’s democracy. He has a clear plan and enormous support for it and yet, though the problems in America are at least as obvious as those in Europe, we have nothing comparable. No movement, and no politician willing to come forward and take a stand on one of the real major problems in Europe. Democracy in Europe may not solve every crisis we face right now, but it will correct a major problem in the European project, which even David Cameron managed to correctly identify in his 2013 ‘Bloomberg Speech’ – there is a growing divide between Europe’s leaders and Europe’s people, a divide which is tearing us all apart. He also said in that speech that he didn’t believe in a European demos. I say that’s because it has been repressed from existence. In case you can’t tell, I’ve already joined DiEM25, and I encourage you all to take a look at the website. It’s fairly bare-bones at the moment, and I’ve taken away much of its thunder by posting their manifesto and plan for 9th Feb in this article. However, there you can join the surging tide of European democrats who want to put the demos back into democracy, and if that isn’t a goal worth supporting to you, then I don’t know what is. Europe is the birthplace of democracy. It’s time it came home, and its up to us to make that happen.

“Carpe DiEM”

DiEM25 Manifesto

DiEM25 plan – 9 Feb 2016