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Is the European Union the Death of Democracy?

Why the European Union is Killing Democracy? , By Ocean Marambanyika, University of Oslo.

Who will survive the current global democratic and economic turbulances? Will democracy survive? I have noticed with repeated agony  how an organisation i hold with high esteem is unwillingly or maybe unknowingly trembling international democracy. Membership of the European Union demands high standards of quality governance, respect for human rights, and above all democracy must be natural to those who wish to the join the Union. Who can opposse such good principles from the European union? I guess only authoritarians will oppose the role modell status of the EU. My issue here is that despite the high expectations that we have for the EU as a lever for democracy, it is letting the majority of people from non-democracies down. Is it true that if the EU member states want to stop atrocities in DR Congo (as well as life threatening challenges in Sudan, Chad and many other African nations) it cannot succeed? It needs no rocket scientist to see that the EU is letting peoples from those nations down by not practically commiting itself to genuinely help in bringing about an end to misery and stopable suffering. How should the EU respond, one might ask? It is known that the quick answer might be that the United States of America is the key. Surely USA is no doubt the current defacto world ruler. But the EU holds tremendous influence on USA. It is hard to imagine how the USA could prosper without the EU and the other way round. The EU must therefore use its influence to get USA on board. There is no need for physical American interventions to improve situations. It is enough to consult America and seek their moral support. Alone the EU can stop wars in sub-Saharan Africa. Look at how the United Kingdom alone changed the situation in Sierra Leone in a matter of few days. The wars and challenges there are not religious at all. They are mostly mercenaristic in nature and most of the rebell groups are poorly trained but have access to guns and the reality is that they fear it if the EU comes around to stop them. So the EU must come around and impose their values of democracy, tolerance and human dignity in sub-Saharan Africa. The EU needs no one to remind it that it is such an important global player and has the responsibility to proffer hope to millions if not billions of global populaces. Let the EU therefore be challenged to behave as such. Can it not be cherished to see an active EU acting on the side of humanity?  

By Ocean Marambanyika

Historian and Expert on Peace and Conflict Studies

University of Oslo (graduate), Norway

oceaniamars@yahoo.no

About the Author

Ocean Marambanyika
Historian and Peace and Conflict Expert
University of Oslo (graduate)
Norway
oceaniamars@yahoo.no

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