Search

The text examines the possibilities of articulating the political resistance in Croatia, which the author calls the “anti-Brussels revolution”. The first part of the text clarifies the relationship between cultural and anti-bureaucratic revolution in the context of the relationship between political elites and the body politic. The second part presents and explains the use of the phrase anti-bureaucratic revolution in the analyses of Mirjana Kasapović, a political scientist, which provide historically instructive insights into the relationship between institutional and extra-institutional political activity necessary for the analysis of the emergence of the anti-Brussels revolution in Croatia. The third part of the text provides a brief presentation and typologization of six paradigmatic episodes related to protest, referendum and counter-referendum politics. These episodes can be subsumed under the conceptual field of revolution studies and represent a precursor to the anti-Brussels revolution as a political event in the realm of the sense of the possible. It is concluded that the anti-Brussels revolution is a form of emerging anti-bureaucratic revolution [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Constitution of the Republic of Croatia expresses commitment to the concept of the welfare state and the principle of social justice as common values of European constitutionalism. The jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court affirms their binding nature and declares their belonging to the inviolable core of the Constitution, so-called constitutional identity. Therefore, departing from these fundamental and “eternal” values would mean to abandon the constitutional order altogether. In the context of enhanced European integration, due to the social deficit of the European Union, it is necessary to protect the social core of the Croatian Constitution. The insistence on the protection of the welfare state and social justice as components of the Croatian constitutional identity does not seek to undermine the European unity. Instead, it aims at creating a socially just united Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 21st century the European Union is adapting to the politicization of its gas trade with the Russian Federation with a hybrid model: a mixture of different measures. In order to prevent, or at least to mitigate, Russian use of gas trade in a realistic power politics, the EU is responding with measures which are digressing from the economic perspective, especially free-market one, and getting closer to the political perspective. Non-market responses have become unavoidable primarily due to bringing the political element into a foreign trade relationship. Based on the analysis of the EU’s responses to the threat, which has originated from the Russian politicization of gas trade, it is possible to follow the incremental transformation of the EU liberal-economic identity into an increasingly geopolitical one in a world that is becoming increasingly realistic, both in the energy field and in international affairs in general. The European Union has included concepts of solidarity and sovereignty in its energy policy, yet according to the EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, the EU has to “learn to use the language of power again”. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article attempts to clarify the modalities and degree to which advisory bodies, exemplified by The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), are capable of contributing to European Union (EU) governance processes and legitimacy-building in a meaningful manner. Besides acknowledging their contribution via provision of information and technical expertise, serious inquiries into the mechanisms through which EU advisory bodies operate are scarce. In that sense, this paper strives to elucidate the added value of the EESC. The author applies discursive institutionalism and legitimacy taxonomies to explain the functional development and character of the EESC. The paper concludes that the EESC seems to have focused to a lesser extent on influencing EU legislative initiative (dominantly on the public policy items in which the EESC disposes of the highest specific expertise, and administrative/ ideational capacities), and more on promoting itself as the bridgehead of organised civil society in the EU. It does so through its deliberative working methods and by detecting topical niches through which the EESC specializes in building civil society, mediating between civil society organisations (CSOs) and the EU, and nurturing decent relationships with CSOs on Member State, candidate country and third country levels. Finally, a novel window of opportunity has opened for the EESC to transmit the voice of civil society to the EU level and to influence EU socio-economic governance, namely through the procedures of the so-called European Semester. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of good governance is analyzed with particular emphasis on reasons that contributed to its development, main characteristics and possible impact on reform approaches which aim at achieving quality of contemporary governance. Different conceptions and developmental characteristics of governance are firstly examined, concluding with contemporary conceptualization that tends to widely engage citizens and civil society in the decision-making process, and at the same time accomplish greater effectiveness of public services as a precondition to economic and social development. According to findings presented in this article, this modern approach to the study of governance is in close connection with the effects of managerial reforms and the globalization process. Good governance principles introduced in the European Commission's document “European Governance - A White Paper” are especially focused on. The research's starting assumption was that those principles derive from the so-called Copenhagen criteria, or political, economic and institutional conditions for membership in the European Union. The article identifies three main characteristics of different approaches to the concept of good governance: strengthening of administrative capacities, determination of principles which should contribute to the quality of contemporary governance assessment, and wider engagement of and consultation with the civil society [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2014 European Parliament elections brought a campaign novelty: for the first time European parties put forward so-called ‘Spitzenkandidaten', i.e. lead candidates for the position of President of the European Commission. The thesis of this article is that parlamentarization of the European Commission president appointment is not a step towards a more democratic European Union, for two reasons. First, the European Commission, in spite of being EU’s executive body, is not the executive of the European Parliament as single legislator, but rather part of a complex institutional quadrangle comprised of the European Council, the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission. Second, the European Parliament, elected in ‘second order' elections, and the role of national and European parties in the EU electoral and governance system do not provide for political representation that could serve as basis for a responsible party government model. Responsibility of both national and European political parties for policy making in the EU needs to be strengthened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors discuss whether the European Union and its policies have affected the improvement of the status of the Roma minority in Croatia. They are using the concept of political conditionality of the EU as a framework through which they attempt to interpret the change of policies towards Roma minority in Croatia, and determine whether there are some improvements in sectors of education and employment. The analysis includes various EU mechanisms such as initiatives and strategies created at the supranational level, as well as EU funds which serve as spiritus movens at the lowest levels. They also analyze national programmes adopted by Croatia which are directly related to the observed minority. Finally, they draw conclusions on the basis of observed data and statistical analysis of various strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors discuss whether the European Union and its policies have affected the improvement of the status of the Roma minority in Croatia. They are using the concept of political conditionality of the EU as a framework through which they attempt to interpret the change of policies towards Roma minority in Croatia, and determine whether there are some improvements in sectors of education and employment. The analysis includes various EU mechanisms such as initiatives and strategies created at the supranational level, as well as EU funds which serve as spiritus movens at the lowest levels. They also analyze national programmes adopted by Croatia which are directly related to the observed minority. Finally, they draw conclusions on the basis of observed data and statistical analysis of various strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2014 European Parliament elections brought a campaign novelty: for the first time European parties put forward so-called ‘Spitzenkandidaten', i.e. lead candidates for the position of President of the European Commission. The thesis of this article is that parlamentarization of the European Commission president appointment is not a step towards a more democratic European Union, for two reasons. First, the European Commission, in spite of being EU’s executive body, is not the executive of the European Parliament as single legislator, but rather part of a complex institutional quadrangle comprised of the European Council, the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission. Second, the European Parliament, elected in ‘second order' elections, and the role of national and European parties in the EU electoral and governance system do not provide for political representation that could serve as basis for a responsible party government model. Responsibility of both national and European political parties for policy making in the EU needs to be strengthened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Next to the Mediterranean region, Eastern Europe is set as one of the most important areas for the implementation of various EU policies. European Union enlargement policy, European Neighbourhood Policy and the Eastern Partnership are the most important instruments that ensure the construction of a democratic order in the European neighborhood. It is clear that the ultimate goal of EU policy towards its neighbors is to achieve security and stability. The aim of this paper is to point out that the European Union since the breakup of the Soviet Union, with various policies and instruments, is constantly present in the region of Eastern Europe. Emphasis is placed on measures and policies by which the European Union maintains its position in an attempt to stabilize the Eastern neighborhood. The paper will first define the region of Eastern Europe, and then provide a review of bilateral relations between the European Union and the Eastern European countries that participate in the Eastern Partnership (Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine). Analysis of bilateral relations tries to point out to what extent and in what way the European Union is present in the region of Eastern Europe and what are the main goals of the European Union in relation to the said countries. In the last part, the author gives the concluding remarks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Union, a unique postmodern political system, redefines statehood, sovereignty and territoriality and thus changes the traditional significance of territory and state borders. European integration causes the dismantling of existing spatial referential frames (deterritorialization), yet simultaneously fosters reterritorialization, i.e. the creation of new spatial relations and referential frames. European Union enlargement includes expansion of border and customs mechanisms which yet again emphasizes the role of territorial control and the importance of spatial boundary-drawing. The dynamic role and significance of territory in politics can be especially seen in the Croatian case. The war experience in recent Croatian history is linked with the imagining of territory and territoriality in politics. The accession of Croatia into EU is the first step towards de facto dismantling of borders towards other members-states within the Schengen system, yet at the same time it creates new dimensions to the boundaries towards the post-Yugoslav neighborhood. The three cases, i.e. borders disputes of Croatia with Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro illustrate the multi-facetted meaning of territory in politics and the inability to separate the political from the territorial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this text, consequences of the Croatian referendum for the EU held on January 22, 2012 are analyzed from various standpoints and from the angle of the controversy which it caused in the public, but also in the expert and scientific discourse in Croatia. The author first discusses the holding of the referendum in the context of its date-setting, which brought about a dispute between the government and the opposition and a part of the Eurosceptic public. Second, controversy arose regarding participation in the referendum, which is approached here in the context of irregularity accusations. Third, there is the issue of the referendum's legality and legitimacy, and the author draws a comparison with referenda held in other accession countries -- not only in the fifth round of enlargement with post-communist and Mediterranean countries, but also in other countries where the referendum did not have a positive outcome. Relying on the available facts and variable analysis related to the referendum, the author then asserts that the Croatian referendum for the EU was undoubtedly successful, that its results, both with regard to the participation and the outcome, were even better than in many post-communist countries of the fifth enlargement. Finally, the reasons for the tardiness of Croatia's EU accession in contrast to the other Middle-European and Eastern-European countries and Slovenia are analyzed. It is viewed as a consequence of wrong political estimations and decisions. The author also focuses on the informational and educational deficit regarding the EU in Croatia, and finds that the Croatian citizens are poorly informed on the EU because of specific decisions of the government. Still, the result of the referendum met with positive reactions of EU political bodies and the member states, which opens up the process of ratification in other EU countries that should lead to full membership of Croatia in the EU on July 1, 2013. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The texts focuses on constitutionalisation of democracy in the European Union and the phenomenon of democratic deficit through the failed Constitution for Europe and, thereafter, the Lisbon Treaty, which takes over the definition of democracy as the foundation of the European Union. In this context, the author also looks into the contribution of political scientist Zvonko Posavec, who was one of the first in Croatia to advocate the need for constitutionalisation of the European Union as a project of finalising the process of European integration. While writing about the need for constitutional foundation of the European Union, Posavec simultaneously reflects on representative democracy as the form of democracy on which the European Union is predominantly founded. Beside a valorisation of Posavec's works on democracy in the European Union, this paper deals with the problem of the democratic deficit in the European Union which is manifest in the lack of democratic legitimacy of EU institutions, with the sole exception of the European Parliament. The author finds, however, that the main deficit of the European Union is not the democratic process, but political alienation. He perceives the latter as alienation of citizens from the EU as a derivative community, non-transparent and distanced from the basic interests of the citizens and the media interest in politics. Although the European Union declaratively relies on basic democratic values, in practice democracy is experienced primarily through a democratic deficit contrasted by a more obvious bureaucratic surfeit of the European political construction. The author asserts that the Lisbon Treaty was a step towards founding the EU on democratic principles inasmuch as it introduced elements of participative democracy, although it did not accept proposals for introduction of direct democracy in the EU. Finally, the author puts forward some ideas which might reduce the degree of political alienation of citizens in relation to the European Union; this requires giving greater authority to the European Parliament, abolishing the monopoly of the legislative initiative of the European Commission, incorporating the Council of the European Union into the European Parliament as the second House, i.e. the European Senate, and consequently implementing the mechanism of consulting the citizens regarding the legislative initiatives of the EU. The author concludes that the democratic deficit and political alienation cannot be overcome in the European Union without overcoming the democratic deficits and concrete forms of political alienation in the member states which the European Union consists of. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As Croatia prepares for membership in the EU (most likely in 2013), its foreign policy is in a need of re-conceptualisation. In the first 20 years of its independence (declared in 1991), Croatian foreign policy has been through three different phases. Each of them was focused on one single objective. The three objectives that have marked three distinguished phases of Croatian foreign policy were: 1) international recognition of its statehood; 2) territorial re-integration and 3) membership in NATO and the EU. When (and if) it joins the EU, the country will have to change its single-objective based foreign policy for a multiple-objectives foreign policy approach. It will have to take into consideration a whole set of new issues, some of which will be global in character. In addition, it will need to harmonise its own priorities with those of other EU member-states. The article focuses on options that are available to foreign-policy decision-makers when they wish to re-orientate the foreign policy of a country. In particular, the author looks at the options available to small states and small powers. The outcome of the process will be influenced by the size and ambitions of the country, as well as by internal political and ideological dynamics in Croatian politics, which would need to become better harmonised with political trends in the EU. The author approaches foreign policy decision-making as a dynamic process in which ideas and values matter. For that reason, he focuses not only on interaction between states but also interaction between three main party families within the European context: 1) Liberals, 2) Conservatives and 3) Socialists. In particular, he looks at the differences they have on two main issues for the future of the EU: 1) further enlargement of the EU and 2) global ambitions of the EU. The article is drawing on contemporary literature on foreign policy of small states and small powers. It argues that Croatia needs more strategic thinking in order to make best use of new opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the dilemmas regarding the nature of the European Union in contemporary political science and in the field of European Studies as a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary field. The first part focuses on the evolution of the European Union from the original European Coal and Steel Community, via the European Economic Community, to its growth into a political union. The Maastricht Treaty, which lay the foundations of the European Union as a political union of its member states, instigated a debate on the actual nature of this supranational union as political construct. Consequently, the author analyses the various characteristics of the European Union, which is manifest in various forms, and asserts that it has some "state- -like features" and some "organisation-like features", which are characteristic of international organizations. In the approach to the European Union as a supra-state community, some essential traits of both federation and confederation are simultaneously manifest, corresponding to two tendencies in the development of the European Union as a super-state. Moreover, there is the conception of the European Union as an empire. Finally, this paper specifies the tasks of present-day political science and the need to find a new heuristic instrument, which, according to the author, can be found in the conception of the political system that was introduced in political science (comparative politics) by Gabriel Almond and David Easton. Such an approach, which is nowadays further developed by Jean-Pierre Quermonne, Wolfgang Wessels and Simon Hix, is additionally strengthened by the fact that various models of democratic practice are being incorporated in the European Union in opposition to the basic, legitimacy-related democratic deficit, models which confirm the possible conclusion regarding a European Union as a complex community with many faces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article, based on studies of nationalism, discusses identity formation in the European Union and compares it to the nation-state. The starting point is that for all its economic benefits and political innovation, the EU is failing to provide people with the sense of belonging and extract political loyalty. By exploring what function identity serves -- for the nation-state in the past and for the EU in the present -- it is argued that while there are limits to the EU's ability to project a meaningful European identity, there are also limits to the nation--state's ability to meet the political challenges of contemporary societies. One way, and possibly the only way out of this 'battle for identity' is to acknowledge the real impact of the EU on the nation-state and open an honest debate by both European and national elites about which challenges of our time can be met by the EU and which are better kept at the national level. A better understanding of how people's national aspirations, concerns and political demands are mediated between different levels of governance may lead to adapting their identities accordingly -- loyalty and passion for the EU may follow too. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main proposition of this paper is that the Croatian legal framework for higher education fails to meet the criteria of the internal market of the EU. In the first part, the author draws a distinction between education as public good and education as service, and explains how EU law affects the regulatory autonomy of the Member States in the area of higher education. In the second part, the author analyses hitherto identified barriers to the exercise of market, freedoms created by national legal frameworks of higher education. The third part discusses the Croatian legal framework and tests it against EU standards. The author concludes that deficiencies of Croatian higher education law are partly caused by the ignorance of policy makers and partly by the structural weakness of the negotiating process, where chapters are negotiated independently from one another and focused on formal fulfillment of benchmarks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the road to full membership in the European Union, and after completion of accession negotiations, Croatia must hold a referendum at which Croatian citizens will state their opinions on Croatia's entry into this community. In order for Croatian citizens to become familiar with the benefits of EU membership and in order to influence public opinion so that the outcome of the referendum is positive, the Croatian Government has adopted two communication strategies aimed at informing the Croatian public and gaining support for its European policy. The authors analyze the advantages and disadvantages of these strategies, comparing them with the experiences of other European countries that have successfully passed this road, and point to the untapped communication possibilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the example of the discussion about the possible intervention undertaken by the Western European Union (WEU) with the aim of stopping the war in Croatia, this work strives to show the extent to which the war in Croatia influenced the development of the European relations and institutions, and vice versa. The discussion was held on two occasions, end July -- early August and second half of September 1991. The advocates of such an initiative were led by the idea of WEU military intervention which could stop the war, strengthen the European idea, and lay the foundations for a successful foreign and defensive politics of the future European Union during the phase of institution-building. Besides that, the intervention would undoubtedly have saved many lives in Croatia, and subsequently in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Reluctance and various interpretations among large European countries -- not only of the war in Croatia, but also of the European future -- resulted in passivity which played a huge role in determining the future form of European institutions during the key period before Maastricht. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Europe is a contingent product of its institutions rather than a political project. Although the announced goal was simplification and rationalization of its institutional system, the opposite occurred: the system has become even more complex. The author looks into the process dynamics and implementation results of the Lisbon Treaty (effective 1 December 2009), showing that the traditional European compromise leads to outcomes that none of the actors really wanted, and that no one is satisfied with. The European Union is an arena of institutional coercions and games, the rules of which are occasionally readjusted. This occasional readjustment accounts for the survival of the system, which is a priori unstable, for each unsatisfied partner thinks and hopes that redefinition might provide him with an opportunity to gain a better position. The process is especially visible in negotiations regarding the Lisbon Treaty, above all in the institutional innovation which is the function of the new president (of the European Council). The conclusive interpretation of the Lisbon Treaty will depend on the outcome of the bureaucratic struggle right until 2011, and prior to a new definition of the rules, undoubtedly no later than 2014. The new EU system testifies primarily to the fundamental trait of European integration, which strongly favoured from the outset a repeated rethinking of its form (its institutions) in the light of considerations regarding its goals (its policies). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the rise of euroscepticism in France, especially in the eve of key events for the EU integration process, the article identifies the key actors promoting euroscepticism and the motivation behind their political action. The article tries to show that the main eurosceptical actors are opposition and marginal political parties with either left or right political orientation, and that the main motives for their political behaviour are not to be found in their ideology, nor in a rational political competition, and not even in the French political tradition (and that is the reason why euroscepticism is considered only as a phenomenon). The motives for euroscepticism are found in the actors' drive towards short-term political goals with a help of populist rhetoric in order to discredit the EU project, but without an intention to offer counter proposals and long term political projects. The article analyses the results of the EU Parliament elections, the referendum for the EU Constitutional contract and discusses the electoral attitudes of certain political parties regarding their ideological orientation. The concluding remarks offer and explanation of the political parties motives for euroscepticism, an explanation of the social context where euroscepticism is accepted and a general analysis of the phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper the author analyses the possibility of 'creating' a European political people and forming a European political identity and a European political community. In the first, theoretical part of the paper, the author defines two concepts of people -- demos and ethnos -- and describes problems in identity building on purely political grounds of people as demos. By examining the references on a European political people in the EU legal foundations, the author illustrates dual premises of legitimacy for the Union and the Union's identity referents which are generally of a universalist nature. In the second, empirical part of the paper, the author presents how the European identity is formed, in line with classic distinction between 'civic' and 'ethnic' identity. Since the Eurobarometer survey showed a low level of European identification of EU member states' citizens, the author presents concepts which aim to overcome the low level of European afiliation. In the final part of the paper the question which is examined is whether the existence of a European political people is necessary for the future of the European integration. To this end, the author uses various theoretical approaches to the 'creation' of a European political people: economic/market approach, communitarian/ statist approach, 'constitutional patriotism' of Habermas, Weiler's 'multiple demoi' and pluralism/particularism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language plays the central role in the process of creation of a national identity. In the establishment of the supranational European identity, however, multilingualism is a democratic necessity guaranteeing equality to all European Union citizens. The decisions made by the European institutions influence everyday life of the citizens of the Union and for their legitimacy it is of the utmost importance that the citizens take an active part in the decision making process free of language barriers. In accordance with the EU language policy which guarantees an equal status to all the official languages of its member states -- once Croatia becomes a member of the Union the Croatian language will enjoy the position of an official language of the EU. In order to ensure Croatian citizens equality before the law and free access to the EU legislation, Croatia has the responsibility of translating the so called acquis communautaire, i.e. the total body of EU law, into Croatian and transpose it into its national legislation. The translation of the acquis must guarantee that the EU law is unequivocally interpreted and implemented and this can only be possible if the EU legal terminology is consistently and unambiguously used. Upon the Croatian accession to the EU, the Croatian translation of the acquis will be published in the special edition of the Official Journal of the EU and will become legally binding and used as the fundamental text for the interpretation and application of EU law in Croatia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses the increasingly acute problem of low voter turnout for the elections for the European Parliament. The author identifies the key determinants of electoral participation, and focuses on how election campaigns affect the electorates' mobilization. By analyzing the results of various polls and by applying Sinnott's model of voter participation to the Slovenian institutional context, the author outlines the key circumstances leading to the disturbingly low voter turnout. The author points out the weaknesses of the institutional preconditions -- in the form of certain awkward electoral institutions, primarily regarding the institutional mobilization marked by halfbaked electoral strategies of political parties and the unremarkable and dull campaigns -- that are supposed to increase voter participation. The low level of institutional mobilization has evidently affected the electorate-s perceptions of power and trust in political institutions. This is why the institutional incentives for taking a vote have not been sufficient. By way of conclusion the author offers some recommendations concerning how to alter and improve the electoral institutions and the practice of the EU political parties, states and institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article takes a comparative perspective to review the background to campaign for and result of the Slovenian EU-accession referendum. The authors describe the EU's accession referendum campaign in Slovenia as a 'cat-and-mouse game' since the 'yes' campaign was outstandingly well organised and synchronised in stark contrast to the 'no' campaign which was poorly organised and came across as the representative of a narrow set of interests. Irrespective of this, the large victory (almost 90 percent) of the 'yes' camp was unexpected as was the relatively low turnout (60,4 percent). Two of the most important reasons for this high support shown at the EU accession referendum can be traced to a broad consensus among political, social and economic elites and the reorientation of the most exposed and well-known anti-EU actors towards the NATO accession referendum that was held simultaneously. Thereby, the article also partially examines the Slovenian NATO-accession referendum but only to the extent that it influenced the campaign and result of the EU referendum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the European Union is not a representative democracy, at least in some elements its political system is increasingly imitating the national liberal model of governance. So far, in the development of the European political system and in the draft EU Constitution the dual nature of the EU (federal and intergovermental) seems to have remained in place. This is also shown in the persisting national elements in party-related institutions and processes within the EU political system that puts "its" liberal democratic characteristics in question. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In his recent essay Wojciech Sadurski distinguishes between the "real" and the "conceptual" conflict, the distinction originally introduced by Bernard Williams. A conflict is "real" when the prospects of another group are also an option for us, meaning that it is reasonably convincing or possible for us to become like them. This does not only imply a comparison between us and the culture or the identity to which, in real life, we could not be similar but also means that we confront a culture, which has some practical implications. Similarly the identity of a community is constituted in opposition to another identity or as a part of another identity. The construction of a community's identity is greatly influenced by social discourse as a set of communications of a certain group related to this group and other social groups it gets into contact with. The author claims that the dominant discourse on the European Union in Croatia hugely differs from the European discourse on the European Union; consequently, there is a difference in the construction of the Croatian and the European identity. This difference in the discourses stands in the way of Croatia's incorporation into the distributive mechanisms of the European Union and the maximization of the membership benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author suggests that the multilayered concept of secularization should be understood as the dezideologization of culture, religion, nation, language, economy, opening the space for democratic decision- making in the European Union, and consequently the space for politics with the capacity for collectively binding decisions in the democratically generated pluralism, and not in the historically generated pluralism of the old Europe. Secularization originally meant the transfer of clergy (priests or monks) from regular to secular thereby making them secularis or laypersons. Since the Westphalian Treaty of 1647 the word secularization has meant the transfer of ecclesiastical property to civil possession or use. Secularization means a strict separation of the church and the state. It also means a secular implementation of Christian postulates of universal equality of equals among equals. Today, the concept of secularization is used metaphorically as dezideologization i.e. as the criticism of state forms such as fascism and communism which possessed only ideological and not democratic legitimacy. In that sense the thesis of the cultural or spiritual unity of Europe as its legitimizing grounds is undemocratic as it replaces and conditions democracy with a vague concept of culture or spoken communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Union and the United States of America perceive differently China's political and economic burgeoning. For the EU China's economic growth is a welcome development as it implies boosting the "strategic partnership", while the US think of it not only in the term of rivalry but also as a threat because of China's growing political and military power. Unlike the US, which focuses on the security aspect of foreign policy, the European security policy is still nascent and the Union usually does not perceive the states outside its borders as dangerous. The author argues that the complexity of the EU policies towards China means that there is yet no EU polity so the interests of various member-countries clash with the interests of the Union on the whole. The author concludes that the US will remain apprehensive regarding the potentials of China as the second superpower that might jeopardize US hegemony, while for the EU the latent political-security threat is much less important than the economic benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Croatia's EU accession has been covered in Croatian dailies as one of the pivotal foreign-policy events of the past several years judging by the number of the pertinent texts in the periods covered by this analysis (the positive avis and the postponement of the negotiations): in the four studied months in 2004 and 2005, a total of 1,523 texts in the three analyzed dailies (Večernji list, Jutarnji list, Vjesnik) were identified. Regardless of the differences in the profile of these dailies, there are no significant differences in reporting, which shows that the process of Croatia's EU accession is not only a popular topic but also utilized by the media and politics. The content analysis of the three Croatian dailies confirms that the European Union is presented within a political framework, while a whole array of other related topics has been neglected in the coverage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The turmoils in international relations following the fall of the Berlin wall represented a serious challenge for the overall concept of European political unity. In its first international assignment outside the context of the Cold war, traditional national interests and animosities surfaced, and they demonstrated rather precisely all the complexity of the project promulgated by the Maastricht Agreement. At the time there was no common European approach to the solution of the crisis on the territory of the former Yugoslavia and no consent regarding the key issues, such as the recognition of the former Yugoslav republics as sovereign entities i.e. defining the criteria for their recognition. The paper focuses on this very specificity of the new approach to this problem, since it has increasingly been a subject of discretionary political decisions rather than the issue of international law in the traditional sense of meeting certain criteria for state recognition. And finally, concerning the degree of encroaching upon national sovereignty, there is a marked difference between the nature of the process of shaping a common foreign and security policy and shaping policies in other areas (e.g. transport, science and education, and so on). Also, the importance of developing an awareness of this difference as the main precondition for the realization of the project of the EU political integration is pointed out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author argues that democracy is not appropriate for the resolution of the relationship between law and the democratically conditioned state authority in the multinational Europe. The so-called democratic deficit should be understood not only as the empirical fact of a multinational Europe, but also as a paradoxical structural attribute of modern political thought from Kant until today. The author claims that the people should not rule as they might violate all the laws they enacted themselves. Thus the question of the equality of citizens cannot be a democratic one but legal and constitutional. Democracy cannot lay claim to be the sole provider of the legal equality of citizens just as law cannot be the only arbiter in making democratic distinctions among them. Since democracy should be understood as an independent autopoietic and autoimmune medium relatively independent of political power and legal constraints as its setting, the author concludes that the existing forms of immediate and representative democracy, as well as of the traditional form of democratic decision/making represent a risk of regressive progress in Europe in the direction of democracy limited by nation, religion or by class. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In defining the main preconditions for successful coexistence in the emerging and constantly changing supranational European Union, the common fundamental values shared by the European population constitute one of the main factors of this integration. The present article strives to assess whether a consensus exists in the European Union with regard to the substance of these values and to examine whether these values are implemented also in the decisions taken every day at EU level. The author attempts to determine the causes of the assumed disparity between the political ideals proclaiming the desired social order and the European reality, and to envisage the consequences to which this situation may lead. The suggested conclusion is that the proclaimed fundamental values of the Union (still) do not find expression in the European reality and that they are (as yet) substituted by other, primarily economic, interests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author analyzes the Polish 2003 EU membership referendum. In the first part of the paper she looks into the factors which influenced the evolution of individual political actors in the course of the European debate in Poland. Due to the increasing interest in the significance of the EU-related issues for the consolidation of the political system in Poland, the first part of the paper focuses on the EU-membership debate and on the role of the political elite and the public support. In the second part the author analyzes the role of the referendum in that debate and its impact on the political actors' strategy. The author analyzes the mobilization of the pro-European and the anti-European camp. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whilst completing the largest enlargement round in its history, European Union faced the need to define both its identity and nature and limits of its future borders. In the aftermath of the failed constitutional referenda and suspension of the ratification process, the pace of future enlargement will inevitably slow down. This has already been the case with the East European countries during the 1990s, whose membership perspective was overclouded by Union's internal issues. Expansion of the EU will undoubtedly continue, but its present absorption capacity has reached endpoint. The chance for the institutional reform, through which future enlargement would keep momentum, has been discarded together with the rejection of Constitutional Treaty. The main issue of todays EU's relations with immediate neighbourhood is the way to ensure democratic consolidation and Europeanisation of these states in absence of the full membership perspective. Upon that European Neighbourhood Policy was envisaged, through which EU offers "everything, but institutions". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the second part of the text the author looks into the paradox of the concept of justice as discerned by Jacques Derrida, and analyzes the tradition of the European constitutional law. Since the constitution and politics are discordant and semantically irritating mediums, the author argues that the European Union is an open semantic relationship of legal acquisitions and political processes. The European Union should be explained by means of contemporary, postmodernist theories derived from the linguistic and deconstructivist reversals of the modern substantial rationalism, universalism and cosmopolitism. Consequently, the constitution and the law are not underpinned by the political or any other specific power; on the contrary, it is the unspecific power of the constitution and the law that enables the gradual development and strengthening of the European law and the constitution without the extra constitutional authorities as the disguised power that traditionally legitimizes law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on Paul Feyerabend's distinction between guided and free exchange, the author argues that the accession of the post-communist states to the European Union took the form of the former kind, i.e. the form of communication where all participants in the process voluntarily embrace the meaning of law developed through inter-institutional discourse within the European Union. However, due to the nature of European law which does not apply to the purely internal situations in the Member States, a completely guided exchange between the EU and candidate countries is not possible. The author holds that the unity of, and loyalty towards, the European constitutional framework in an enlarged European Union is best served by the discoursive construction of the meaning of constitutional choices, principles and rules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article evaluates the implementation process of EU educational policy measures and its effects on the German education system. Yet assessing the output today, current surveys show a rather fragile level of identification and particularly a lack of information. On the basis of a three-level analysis the article argues that the reasons for the failure of the German education system to deliver sufficient information about the integration process at school are to be found within various stages of the implementation process. This argumentation contrasts the Liberal intergovernmentalist premise of nationally protected educational systems and its negation of deliberative loyalty transfer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Looking at the European Constitution and the legal attainments of the European Union from the perspective of the modern nation-state leads to aporia and Euroskepticism since the European Union has never been, nor will it ever be, a political community modelled after the nation-state. The nation-state as a constitutional institution is not tantamount to political processses; it is one of the historical options of the political. The state and politics cannot be equated: the nation-state is a political institution while politics is a process with various alter natives of institutionalization. These two sides, the constitutional state and the political processes, are in the relationship of soft incommensurability and it is not quite possible to equate them in some higher association. Equating the constitutional state and the political activity in present-day debates on the European Constitution results in Euroskepticism. Conservative theoreticians of the state and politics cannot study the constitutional state separately from political processses. For them Europe is possible solely as a constitutional state with democratic legitimation; otherwise it will never come into being. These theoreticians view the relationship between the constitution and politics as the means-ends or cause-effect category, and not as an open-ended process between two unequatable media that are semantically mutually irritating. The goal of the European politics is not a European state, nor is the goal of the European constitution to curb the spontaneity of European political processes. The European Union is an open-ended semantic relationship between its legal attainments and its political processes. Consequently, the concept of democracy as a political form will have to be redefined. The European Union as a political community sui generis should be explained from the perspective of contemporary theories evolved along the lines of the linguistic and deconstructivist reversal of the modern substantionalist rationalism, universalism and cosmopolitism. The major contribution of these post-modern theories is that they do not consider political reality as an objective given, but as a construct for which we know how it was produced so that we can change it. This means that the object of study is not the constitutional-legal reality but the knowledge of the constitutional-legal reality that is continuously expanded by means of the new designations of the semantically nonexistent political environment. The European Constitution and the European politics are in the relationship of mutual semantic irritation, but are not identical and will never become identical. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Slovenian state assembly can be categorized as one of those new parliaments in Central and Eastern Europe that were not only beneficiaries of democratization but also major actors in the transition from the former socialist into a democratic system. It was in the forefront of the modernization of the entire legislature in the second stage of Europeization and played a major role in the process of EU accession. The state assembly as a new parliament has undoubtedly reached a satisfactory level of institutional and organizational competence. The problem is, however, its genuine subjective or "cultural capacity". The lack of such capacities among the delegates in the process of EU accession was occasionally manifested in a huge disparity between the lip service to the EU membership and its values and the real understanding of the functioning of its institutions and goals. On numerous occasions there was a marked contrast between the idealized perceptions about how after the EU accession everything was going to be simpler and the pessimistic predictions about "drowning" in the EU. The Slovenian parliamentary elite has not yet fully grasped the reality that the so called "internal" issues have largely become the European issues or that the European issues have already become "national" issues. On the other hand, too little attention is paid to the question of how demanding the participation of the Slovenian parliament in the circumstances of the full membership really is. The representatives will be exposed to a much more intensive flow of information from the EU institutions and the reaction time will get shorter. This will mean that the delegates will increasingly respond "reactively" instead of "actively". The conclusion is that the state assembly at the commencement of its fourth mandate and following Slovenia's EU accession is not yet fully qualified to participate -- via the government -- in the process of EU decision-making from the perspective of a swift grasp of vital information and taking stands; neither is it in the position to properly monitor the government. Also, the state assembly is not conversant enough in translating the European politics into the Slovenian setting since it lacks the necessary experience, knowledge and routine in operating in the new circumstances of multilevel decision-making. Due to this lack of precedents, the real hard work is only beginning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author analyzes recent Habermas' writings on the process of European integration and the new international political order. Having for a long time ignored the issues of foreign policy, in his recent works and speeches Habermas has increasingly turned to these topics. The supranational level is becoming important both due to the more severe limitations to state sovereignty in the process of globalization, and because of the development of new mechanisms of international cooperation and the new regional economic-political integrations. In his theory of democracy at the national level, he emphasizes its deliberative character and shows public communication as the central sphere of mediation between the informal (private) opinions and the institutions of the formation of political will. However, today it is necessary to go beyond the boundaries of the nation-state and establish the parallel mechanisms of political deliberation and decision-making at the international level. The most important step in that direction are regional integrations (in Europe, naturally, it is the European Union). The regional integrations must supplement the UN institutions to compensate for the loss of the ability to govern at the national level and to create a counterbalance to global capitalism. In this context it is important to get the answers to a certain crisis of the EU identity. The European Union today is often seen as a mechanism of bureaucratic management and restrictive regulation, instead of as a guarantor of good life. Habermas thinks that Europe should focus on the guarantees of fundamental rights and values such as the right to education, social justice, autonomy and participation. For that purpose, the European Union should develop into a federal state. To the Euro-skeptical objection that Europe lacks a state-building nation i.e a unified nation as the foundation of political community, Habermas responds that the European civil society, European public and the common political culture - if, indeed, they can be built -- are sufficient for Europe's political unity. The process of designing and adopting the European Constitution has strengthened all three components. The Constitution also helps to explain the objectives of the European integration (boundaries of EU's expansion, interrelationship among levels of goverment) and to enhance legitimacy by creating a fundamental legal act, in the design of which European citizens are involved. For Habermas, the crisis of European unity caused by the disunity of the member-countries' governments over the American war in Iraq is an opportunity. The mobilization of the European civil society against that war (as demonstrated by the pan-European peace demonstrations of 15 February 2003) and the creation of the model of the procedurally well ordered international politics and cooperation which boosts economic development and social security serve as the counterbalance to the American unilateralism and the aspiration for domination. Habermas supports the model of "multispeed Europe" and thinks that it will not cause a rift in the EU, but can as a matter of fact dynamize the process of European integration. The author concludes that Habermas' political views of the European integration and international politics contain a remarkable dose of utopism. However, the attempt to see beyond the limitations of the existing political reality is a must if these limitations are to be overcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author investigates the future of European Union in the light of its political deficits, using as his starting point the works by Habermas and Derrida who offer a more optimistic view. The author is extremely skeptical of the cosmopolitan solutions for the European Union. He claims that the proposed European Constitution does not resolve the burning issue: is Europe now a state? The European Union to a large extent does not possess political identity but is a creation of its elites. Hence the idea of the EU as a cosmopolis is wrong since it obscures serious problems this entity is already confronted with. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author looks into the origin and the evolution of the notion of civil society and outlines the contemporary debates on its meaning and democratic potential, as well as its democratic deficits. The concept of civil society (originally devised by Aristotle and used for centuries in political philosophy), was revived in the 1980s, first in the East-European movements against the Stalinist state socialism, and later in the new social movements in the West and in social sciences in general. Today's understanding of this term is the result of the branching out of the classical term: while originally it denoted an association of citizens as a political community, Montesquieu and Hegel came up with the difference between the civil society and the state as a political community. Later, a series of modern authors, in line with Gramsci, additionally differentiated between the civil and the market societies. The case in point is Jürgen Habermas who defines civil society as a system of spontaneously generated non-state and nonprofit associations connected via the venues of public communication and whose goal is not to win the firsthand political power. Another understanding of civil society has resulted from a long cooperation of the UN and its specialized institutions with the nongovernmental organizations that came to the fore at the major thematic UNsponsored conferences in the 1990s. The author criticizes the idealized picture of civil society as a form of the organization and the democracy-promoting communication of citizens. A developed civil society is undoubtedly important for democracy, but this also requires the appropriate checking mechanisms. The potential deficits of the civil society are reform blockade, the risk of the loss of civilness in populist movements and the social asymmetry of civil activism. Finally, the author looks into a variety of proposals that see in the European civil society the means of the democratization of the European Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author looks into the issue how to strengthen the role of national parliaments in the process of accession to the EU. In that process, the national parliaments of the candidate countries can draw on the experience of the EU member countries. The intensification of the EU integration has resulted in the so called democratic deficit. This means that national parliaments have been losing control over an increasing portion of the regulatory issues which are being taken over by the EU executive bodies, primarily the European Commission and the Council of Ministers, whose decisions are not swayed by the political clout and the control mechanisms of the national or the European parliament. That is why the EU member countries have been developing new mechanisms that will strengthen their participatory and controlling competence versus the EU executive bodies. Such mechanisms are most developed in the parliaments of the Scandinavian countries, whose experience serves as a model to other parliaments. Also important are the emergence of some new mechanisms of cooperation with the European parliament as well as the establishment of a permanent interparliamentary cooperation. Among the latter, the Conference of Parliamentary Committees specialized for EU affairs stands out; the so-called COSAC (Conférance des Organes spécialisées dans les affaires communautaires, /Conference of the Community and European Affairs Committees of Parliaments of the EU/), established in 1989. The author concludes that the candidate countries' parliaments should timely devise certain specialized and cooperative structures that will enable them to be on equal footing with their governments and the EU executive bodies in the process of decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author analyses the direction that the European Union has taken after the Nice conference. In order to create an appropriate and transparent competency system for the European Union, the priority on today's agenda are the models borrowed from the constitutions of different federal states. The first model is the socalled dual federalism that evolved in the United States. This model aspires to strictly separate the European competency and the member countries' competency. The second option has been provided by the German Fundamental Law (Constitution). According to this model, the European Union would be accorded competences in line with the systematics of the exclusive, competitive and comprehensive legislation. The author is of the opinion that this would lead to a sort of formal transparency but would not completely prevent the overlapping of the competences of the Union, its member countries and other territorial units. A special focus is given to the transparency and efficacy of the reform process. Also, it is emphasized that a coherent coordination of the horizontal and vertical reform of the competency system is called for. Regarding democracy, the author thinks there is no need for a new model of democracy, but a systematic revision of the existing system of decision-making in the European Union. Besides, a genuine democratization would not set its sights solely on reforming institutional regulation, but also on strengthening the mediation bodies. This would improve the relations between the public and the parliaments of the nation-states and the federal units concerning European issues. This would go hand in hand with an expansion of European party organizations and a more efficient "Europeization" of central associations and institutions for interestpromotion. And finally, the author looks into the traditional boundaries between the private and the public. The public sector would take over from private economy some established procedures or would completely hand over certain tasks. This would require well-defined criteria. Also, an efficient control by parliaments and government bodies is necessary as a guarantee of innovation and cost-effectiveness and as a protection against abuse. This might help to turn Europe into a place of unity and cooperative behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]