ACT Alliance EU together with 34 other CSOs signed a Civil Society Europe statement as a contribution to the European Commission consultation on the European Democracy Action Plan, calling for recognition of and support to CSOs to be a key element of a future action plan.
Recognition of and Support for civil society organisations must be a key element of a future action plan on Democracy
During the last few years, EU core values such as democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights have been facing increasing challenges within the European Union itself. This has also meant a shrinking civic space that we have documented in several reports.
The impact of the recent pandemic and measures to address it have further contributed to deteriorating these trends and has had a further adverse impact on the ability of civil society to perform its role whether in promoting access to fundamental rights in the social, health, cultural, education, environmental sector or advocating for good governance and better democracy. We welcome therefore the development of an action plan on democracy and we would like to be an active part!
Civil society organisations play a key role in the democratic system, holding those in power to account and stimulating public debate and citizen engagement, responding on the ground to societal challenges, as well as in combating some of the identified threats. Civil society is also crucial in empowering individuals to express their opinions and voice their concerns, as also recognised by the Treaties. In addition to this, participatory and deliberative democracy can give citizens an increased chance to actively and directly participate in the shaping of planned or future public policies. A major element in the context will be the upcoming Conference on the Future of Europe.
A number of measures are necessary to sustain and reinforce democracy in Europe, but this can only happen through the active involvement and recognition of civil society as an important pillar of democracy.
Civil Society must be fully involved in shaping EU policies
As an umbrella organisation uniting major EU-level civil society networks, we can be satisfied with the opportunity as such to access and respond to consultations, but less on the quality and effectiveness of these consultations.
The better regulation process deemed to ensure that EU laws are “fit for purpose” should be reviewed. If mainly focused on reducing regulatory burden, this approach is rather fit to create a more favourable business environment than to design policies for the general interest. Obviously, the two are not incompatible, but they should be given equal weight and carefully balanced.
We would prefer the better regulation approach to focus on the quality and effectiveness of regulation, and its ability to respond to people’s needs on the ground. Citizens in the end will appreciate the quality and impact of legislation if they see that the water is safe and clean, that air pollution is substantially decreased, that their food is of high quality, that workers’ rights are respected, that their living conditions are improved, and not the other way around.
Thus social and environmental impacts of EU legislation should be better balanced with economic impacts, which often take priority. Fundamental rights should be taken more adequately into account when designing legislation and policies, by improving the quality of impact assessments and ensuring meaningful opportunities for public consultation and debate on the Commission’s proposals. Balanced participation in policymaking will allow the EU institutions to have a complete view of all issues at stake and avoid undue influence.
A fair balance between inputs from different stakeholders should be ensured. This can only be achieved by:
- reviewing the methodology of consultations to reach out to more civic and social organisations at the EU and national levels;
- going beyond online consultations and putting in place a structured and continuous dialogue with civic and social organisations along all phases of policy making, including its implementation and evaluation phase.
Civil Society Organisations represent constituencies from a wide range of sectors. Through their daily action from employees and volunteers, they give practical substance to European shared values. Whether they provide philanthropic activities or social services, whether they advocate or campaign to promote effective access to civic, political, economic, social, cultural and environmental rights for millions of people across Europe, they are on the front line to witness precarious situations, respond to people’s needs, address societal challenges such as climate change, digital transformation, health and socio-economic impact of the pandemic, and alert on the shortcomings of public policies.
Democratic civic organisations are bridge-building tools for citizens to organise and better “make known and publicly exchange their views in all areas of Union action” (Art. 11 TEU).
- The EU and Member States should support them to mobilise and empower people on the ground to speak up for their diversity, making their “right to participate in the democratic life of the Union” a reality, as enshrined in Article 10 of the TEU.
- The EU and Member States should give them the channels to participate in an “open, transparent and regular dialogue” with the EU institutions (Art. 11 TEU).
More specifically, we call on the EU to:
- Fully implement the provision of Art. 11 TEU regarding an “open, transparent and regular dialogue with civil society and its representative associations” in all areas of EU action. The Commission should initiate an inter-institutional agreement on civil dialogue with European civil society.
- Ensure meaningful and inclusive participation of civil society including philanthropy in the context of the Future of Europe Conference, in the implementation of the EDAP and any other mechanisms and processes for the promotion and protection of democracy, rule of law and fundamental rights.
In order to ensure meaningful participation of civil society, certain pre-conditions are also necessary:
- EU decision-making processes within all institutions must be open and transparent and people in Europe must be able to know what is the position of their government and elected representatives at all stages;
- Participatory mechanisms must be accessible and inclusive to all;
- An enabling policy and legal framework must be sustained at all levels: local, national and European;
- Participation must be supported through financial and human resources;
- Civic education must be put in place including on the EU and its values.
This is also part of our Roadmap on civil dialogue in the EU.