Olaf Cramme on the political engagement of Europeans

Olaf Cramme is director of the progressive think tank Policy Network. He considers that "Current EU management thwarts the idea of European citizenship, a concept which demands that individuals must feel that they understand and share ownership of the core mechanism of their society. ... This, in turn, requires that citizens come to see political leadership as the ultimate expression of their belief in the reality of choice and change. Technocratic dominance and management of Europe, in contrast, proclaims the inevitability of developments and their dynamics - and in doing so serves to drive individuals away from citizenship and, eventually, from the very idea of EU integration. Worse, the absence of choice magnifies the feelings of insecurity, leading to a political arena where false populism appears more and more tempting. The rise of demagogues across the European Union, and from different parts of the political spectrum, exemplifies this."

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