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Integration crucial to Europe, say EU leaders

15 August 2006, 22:34 CET


Ordinary Europeans need to learn about each other and challenge themselves, Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said in Salzburg on Saturday at the close of a conference on the future of the continent.

"It is important we do not just meet in our political circles," Schuessel, whose country holds the EU presidency, told journalists at the end of the "Sound of Europe" conference which brought together about 300 participants from politics, the arts, sciences and the media.

Referring to Mozart's 250th anniversary Friday and the 150th anniversary this year of Sigmund Freud's birth, Barroso joked "we in Europe are in a process of group therapy with the contribution of music."

Schuessel however urged Europe to "come out of this therapy phase," and follow in the footsteps of Germany, whose new-found optimism "should be possible for Europe as a whole."

The chancellor said there was a "tendency to segmentation" in Europe, with politicians, artists and economists speaking only among themselves rather than with each other.

"That's the idea behind this (conference)... to break up these circles," by establishing an inter-disciplinary debate, he said.

Panelists including Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga said EU politicians too often used the left side of their brain and paid too little attention to arts and culture.

"The idea is to launch a debate and to engage others, not only politicians in the debate," Barroso said, adding there was "a big gap between the concerns of ordinary citizens and politicians."

"We have to bridge the gap between elite perceptions and mass perceptions," he said.

Barroso Saturday called on the EU to face globalisation head-on and not shy away from the issue, saying "we should to try manage it with our European values," and send "a message of openness, not of retreat."

A major issue at the two-day conference was how to tackle cultural diversity and identity in Europe and bring people together.

"Do we love each other, are we curious about each other or are we strangers?" Schuessel asked, echoing a question posed earlier by photographer Oliviero Toscani, the creator of controversial advertisements for the clothing line Benetton in the 1990s.

The solution to this problem was a plan D for dialogue, democracy and debate in Europe, Barroso said.

Quoting Italian writer Umberto Eco, he said, "the language of Europe is translation," reflecting the EU's ability to communicate despite its many languages.

Saturday afternoon, Barroso and European Parliament president Josep Borrell were to "promote the discussion with a broader public," by taking part in a discussion with citizens.

The creation of European news forums could improve integration and understanding, Schuessel said, pointing out two major European newspapers, the Neue Zuercher Zeitung and The Times, were founded during Mozart's lifetime over 200 years ago.

Echoing comments Friday by French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, the chancellor proposed setting up meetings in the tradition of European coffee houses, where people from all walks of life could exchange ideas.

"We have too few European symbols," Schuessel also said, adding "we (must) trust ourselves to work with artists to put together images of Europe."

Barroso and Schuessel also proposed setting up a European institute for technology and a foundation to study European culture.


The Sound of Europe conference

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