Growing pains.

In May 2004, the European Union expands its membership from 15 to 25. The former Communist bloc countries of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Slovenia join the group, as well as Cyprus and Malta. These new members are still very poor by EU standards, but the hope now is that the worst is over and they will enjoy growing prosperity and stability.

From the tragedy and destruction of the Second World War (1939-1945) emerged the notion of a united Europe. The main concern of the founding fathers of the European Union was to make it impossible for Europe to tear itself apart in yet another devastating war. Frequent and bloody wars had plagued Europe for centuries. Between 1870 and 1945, France and Germany fought each other three times, with terrible loss of life. Several European leaders reasoned that countries that ate bound to each other economically and politically are probably not going to see war as a good way of solving problems. So, on 9 May 1950, French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman proposed integrating the coal and steel industries of Western Europe. A year later, the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was set up, with six members: Belgium, West Germany, Luxembourg, France, Italy, and the Netherlands. The idea worked, and the organization grew as did its membership. Ireland and the United Kingdom joined in 1973, Greece in 1981, Spain and Portugal in 1986, Austria, Finland and Sweden in 1995.

Originally, much of the cooperation among EU countries involved trade and the economy. Now, it also deals with issues such as citizens' rights; ensuring freedom, security and justice; job creation; regional development; environmental protection; making globalization work for everyone. To give its member states a unified voice on the world stage, the EU also is developing a common foreign and security policy, and there are plans for more cooperation on defence questions.

In December 2002, the European Union finished lengthy negotiations with ten hopeful members, mainly from Central and Eastern Europe. Except for Cyprus and Malta, all were former satellite states of the Soviet Union, and talk of including them in the EU started in 1989, the day after the Berlin Wall was torn down and the Soviet empire broke apart. A little more than a decade later, the leaders of the EU's 15 members embraced all 10 countries in the biggest enlargement the union has ever seen. The move will transform Europe from a tightly knit family of Western nations into a federation stretching from the Atlantic to the Russian border. The expanded Union will have a population larger than the United States and an economy that is set to become the world's largest.

Currently, the 15 EU member states have a total of 380 million citizens. That will grow by 75 million when the new members arrive in 2004. In 2007, Bulgaria and Romania are expected to join, which will result in a total EU population of almost 500 million. Turkey is also a candidate country, and could join later, when all the conditions for membership ate met, particularly in the area of human rights.

Before becoming a member of the EU, a country has to have a stable democracy that guarantees the rule of law; human rights and protection of minorities; and a functioning market economy, as well as a civil service capable of applying and managing EU laws.

There are many requirements for would-be members, including institutional reform, new laws, new tax regimes, and anti-corruption measures.

But, joining the EU has a lot of advantages, not the least of which is the financial assistance and advice it gives candidate countries to help prepare them for membership. And, some aspiring countries with a culture of corruption have been concentrating "on moving towards better, cleaner, fairer, and more efficient financial systems," as The Economist put it in September 2002. "The rewards include cheaper capital to fuel the economy and more saving by trusting consumers." As well as more investment, club membership also brings with it more trade, freedom of movement among member countries, and access to the West. But, when the EU's current members agreed to accept the new candidates they also insisted on an interim period of seven years before there is fully free movement of labour, and ten years before the new members are eligible for the full range of farm subsidies. (The EU spends more than 40% of its budget subsidizing farmers.) And, receiving "structural funds" allocated to poorer countries and regions in the EU won't be easy either: the newcomers will be competing for the funds with existing poor member countries such as Greece and Portugal, who won't want their share cut.

There are other problems too related to poverty among the incoming members.

The three Baltic economies, for example, (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) have Gross Domestic Products per capita of little more than one-third that of the EU average; business is still generally low-tech, particularly in agriculture, where Latvia and Lithuania's workforces have around three times the proportion of farmers and one-third the productivity of the EU average (but still much better than in the early 1990s). Some experts say these small, poor farmers can't compete with big, modern producers in the EU, and will have to find other work. Free trade with the EU countries works well for big business, but some say small ones don't do so well: one foreign diplomat in Warsaw, for example, felt Poland--the largest of the new members--would not be able to master all the EU's maze of farming and food-safety laws by the time it joins, allowing other EU countries to block its farm exports. It might also fail to set up enough projects to claim its full share of EU development funds. The new countries also have the extra costs of meeting EU rules on such things as workplace safety and environmental protection. Still, of the billions of dollars available in restructuring funds, which countries continue receiving until their GDP per head reaches 75% of the EU average, agriculture and small businesses are among the recipients. It's a huge commitment: between 1990 and 1997, the European Union and the member states committed almost ECU 140 billion ($218 billion Cdn.) in loans and aid to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and to the newly independent states of the former Soviet Union. New members and candidates obviously would like to share the riches.

SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES:

1. The European Parliament created the Sakharov Prize, which is awarded annually to an individual or group that has defended the cause of human tights anywhere in the world. Find out who has received the award and report on the reasons they received it.

2. Do a detailed report on why Lithuania has been so successful in developing its economy and discuss whether or not you think other new countries will improve as much. If not why not.

New European Union Member States from 2004 onwards

Country           Political        Capital          Total Area
                    System           City

Czech Republic     Republic        Prague       79,000 [km.sup.2]
Estonia            Republic        Tallinn      45,000 [km.sup.2]
Cyprus             Republic        Nicosia       9,000 [km.sup.2]
Latvia             Republic        Riga         65,000 [km.sup.2]
Lithuania          Republic        Vilnius      65,000 [km.sup.2]
Hungary            Republic        Budapest     93,000 [km.sup.2]
Malta              Republic        Valletta      3,000 [km.sup.2]
Poland             Republic        Warsaw      313,000 [km.sup.2]
Slovenia           Republic        Ljubljana    20,000 [km.sup.2]
Slovakia           Republic        Bratislava   49,000 [km.sup.2]
Candidates
Bulgaria           Republic        Sofia       111,000 [km.sup.2]
Romania            Republic        Bucharest   238,000 [km.sup.2]
Turkey             Republic        Ankara      775,000 [km.sup.2]

                                                  GDP per capita
                                                   compared with
Country           Population       Currency         EU $23,000
                 (in millions)                     (2001 $U.S.)

Czech Republic       10.3        Czech koruna         $14,400
Estonia              1.4           Estonian           $10,000
                                    kroon
Cyprus               0.8         Cyprus pound     $15,000 (Greek)
                                                 $7,000 (Turkish)
Latvia               2.4             Lats             $7,800
Lithuania            3.5            Litas             $7,600
Hungary              10.2           Forint            $12,000
Malta                0.4         Maltese lira         $15,000
Poland              38.6            Zloty             $8,800
Slovenia              2             Tolar             $16,000
Slovakia             5.4         Slovak koruna        $11,500
Candidates
Bulgaria             7.9             Lev
Romania              22.4        Romanian leu
Turkey               69.2        Turkish lira

Website

Europa--http://europa.eu.int/index_en.htm

EUROSPEAK

Here are some of the terms that Europa includes in its list of Eurojargon.

Eurocrat: "Eurocrats" (a pun on the word "bureaucrats") are the many thousands of EU citizens who work for the European institutions (Parliament, the Council, the Commission, etc.).

Euroland: A nickname for the EU member states that have adopted the euro as their currency. So far it includes: Belgium, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, and Finland. Taken together they are known as "the euro area" of (less correctly) "the euro zone."

EUROPA: This is not really eurojargon. It was the ancient Greek and Latin name for Europe. Now, it is the name of the European Union's official website. This contains a wealth of useful information about the EU, regularly updated, and it is available in all the official languages of the EU.

European integration: This means building unity between European countries and peoples. Within the European Union it means that countries pool their resources and take many decisions jointly through the EU institutions (the Parliament, the Council, the Commission, etc,).

"European Year of ...": Every year or two, the EU draws public attention to a particular European issue by organizing a series of special events in connection with it. 2003 was designated "European Year of People with Disabilities," to highlight the barriers and discrimination such people have to face, and to improve their lives. 2004 is the Year of Education Through Sport.

Europe Day, 9th May: It was on 9 May 1950 that Robert Schuman (then French Foreign Minister) made his famous speech proposing European integration (see above) as the way to secure peace and build prosperity in post-war Europe. His proposals laid the foundations for what is now the European Union, so 9 May is celebrated annually as the EU's birthday.

Intergovernmental Conference (IGC): A conference at which Member States' governments amend the European Union treaties. The next IGC is scheduled for 2004, when the plan is to merge all the present treaties into a single, simplified treaty (or "constitution") setting out the EU's aims and policies and saying who is responsible for doing what (see page 28).

Schengen land: In 1985, five EU countries (France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands) agreed to abolish all checks on people travelling between them. This created a territory without internal borders, which became known as the Schengen area. (Schengen is the town in Luxembourg where the agreement was signed). The Schengen countries introduced a common visa policy for the whole area and agreed to establish effective controls at its external borders. Checks at the internal borders may be carried out for a limited period if public order or national security make this necessary. Little by little, the Schengen area has been extended to include every EU country plus Iceland and Norway, and the agreement has become an integral part of the EU treaties. However, Ireland and the United Kingdom do not take part in the arrangements relating to border controls and visas.

"Brussels has decided ...": The term "Brussels" is often used in the media to refer to the EU institutions, most of which are in the city of Brussels, Belgium. The European Commission proposes EU law but the Council of the European Union (ministers from the national governments) and the European Parliament (elected by the European citizens) debate, amend, and ultimately decide whether to pass these proposed laws.

ALWAYS A BRIDESMAID

At the same time the EU's members agreed to accept 10 new countries into their ranks, they also agreed to take Turkey's claims to membership seriously. The country has been trying to join the EU since 1987 but has failed because of a poor human rights record, economic instability, and the interference of the military in the democratic process. Turkey is a Muslim country of nearly 70 million people and some Turks accuse the EU of being a Christian club.

However, a progress review in December 2004 will examine how well Turkey is doing in meeting EU standards. A positive report could lead to the start of entry negotiations.

The possibility of Turkey joining has raised a number of questions such as where the geographical boundaries of the EU should end (most of Turkey's land mass is in Asia), and what the EU's ultimate purpose is. Some suggest it's more than just a free-trade area, and that it should encompass values: countries that believe in democracy and freedom should be eligible candidates regardless of religion of geographical location.

At the EU gathering in Copenhagen in December 2002, a German-French proposal suggested that talks start in July 2005 if Turkey makes sufficient progress. While Turkey enacted a radical reform package in August 2002, the EU said it had to further improve its treatment of dissidents, ethnic minorities, and ordinary prisoners; loosen its restrictions against the Kurdish language in broadcasting and education: reduce the influence of generals in politics; and develop its market economy. To the Turks it marked at least a beginning to what will be a lengthy negotiating process even though it is not expected to be ready for actual membership for another 10-15 years.

Some observers say including Turkey in the EU would send the important message that the West does not consider Islam and democracy incompatible. (Within the EU's current borders there are already about 15 million Muslims.)

EU FOUNDATION

European integration is based on the four following founding treaties:

* The Treaty that established the European Coal and Steel Community was signed in April 1951 in Paris, came into force in July 1952, and expired in July 2002;

* The Treaties establishing the European Economic Community (EEC), and the European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM) were signed in 1957 in Rome, and member states started to remove trade barriers between them to form a "common market:"

* The Treaty on European Union, signed in Maastricht in February 1992, enlarged the areas of cooperation among member state governments to include such topics as defence, and justice. At the same time, the "European Community" became the "European Union."

FACT FILE

Poland became the first Eastern European nation to abandon communism in 1989.

FACT FILE

There are 11 official languages in the European Union: Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, and Swedish. EU legislation is published in all the official languages, and you may use any of these languages to correspond with the EU institutions. Europe cherishes its diversity of national and regional languages, and 2001 was designated the European Year of Languages in celebration of this diversity.

FACT FILE

According to one estimate, even at robust rates of growth, the economies of Central Europe's EU candidates may need as much as another 15 to 20 years to catch up with Western Europe.

FACT FILE

Candidates for EU membership have been given extra time to phase in what's been described as the EU's burdensome environmental legislation.