Truth10: Hungarians, Show Courage Again! It's 60 years! Publish the Community's democratic Magna Carta of 1951!

The 18th April 2011 represents the 60th anniversary of the founding of the European Community and signature by the Founding Fathers of the great Charter of the Community, laying down the democratic principles on which Europe should organize itself. The Charter has not been published since the 1950s.

Why? Because de Gaulle's subsequent rise in France, his seizure of power and his war against Community democracy buried it deep in the Foreign Ministry's archives. De Gaulle is long dead. Secrecy, anti-democratic practice and political cartels remain.

Over the ensuing decades the European Commission has refused to publish Europe's Charter. It still does. Many recent requests have been turned down. A complaint is presently lodged with the European Ombudsman.

Is the Commission afraid that the shade of the French autocrat will haunt the Berlaymont? Are they scared that the democratic principles of Europe's foundation will expose their double-dealing and the cartel party politics that now subverts the institutions?

The Great Charter of the European Community should be published next year. The public has a right to know that supranational democracy is the 'true foundation' on which that the founding fathers and Member States agreed to build Europe as a Community. It is not intergovernmentalism, a neo-Gaullist process where matters like raising taxes and spending is conducted behind closed doors and without any participation or control of public opinion or taxpayers.

The following letter was sent to the Hungarian Permanent Representative to the EU with copies to the European Commission, all Member States and Presidents of the European Parliament, Economic and Social Committee, Committee of Regions and European Council.

Schuman Project
The origin, purpose and future of
Europe’s supranational Community


2 December 2010

H E Ambassador Dr. Péter Györkös
Hungarian Representation to the EU


Dear Ambassador,
Many of us remember the courageous action of the Hungarians, not only in 1989 in bringing about the collapse of the Berlin Wall, but also the heroic action of 1956, when many gave their lives to establish the principle of a people’s and nation’s rights and their freedom to choose.

Next year, 2011, not only brings the Hungarian presidency of the Council meetings, but also the 60th anniversary of the major positive event in modern European history. That is the signature of the Charter of the Community on the day the Founding Fathers also signed the Treaty of Paris, establishing the first European Community, that of Coal and Steel.

The Charter of the Community speaks in legal and lyrical terms of Europeans’ right to unite in freedom. It held out hope to the countries behind the Iron Curtain.

It states clearly: ‘the contracting parties give proof of their determination to call the first supranational institution into life, and are consequently creating the true foundation for an organized Europe.

This Europe is open to all European nations that can decide freely for themselves. We sincerely hope that other countries will join in our common endeavour.’

For decades this momentous, historic document about the foundation of Europe has lain gathering dust in archives.

Is not the date 18 April 2011 the day to bring this again to the knowledge of the public and reaffirm the living principles it encapsulates for our future?

I request that the Hungarian Presidency will seize this opportunity to make an exhibition of this and other documents of Europe’s foundation in the Council building in Brussels, prior to a tour of the 27 Member States.

Yours etc,