A meeting with Professor Tannelie Blom: Europe, the Big Absentee?

In preparation for the third annual Forum Maastricht conference: ‘Europe, the Big Absentee’ (9 - 11 May 2007), Crossroads’ writer Danya Chaikel meets with Dr Tannelie Blom, Professor of European Studies at the University of Maastricht and Chair of the Department of Political Science at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences to talk about his role as Academic Advisor of Forum Maastricht.

It is obvious that Professor Tannelie Blom is enthusiastic about Europe’s future. Considered as “one of the founding fathers of European Studies” at the University of Maastricht, Blom has this year taken a leading role as Academic Advisor of Forum Maastricht, an annual international conference focusing on contemporary European issues.

But the professor also feels that “Europe has missed opportunities abroad and internally.” According to him, the EU is presently “absent from the minds and hearts of its people.”

In this context, it seems appropriate that this year’s Forum Maastricht conference, the third of its kind, to be held on 9 - 11 May 2007, is entitled ‘Europe, the Big Absentee? - striving to realize its potential’.

Several hundred participants are expected to attend the event, including international politicians and academics, business leaders, NGO representatives, students and interested citizens. The three day conference will also welcome dynamic and seasoned experts such as former Dutch Prime Minister Ruud Lubbers, University of London School of Public Policy Director Professor Richard Bellamy, Dutch Senator Van Gennip, to name but a few.

Forum Maastricht was initiated four years ago by Maastricht University’s president Dr Jo Ritzen, who brought together a group of specialists on European issues for each event. The first Forum was called ‘Europe 25: a new chance?’ and the second ‘Migration and Integration: towards a European policy?’

Professor Blom, who has been involved with Forum Maastricht from the beginning, has spent the past year and a half planning this year’s event together with Forum Coordinator Monika Fermé. Organizational matters fell under Fermé’s responsibility while Blom concentrated on the content. Funding mostly came from government sources.

Blom is a charming man and forthcoming about his work. As a young man he studied philosophy at the University of Amsterdam with a specialisation in political and social philosophy. Through a fellowship at the Institute for the Human Sciences in Vienna he researched the empirical political science and sociology of the European integration process. In 2004 he was appointed Professor of European Studies at the University of Maastricht and now holds the Chair of the Department of Political Science at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.

When I recently met with him to discuss his role as Academic Advisor for the upcoming conference, he admitted that coordinating such a large-scale event didn’t come without challenges. Finding the right speakers who would be available for the Forum was extremely difficult. Experts are busy people. Also Blom didn’t want this seemingly academic forum be too academic: he wished to make the conference accessible to all European citizens and not just professors. A refreshing attitude!

Europe, the Big Absentee?
Blom has edited a pre-conference book bringing together the writings of the Forum’s speakers. The first copy of ‘Reviewing Europe’ will be handed on 25 April to Dutch Secretary of State Frans Timmermans in the Sociëteit de Witte (The Hague).

For Blom selecting the topic for this year’s conference came naturally. “Europe isn’t present in the hearts of EU citizens and it has been difficult to sell to these citizens,” he explains. In the Netherlands for example, the EU simply hasn’t been on the national political agenda since the French and Dutch “no” to the EU constitution in June 2005.

According to Blom the EU is absent in the mindset of its citizens and “not really part of the basic consciousness”. What we have now is a “Europe of organisations, of and for organisations.”

The EU does not have a parliamentary democracy as we know it in nation states and Blom says this needs to be addressed. He feels that “we need to have the people’s voices heard…we should make it our project as well.” One of his suggestions is for the European Parliament to hold more lively elections, maybe involving the formation of more visible European political parties. Another idea would be the introduction of a ‘second vote’ in national elections, to be given to the preferred official spokesperson for European affairs from whatever party. The preferential votes would then influence the spokesperson’s electoral ranking as well as the distribution of parliamentary seats between the parties. This would bring the EU closer to its citizens, because the task of this elected representative could consist in bringing people’s issues directly to the EU Parliament.

Blom hopes the Forum will spark discussion on Europe’s international presence or lack thereof. Europe has the biggest economy in the world but little political teeth. EU foreign policy is underdeveloped. One problem Blom highlights is the fact that each member state has a veto power. This prioritises the power of individual member states over the collective body, which means that the system remains inter-governmental in a classical way. As long as state sovereignty will reign over the EU, it will be difficult to coordinate regional and international policy. But this is tricky to fix because each member state has a unique history with different sets of politics and loyalties.

Social policy is one example where lack of political coordination is obvious, says Blom. There is little solidarity between the people of Europe on issue of welfare and wellbeing. And for the EU to gain political leeway here and abroad, Blom refers to a suggestion of Jelle Visser, one of the co-authors of ‘Reviewing Europe’, that the EU should define and implement minimum standards for social welfare in all member states.

Blom hopes that Forum Maastricht will allow participants to assess the future of the EU project and discuss why there have been so many lost opportunities. A critical review of Europe’s history will give a clearer picture into the possibilities in store for the future.

Blom doesn’t want a typical conference. Instead he is looking forward to a “creative and lively debate where we will hear new ideas not already explored”: What shouldn’t we do? Where should we go?

By Danya Chaikel

Danya Chaikel is from Vancouver, Canada and recently graduated from law school. She has a background of working with migrants and promoting human rights. Danya recently moved to Maastricht to be with her Dutch partner.

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Forum Maastricht 2007

Forum Maastricht will open with the annual Schuman lecture organised by Studium Generale. Jeremy Rifkin will present ‘The European Dream’ on the evening of May 9: For more than two centuries the world has looked to the American Dream for inspiration and guidance. Now, a newly emerging European Dream is beginning to offer an alternative to the American vision. Mr. Rifkin will explore the political, social, and cultural aspects of the fledgling European Dream and its implications for the business community and society.

For the next two days, Forum Maastricht participants will have the chance to attend three of the following six panel discussions:

1. Europe as a global player
moderator: J.M.M. Ritzen MSc. PhD.
2. The European Citizen: between nationalism and cosmopolitism
moderator: professor H. Schneider
3. The future of transatlantic relations
moderator: professor A.J.J. Nijhuis
4. Perspectives from beyond: non-Europeans about Europe
moderator: J. van Gennip LL.M.
5. Does Europe need a social model?
moderator: professor J. Visser
6. The politics of sustainability and the politics of Europe
moderator: R.F.M. Lubbers PhD.

For more information about Forum Maastricht please visit their site through the University of Maastricht website:
Forum Maastricht