Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, if it is true that one can only unite things that have inner unity and that belong together, then this raises the question as to what European unity actually consists of. We are not one people. We do not have the same ethnic origin. We do not speak the same language. We do not have a single culture and religion. Our history bears the marks of war, of war against each other, and Europe’s indistinct borders mean that we cannot even be clearly recognised as a geographical entity. Therefore, what is it that binds us together? What enables us to live together? The answer to this may seem insubstantial to many people. Nonetheless, I believe it is the only answer available to us: democracy and human rights. These are what unite Europe. Dubious though some of the things emanating from this continent may have been, in terms of democracy and human rights this continent has sent out a message of indisputable global resonance. In the wake of the twentieth century, the century of great atrocities and crimes to end all crimes, that is this continent’s moral imperative. Human dignity is sacrosanct! That is why we cannot rest content with the fact that all Member States have signed up to the European Convention on Human Rights when the European Union has not. That is why it should no longer be deemed appropriate for EU law to infringe national law, the constitutional law of the Member States that is, when the Union itself does not have a clear and comprehensive system of fundamental rights. It should therefore disturb us that fresh fundamental rights conflicts are breaking out in the spheres of information and communication science and biotechnology, but Europe does not have a consensus on fundamental rights with which to provide answers. That is why it cannot be a matter of indifference to us that parliamentary and judicial supervision – and thus guarantees of fundamental rights – have been weakened considerably in highly sensitive areas of political union: for example, police and judicial cooperation or foreign and security policy. That is why the European Union will remain incomplete as long as the primacy of the law and the power of the institutions continue to grow in strength, but the citizens’ rights to freedom and to a defence, and the legal guarantees and legal protection they are afforded do not keep pace. The European Parliament has a long, unbroken tradition when it comes to defending fundamental and human rights. That is why the decisions reached at the Cologne and Tampere Summits can be looked on as the fulfilment of the demands Parliament has been making for many a long year. These demands are in keeping with this tradition and they are in the nature of things, in the nature of fundamental rights; in other words, no rights are to be promised unless they are to be made law for the citizens. Legal validity and access to the courts of law is inextricably linked with fundamental and human rights. Exactly the same applies to the indivisibility of fundamental rights. All the policies, institutions and bodies of the European Union must be subject to this Charter of Fundamental Rights. Otherwise, we would be making the citizens of this Union a promise about human rights that would remain nothing more than a proclamation. In other words, we would only be making a pretence of fulfilling the people’s expectations. And today’s resolution, if it is adopted, picks up on one of Parliament’s old demands that has never been so important as it is today. This Charter of Fundamental Rights must form the cornerstone, the foundation of the process we need if we are to provide the European Union with a constitution. We cannot do without this Charter of Fundamental Rights if we are to construct a European democracy in this supranational area. Madam President, perhaps it is one of life’s ironies that you have nominated an Austrian as rapporteur, as co-rapporteur, for this Charter of Fundamental Rights. I am grateful to you for trusting in me, and although it may not be customary practice, with your permission I would very much like to dedicate my contribution over the last few months to this work, to the overwhelming majority of the Austrian population that is defending the great European consensus against deeds and words. Human dignity is sacrosanct! (Applause)

Political group: Verts-ALE