Debate: Recent attempts to deny dictatorships and the risk of Europe returning to totalitarianism
Date: WEDNESDAY, 24 APRIL 2024
Speaker: Virginijus Sinkevičius
Language: EN

According to Hannah Arendt, the features of a totalitarian regime include a government characterised by a single-party dictatorship that seeks total control over every aspect of society and the individual, including politics, economy, culture, education and even thought. She highlighted the use of terror, propaganda, mass surveillance and ideological indoctrination as key mechanisms through which totalitarian regimes maintain power and suppress dissent.  The EU and its Member States are strong democracies with laws and freedoms, but democracy needs nurturing. The enemies of democracy try to undermine it, weaken it, or even destroy it, and they use a variety of methods, traditional and modern, including foreign interference, disinformation, corruption, or hybrid threats.  The Commission has worked with the European Parliament and the Council to develop a set of legal instruments and policy initiatives to promote and protect the EU common values and fundamental rights. The Russian war against Ukraine and the Middle East crisis remind us that peace cannot be taken for granted. It reminds us of the evils that result from politics built on aggressive, expansionist extremism and ideologies of intolerance and hatred.  When our values are placed in doubt, fear becomes the driving motive. We should not respond to this fear by lecturing citizens or ignoring their concerns. We have to try to understand the reasons, address challenges and propose better alternatives. Countries like Russia have increasingly sought to undermine our democracies and promote fear. But we are not defenceless.  On the contrary, the European Democracy Action Plan set out a comprehensive list of concrete measures to harden our democracies to these attacks and challenges. The Commission put forward initiatives that range from regulation on political advertising to measures to protect journalists and prevent strategic lawsuits against public participation.  Our new digital and media regulation, including the Digital Services Act and the European Media Freedom Act, aim to support a resilient and diverse media landscape that strengthens our democratic space and public trust. I would like to thank this House for your support for these files.  Supporting the work of the civil society organisations and independent experts is essential to democracy and for remembrance of our totalitarian past. Civil society deserves the role it gained in the Anti Disinformation Code, along with the online platforms and other digital companies.  In December 2023, the Commission presented the Defence of Democracy package. It includes a directive for transparency standards for interest representation activities on behalf of third countries that will shed more light against hidden foreign interference, and a recommendation on inclusive and resilient elections.  In the joint communication on ‘No place for hate: a Europe united against hatred’, the Commission reiterated our commitment to step up EU efforts to fight hatred in all its forms, and this includes remembrance of our totalitarian and authoritarian past and its victims.  The core EU framework for a strong common response to racist and xenophobic hate speech and hate crime is the 2008 Framework Decision on combating racism and xenophobia. Under this, Member States are obliged to penalise public incitement to violence or hatred.  Knowledge of the crimes committed by totalitarian regimes is also key to a healthy debate based on facts. That is why every year we mark 23 August, our Europe-wide day of remembrance for the victims of all totalitarian and authoritarian regimes.  To support awareness and debate, the Commission has introduced European Citizens’ Panels on tackling hatred in society. We also have a programme which supports remembrance actions on the causes of totalitarian regimes, in particular Nazism, but also fascism, Stalinism and totalitarian communist regimes.  Young people should also become aware of their common history and values as the foundation for a common future. Through Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps, we promote activities aiming at promoting European values and combating all forms of discrimination and intolerance. European heritage dates can also raise awareness on totalitarian regimes.  The Commission is co-financing these open calls with the Council of Europe and providing grants to inspiring projects promoting historic literacy. Ladies and gentlemen, protecting European values and rejecting authoritarianism and totalitarianism require a concerted effort by everyone.