Europe: Remaining at the table
Lina Jordan believes in the interdependence of nations
Our vision for Europe is of a peaceful, compassionate, open and just society, using its moral influence to encourage other countries and peoples towards the same goals. It is of a community of peoples which acts towards individuals and other communities as we would have others act towards us. As Quakers we seek to be sensitive to that of God in others and in ourselves,
whose needs have the same validity as our own.
Quaker faith & practice 24.47
The quote above on a ‘vision for Europe’, from Quaker faith & practice, is an excerpt from a statement issued by the Quaker Council for European Affairs (QCEA) in 1987.
With the forthcoming EU referendum in mind, we, in Quakers for Europe, have been thinking whether anything has changed for us as Friends since this statement was published. The EU itself has changed. The fall of the Iron Curtain and the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe have spread multiparty democracy and brought into membership countries that had been cut off from the rest of Europe since the end of world war two. Our vision for Europe, however, remains the same.
An enormous red poster on the side of the M4 into London urges voters to ‘love Europe, not the EU’, and yet being part of the EU is an integral part of being part of Europe. It provides the platform for meeting and dialogue. It resembles closely William Penn’s vision of a constitutional arrangement for Europe which establishes ‘rules of justice’ for all to observe ‘one to another’ and is based on the ‘love of peace and order’.
We believe that the economic argument for Remain has been made clear, but it is not the only argument to help us decide how to vote. Another deciding factor, the choice between separateness and belonging, appears to have a continuous polarising effect among voters. Some see separateness as independence, while others view it as isolation. Some see belonging to a larger community of nations as a loss of national sovereignty, while others view it as a collaborative endeavour.
Somewhere between the two is the notion of interdependence – between humanity and nature, but equally between nations, communities, groups and individuals. Recognising interdependence requires acceptance of the fact that the intractable problems facing humanity can only be resolved through close collaborative relationships on all these levels.
There is something of a destructive instinct in the claim that by dismantling the EU we would be able to build a more democratic and equal organisation. We need to acknowledge that the EU is an imperfect organisation in an imperfect world, but its decision-making bodies are democratically elected and by being part of it we can influence its policies and structures from within. (Contrary to Leave statements, the UK has been on the winning side of an average of ninety per cent of votes in the Council of Ministers between 2004 and 2015.)
Our Quaker work has always been with others, opening doors rather than closing them. As a construct, borders are being challenged by the movement of people escaping conflict. Migration is not a new phenomenon. It has been around for a very long time. The free movement of people within the EU is making a net contribution to our economy, but immigration also contributes the cross-fertilisation of ideas, the richness of other cultures and the opportunity to see that of God in others and ourselves through the diversity in our communities.
As Quakers we ask ourselves – What is the work we are being called to do: to build and repair, to connect and reconcile, or to tear down and tear apart in the hope that a perfect world would emerge out of the rubble?
Our voices can be heard only if we remain at the table.
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