Versterk de democratische cultuur van Europa

Democracy, as a principle laid down in the European treaties, is a precious cultural and institutional achieve­ment passed on to us by previous generations. It is our responsibility to consolidate, promote and improve democracy in Europe in order to pass it on to the next generations. The success of the European project does not depend only on economic in­te­gration and scientific and technological progress, but also on the acceptance of a set of fun­damental rights and values, such as human dignity, human rights, freedom, non-discrimination, common good, subsidiarity, justice, tolerance, inclusion, solidarity and equity and religious freedom, which underpin democracy, guarantee its proper function and give substance to democracy in practice.

The values which underpin the principle of democracy of the European Union are rooted in the philosophical thought nurtured by Christianity. The Catholic Church, as an important stakehol­der in the European society, cannot remain indifferent to democratic processes since the dignity of every resi­dent in Europe, human rights, the values of justice, solidarity and subsidiarity are intertwined with democracy. The

Church values the democratic system inasmuch as it ensures the active participation of citizens in making political choices that hold accountable those who govern them in their responsibility to protect, safeguard and imple­ment those values without which authentic democracy would be weakened.

Continued in Comece's Position Paper.