ヨーロッパの首都はストラスブール、と今回の旅で教わった
ブリュッセルだと認識していたが、職員に質問したら、ストラスブールが第一首都で、ブリュッセルが第二首都だという回答だった
世間の認識とは違う印象だが、欧州の歴史を象徴する場所であり、その重要性は、欧州議会(The European Parliament)等で今回学んだ
第二次世界大戦後の重要課題であったCoal and steel 問題は遥か昔の課題となったEU
現在は、人権、移民等の課題に取り組んでいる
国家を超えた連合を学ぶことは、政治家として国家運営をするにあたっても、グローバル化の進む企業経営にあたっても、役立つだろうと考え、訪問
特に英国離脱のタイミングがホットトピックなので、職員との対話を楽しみにして行った
以下、ガイドブックの紹介文
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Strasbourg offers you the unique opportunity of experiencing the inner workings of the largest transnational parliament and learning how it operates. Take a free tour of the Europoean Parliament, its hemicycle and the Parlamentarium, equipped with an audio guide (available in the 24 languages of the EU) or accompanied by one of its guides.
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背中が震える訪問先であった
理想を掲げ形にしてきている姿
働く職員のオープンな姿勢
ありたい姿を具体的に描き歩む姿勢
まず哲学というか思想ありき
尚、掲げている課題は、投資テーマともなると思う
flagの12の星は国の数ではない
24ヶ国語が公用語
同時通訳により自国の言葉で理解し発言できる
Web siteで翻訳されたものを我々も見られる
Simultaneously translate
All debates are filmed live by these cameras on the walls of the chamber
Thanks to the live interpreters, you too can follow the plenary session in your own language
Represents the European citizens
<運営の仕組み>
A law first has to be proposed by the commission
The commission puts together proposals based on issues of current importance
Draft is sent to Parliament and council
In parliament, the proposal is first examined in a committee
Each committee is focused on a particular area of policy
Approval of EU
Maximum 3 times
Meet to debate and vote on issues that affect us all
- Improving the air that we breathe
- Making sure that our food and drinking water are safe and free from pollutants
- Protecting consumers and ensuring better working conditions
Parliament debates and approves laws that improve the daily lives is all EU citizens
Making decisions about the kind of Europe. We want to live in
That is what parliament is for
To find out exactly what happens in the plenary
Based on political alliances, not nationally
<役割>
Debating and passing legislation is one of parliament’s three main areas of responsibility
The others are: deciding on the EU’s annual budget, and democratic oversight of the other European Union institutions
Parliament also has to approve most international agreements backed by the European Union such as free trade agreements
Parliament has a strong voice when it comes to human rights and democracy
Both in Europe and around the world
<賞>
Every year since 1988, the European Parliament awards the Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought, named after the Soviet dissident and physicist Andrei Sakharov to individuals or organizations that have made an important contribution to the fight for human rights
<5年に一度のEU選挙>
Every five years, all European citizens of voting age can go to the polls and choose the people they want to represent them in parliament
The members of the European Parliament are directly elected by us, the citizens of European Union
And that means that they are directly accountable to us.
We can petition them, question them, interact with them online or in their constituency offices
And every five years, we can exercise our democratic right to vote them back in, or out, of office
Like the citizens they represent, the members are incredibly diverse in terms of their ages backgrounds and experiences
Better idea of how parliament works and gained a greater sense of belonging to this great European project
英語はオーディオガイドから抜粋
昔はオフィスに水を流していたがリークしたため石に変えた
エコーする広間
Parliament is your voice in Europe