Buzek speecht op Internationale Dag van de Democratie (en)

Marking today the International Day of Democracy, the President of the European Parliament, Jerzy Buzek i, stated:

"Democratic values have universal appeal: people around the world want to choose their parliamentarians, keep them accountable, and have a say in the decisions that affect their daily lives. They want to choose how to live and not be told what is best for them.

There is a renewed democratic momentum worldwide; not only in the Middle East and North Africa. This lends a new sense of urgency to the cause of democracy support. While we cannot impose democracy from the outside, we must do everything to support the legitimate aspirations of those that seek it.

Parliaments represent the direct expression of the democratic will and have a central role to play in institution building and democracy support. The European Parliament in particular has been on the frontline of parliamentary diplomacy and election observations, whilst at the same time also giving recognition to the demands of democratic movements in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya and elsewhere.

Events have showed that we have to invest politically and economically also in pre-transition situations offering help to reformist movements. In the long run, democracy, stability and prosperity all help rooting democratic values, the respect for human rights and rule of law among the people.

Democracy support is all about practical implementation. I note with interest the proposal of the Polish Presidency to establish a European Endowment for Democracy. It would enable the EU to react to democracy challenges in a more swift and flexible manner, but this new tool must be employed in a manner complementary to existing European instruments such as the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR)."

Note to editors:

The European Parliament contributes to the drafting, implementation and evaluation of EU policies in the field of human rights and democracy through its resolutions, reports, missions to third countries, human rights events, inter-parliamentary delegations and joint parliamentary committees with third countries, hearings on related issues, election observation missions and by its annual awarding of the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. Via its office for the Promotion of Parliamentary Democracy, it offers concrete support and peer expertise to partner parliaments in newly emerged democracies.