Event report

The main findings of the workshop are: The Conference on the Future of Europe discourses in Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria have not yet taken off. The traditions of the three countries in question differ with regard to deliberative democracy. While Hungary experienced and exercised a vivid debate in the forerun to the plebiscite on joining the EU in 2003 supported by all political parties, media, civil society, and citizens, active participation in the Conference is(still) lacklustre. The nationalistic, illiberal government seems to follow a strategy of separating citizens, Civil Society, state institutions and to a certain extend media from the EU in general and the Conference in particular. The centralised political system of Hungary (including control over funding for civil society) the government that can rely on a two-third majority in Country Assembly (nat. Parliament), as well a de-facto control over a vast part of media including broadcasting and printed media plays into the hands of this strategy. Civil Society and media have not (yet) taken up the chance to voice their opinion and concerns due to fact that the Conference will have no immediate impact on the live of the citizens (“nothing at stake”), a lack of funding to organise events, a digital gap still existing in the country and of course due to the pandemic restrictions. Nevertheless, some NGOs pushed a discourse on pan-European issues like climate change, environmental issues and biodiversity. Though it remains unlikely that the government will communicate or amplify messages from independent civil society to the Conference. Bulgaria, currently in a political crisis is focussing prior to elections and with a caretaker government on the inner political situation more than on the Conference. Civil Society and Citizens have been preoccupied by the struggle for democracy, rule of law and anti-corruption. The discourse in the conference is slowly taken off in the most recent days. A non-representative poll among NGOs showed that NGOs are dedicated to engaging actively in the Conference later this year (post national elections and forming a new government). In Romania the discourse so far is dominated by the pro-European political elites (parties) and MEPs. This is confronted by rights groups who try to highjack the Conference discourse in the country to push their issues (among others nationalism, xenophobia, homophobia). This might lead to a polarisation of the discourse in Romania that may harm a fruitful debate towards the future of Europe. None of the countries managed so far to integrate larger minorities into the discourse. This will remain a challenge for the three national discourses in the remaining timespan of the conference. Main demand: Member states commissioned to push the discourses on national level must support adequately all stakeholders especially the civil society to be able to contribute and engage actively in the Conference and to organize public (political) events. This includes financial support and capacity building.