I don´t get it but I admire your ideas

Noam Chomsky, the old contrarian linguist and philosopher whose main ideas are about attacking every dimension of the US foreign policy – Chomsky is a US citizen, by the way -, is an idol of every self-respecting leftist intellectual in some parts of Europe. A few days ago he came to Lisbon to deliver a conference about the role of social sciences in today´s world. The auditorium was packed and some people had to follow the talk from an adjacent amphitheatre. The applause at the end of Chomsky´s long presentation was intense. Then, media people talked to the attendees, to get their impressions about the ideas they just heard. Many just confessed they had not understood Chomsky´s arguments. But they were amazed by the philosopher´s depth, knowledge and courage.

And I thought of that movie where the comedian Roberto Benigni said they were famous just because they were famous. No other reason was needed, no other explanation could be found. In this case, Chomsky for the Portuguese leftists is just great because they don´t understand what he is saying but he is against the establishment. That´s a reason good enough.

The interest for EU matters is growing in China

I just started my weekly commentary on Radio Macao. This is a new page, to be broadcast every Tuesday, on European affairs. Rui Flores, who has worked for the UN as a Political Officer and is a professional journalist, besides being an academic at the University of Macao, is the anchor – a very creative one for that matter – and I am the programme´s resident commentator. My role is to share my views on the week´s key European events.

The programme responds to a growing interest on the EU in China, Macao and Hong Kong.

China is about to celebrate 40 years of cooperation with the EU. Its leaders want it to expand and are ready to negotiate new political and trade agreements with the EU. They are giving a special attention to the new Silk Road project that should better link their country with Central Asia and Europe. Their ambition is as vast as their country and the needs of their very large population: 1,355 billion people. There is still a long way to go before the two parties sign a Free Trade Agreement. But, in the meantime, trade and investment are moving ahead, mainly for the benefit of the Chinese.

The fact of the matter is there are many common interests. Distance is big enough to keep rivalries at bay, but not too far for the ships and trains that bring goods in both directions. Actually, the train link is the future. And, as a future, it is already around the corner, as the first trains have started to move since the end of last year.

Political campaigning calls for simplicity and clarity

In politics it pays to have a clear message and to keep repeating it. It pays further if the message clearly underlines the difference between you and your opponents and makes the point about how important it is to vote for you. David Cameron got it and won. He also understood that the electorate wants it simple and focussed. No need for too many agendas, tonnes of ideas. It confuses the voter and pushes them away. 

Juncker at Leuven University: notes on his style

Jean-Claude Juncker gave a long talk last week about Europe at the old and famous Leuven University near Brussels.

He is a very experienced politician and the presentation just confirmed that. He has indeed been around for many years, he has seen many politicians, big and small. And he knows every detail about a good deal of matters.

But he seems to require some advice about his public speaking style. He addressed the audience in French, without caring about the fact that many in the room could not understand the language and that he had been asked to speak in English. Furthermore, during the question-and-answer time, his replies had a touch of arrogance that is not helpful. In the end, arrogance – even if it is only over-confidence – can actually be damaging.

He also looks older than his age and a bit tired for the job.

Can anyone in his circle help him to look into these matters?

Europe: a call for dialogue

I am certainly very impressed by the Moscow parade and rally on this Victory Day, which is also Europe´s Day. But in the end, this should be a day to call for renewed dialogue and cooperation between Russia and our part of Europe. If we really want to honour all those who lost their lives during the last big war in Europe, we should pledge a new and strong commitment to peace and mutual respect. 

The EU voters are looking for predictability and security

A detailed analysis of David Cameron´s electoral victory teaches us a few political lessons. Paramount among them is the one related to predictability. In the UK and in many other corners of the EU, the citizen is ready to support the leader that is perceived as the best provider of stability and security, including economic security. The Europeans, after so many years of a deep economic crisis and many bits and pieces of bad news coming from other parts of the world not too far from our Continent, are unsettled. They feel their well-being and the many advantages they have acquired during the last decades are under threat. They tend then to be conservative and anxious to elect a leader that is seen as steady, strong and risk averse.

UK elections bring bad news to the EU

The initial exit polls show that David Cameron will continue to lead the UK as Prime Minister. If this is indeed confirmed, it will be challenging news for the EU project. Cameron will have to go ahead with the referendum on Europe, as promised. Such vote will not take place before the end of 2017. That would mean two years of uncertainty and serious British pressure on the EU institutions to try to force them to backpedal on a good number of decisions that have been adopted to promote greater coherence in Europe. These will certainly be two difficult years for those in Brussels and elsewhere who believe that Europe is by far the best option for a brighter future.

Immigration into Europe is a very delicate matter

It would certainly be a serious mistake to simplify the immigration issue in today´s Europe. The illegal crossings of the Mediterranean Sea are a complex matter and do require serious ponderation. Any simplification of it would certainly be very attractive to many minds but it would also be a serious mistake. There are many dimensions that need to be taken into account when defining an approach to such a large movement of people. And the debate is not paying attention to them, I am afraid. 

Germany is the power in the EU machinery

In all institutions it is important to analyse who are the power brokers, the people of real influence, or said differently, the ones that are at the centre of the most critical decisions and decisively influence the formal leaders ‘choices. In the case of the EU in Brussels, out of the five true powerful men –all five are men – three are German nationals. Guess who?

Human rights first

Human rights must remain the foundation of any society. People should be respected and the protection of poor and powerless people should take the primacy in any type of intervention. If we take such an approach as the guiding principle we have a safe political compass. People can then take care of their own lives and try their best to have a decent livelihood.

Everything that tries to circumvent a human-rights first policy is just the wrong way of doing things. At the UN, we have learned the importance of such a way of doing business. But we tend, from time to time, to forget it and be friendly with the wrong side of the problem. Good leadership is about keeping the focus on what we know is important.