Dear European friend,
Spring in general and Easter in particular are always seen to bring hope and peace, the promise of new beginnings and the prospect of a better future.
This year, however, feeling hopeful is not easy. Over the past few weeks we have all been witnessing terrible scenes happening in Ukraine, where the war continues to bring countless tragedies and tremendous suffering to the people both in the nation and far beyond. Thousands have lost their lives or have been severely hurt, millions have been displaced and entire cities have been smashed to the ground.
Standing with the rest of Europe, people across Scotland are actively supporting Ukrainians in countless ways, from offering refugees shelter in their homes to organising help on the ground in Ukraine. Last month, the Scottish national football team played Poland in a friendly match to raise funds for Ukrainian children, and quite fittingly the match had no losers (it ended 1:1) and raised £500,000 for Unicef. Other football supporters have recently brought a large group of Ukrainian orphans to safety in Edinburgh, where the children were cheered up by some Scottish dancing lessons. Cultural figures have been organising charity concerts: next week, for instance, many famous acts will perform at the Concert for Ukraine in Perth (co-organised by our friend Matthew Zajac, who addressed you in our last newsletter). Later next week, traditional Ukrainian music will be performed at a fundraising concert in Glasgow Cathedral, which can be watched live on the Cathedral’s website from anywhere in Europe.
The war is reshaping the security, human rights, social and ecological contexts across Europe. We all need to play our part to ensure that military hostilities cease as soon as possible, that Russian forces withdraw from Ukraine and that alleged war crimes are investigated and their perpetrators brought to justice.
Amidst all the sad news, it’s encouraging to reflect on a number of positive recent developments in the EU: the unprecedented unity in Europe’s welcoming stance to Ukrainian refugees, a long overdue reckoning with energy policy, a seemingly greater openness to “tear up the rulebook” and be guided by values and solidarity. If a commitment to speedy Ukrainian membership does occur it will alter the nature and dynamics of the EU. This is important also for Europe for Scotland and our cause, as it makes us hopeful that when we make the case for Scotland with EU politicians it will not fall on deaf ears!
Yet much more needs to be done to bring about lasting peace in Europe, for example a European foreign policy developed around the principle of human security, first established by the Barcelona report following the inspiration of Mary Kaldor, professor of Global Governance at LSE and early signatory of our letter.
In this spirit, friends of our campaign at Another Europe is Possible and European Alternatives have been organising a series of rolling No More War Citizens Assemblies to engage citizens in building an international peace movement picking up on the spirit of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly. They seek to open a space for European civil society to focus public and political attention on protecting human rights and think together about what European and international architecture should be built to ensure peace.
If you’re interested in this initiative or you’d like to discuss with us the implications of the war for Europe as a whole, Scotland in particular, and finally our campaign, please get in touch and send your thoughts to info@europeforscotland.com. We will take your input on board while we assess how to refocus all our efforts and energy to promoting European solidarity with Scotland in this difficult time.
Let’s hope next Easter Europe will be at peace and Scotland on its way to rejoining the EU.
For today, we just want to wish you, your friends and your family a beautiful and joyful Easter holiday!
In European friendship,
Nina Jetter & Andrea Pisauro
Co-Organisers
Europe for Scotland
