Naslov
Constitutionalism, European Constitution and European Identity in the Political Writings of Habermas

Autori
Vrabec, Samir

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Sažeci sa skupova, neobjavljeni rad, znanstveni

Skup
Internationale und interdisziplinäre Tagung Europa? Zur Kulturgeschichte einer Idee / Odjel za germanistiku Sveučilišta u Zadru ; Hegelovo društvo Zadar ; DAAD (Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst) ; Austrijski kulturni forum Zagreb

Mjesto i datum
Zadar, Hrvatska, 01.09.2013. - 05.09.2013

Vrsta sudjelovanja
Predavanje

Vrsta recenzije
Nije recenziran

Ključne riječi
European Constitution; European Identity; Europeanness; Jürgen Habermas; Democratic Deficit; European Public Sphere; Constitutional Patriotism

Sažetak
These are the times of crisis. Consequently, current political and economic crisis in Western hemisphere, place before science of constitutional law challenge of transformation and contrivance of new paradigm of its subject of consideration. Globalization enacted consequences such as international crime, terrorism, global trade and markets, climate change and limitless communication technologies that posited serious challenges for Nation-State's fundamental tasks: protection of common interest through preservation of liberty, peace, security and welfare of its citizens. Clasical concept of national sovereignty and limitless power of states are anachronistic and illusionary. We live in time of 'postnational concept of Constitution'. According to Habermas this "postnational constellation" requires supranational and international structures that should act as complementary instruments to resolve aforementioned challenges that Nation-State alone can't fully meet. Habermas in his political writings plead for European federalism considering that it can ensure the European legacy of the human rights, cosmopolitanism and democracy and thereby initiate a process through which the constitution itself could get legitimacy because for Habermas "constitution expresses the idea of self-legitimated democratic society". As the Convention on the Future of Europe was envisioned to be "European Philadelphia Convention", now eminent article "February 15, or What Binds Europeans Together: A Plea for a Common Foreign Policy, Beginning in the Core of Europe" written by Habermas (and Derrida) that was published simultaneously in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and Libération and coordinated publication of articles on the state of European-American relations by several Europe's leading intellectuals in respected leading newspapers in their countries were in some respect "European Federalist Papers". The Habermas-Derrida Manifesto invoked the notion of 'core Europe' defined by its secular, Enlightenment, and social-democratic traditions - and sought to build a common European identity upon those traditions. Habermas and Derrida had argued that 'European Public' was "born" on February 15, 2003, when millions of people protested on streets of European cities against American foreign policy and military intervention in Iraq. With such construction, Habermas wanted to annul one of the fundamental flaws of the European constitutional project which is particularly emphasized by Dieter Grimm in "No Demos Thesis". For Habermas, European identity is rounded by series of key historical events through the sequence: Italian Renaissance - German Reformation - Enlightenment - French Revolution - English Parliamentarism. We argue that the development of EU according to restraints of Habermas's critical and theoretical methodology needs the consideration of historical rupture and institutional innovation. Habermas try to move in that direction, but the normative aspirations from the Socialstaat configuration can't be carried over to the new configuration presently emerging in Europe. Yet, Habermas like Thomas Paine "in the times that tries 'European soul'" in his speech at Leuven University on April, 26, 2013 stays consistent in his call for Sittlichkeit (and within it Solidarity), and giving his normative and legalistic solutions. In this conference paper author examines Habermas's political philosophy of personal and collective identity and the role of constitution in building of postnational constellation in his recent political essays, speaches and interviews. Constitutional patriotism and proceduralism in his political and legalistic observations seems to be more realistic part of his discourse, while his search for European identity as pre-political viewpoint through model of European political spheres still stays part of idealistic vision.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Pravo, Politologija, Filozofija

POVEZANOST RADA