Dear Green English and Welsh sisters and brothers,
We are extending this letter not to tell you what we think would be best for you to vote in the upcoming referendum. You definitely know what’s best for you.
We are neither writing this letter in order to remind you of the fact that Europe without Britain would definitely be smaller. The European Union without the UK would be more vulnerable, less creative, and definitely more German!
Nor are we writing this letter to create further more fear, instigate more insecurity and uncertainty, although we Greeks have had enough of it and could even perhaps export it…
In the past six to seven years, we Greeks have gone through difficult times. Our GDP (whatever that means to a Party that demands different measures of economic success) has dropped 25% and austerity has been the answer to all ills of the country, while unemployment is sky-rocketing.
Yet, we Greeks, and in particular we Ecologists Greens, have been constant supporters of the European ideals and principals. We are of the opinion that it is principles and values which should steer our lives - not short-lived political goals, political manouvering and perhaps some billions of profit, no matter the currency.
Ιt is a fact that in the type of economy we have chosen to live in, a global economy, the solutions come best if we stay united. Greeks have suffered much from austerity measures, but needed European solidarity. In a better European Union, the help would have also come in a better way. But we still believe that the EU can change through more active participation and engagement from people, whatever is happening at the European level.
The ideal of peace has been the strongest motivation for many countries to become members of the European Union. And peace still remains an ideal to fight for. The recent crises and wars in the Ukraine, in Syria, Iraq, Libya and Turkey help us compare and contrast our successes with the failures which have led to war, hatred and misery. The refugee crisis, as a by-product of these wars, is questioning the very essence of human rights, which were created for the protection of the weaker ones.
The refugee crisis shows bluntly the need of a united Europe, to deal in a fairer way with the situation. We are now seeing what the lack of a united European Union has meant for the protection of human rights and protection of those in most need. We, the Greens, are not afraid to say that we are fighting for global solidarity among nations and people. A European Union of citizens is a current, vital step we can take to reach our goal.
To all those who use the EU as the source of all evil in Britain and elsewhere, we would reiterate that our principle of humanism does not work a la carte. Our ‘civilisation’ is not in danger by people who profess another God but by those fellow countrymen and women who think that fear is a solid ground to develop one’s political clientele.
With the spectre of populism hovering all over Europe, and far-right rhetoric ramping up, we must stand together to fight for the basic roots of the EU, to fight for more democracy.
We need policies that take into account citizens’ needs all across the European Union and not only each state separately. We need tax justice. We need a framework that would protect our working rights. Only through a united union can we fight for a basic income. Only in a united union, can we fight for a better protection of the environment.
We became members of Ecologists Greens because we wanted and still want to ‘change the world’. The vast majority of Greens become Greens for similar reasons. We Greek Greens need you, English and Welsh Greens, to change the world! We need to do it together with the other like-minded brothers and sisters in the European Union and elsewhere.
Unity - our unity based on democracy, solidarity and sustainability - is a precondition for change. The Green change we all dream of! Let us all stay focused on the historical responsibility each of us carries.
Kostas Loukeris
Maria Peteinaki
Michalis Bakas
Greek Ecologist Green Party