10 Years of Czech EU Membership: Expectations and Visions ****************************************************************************************** * ****************************************************************************************** Ten years ago, just before midnight on the 1 May, Prague was lit up by fireworks as the ca celebrated the accession of the Czech Republic to the European Union. The first decade of of the EU was marked by Charles University on Monday 5 May, when it invited representative and European politics to a round-table debate. The discussion, which took place at the CU Faculty of Law, was begun by the CU Vice-Rector Affairs, Lenka Rovná. In her opening address she highlighted the involvement of Charles Un Czech Republic’s membership of the European Union. “Like universities in other candidate countries, Charles University engaged fully in Europ and education projects to the same extent as in member countries. We were there from the s to recall some important dates: in 1999 Charles University became the first institution in Eastern Europe to receive the title of Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence in European Studie retained in 2006 and 2013. The Faculty of Law, together with the Faculty of Social Science courses, entitled Europaeum, for education in state administration in European matters, th was to prepare state administration for the full membership of the country. In an internat involving more than 2,200 lifelong learning projects, this course was awarded the bronze m European Commission in 2005,” noted Vice-Rector Rovná, adding that CU staff had also contr communications of the Czech government and the constitutionalisation of Europe, as well as continuing to work) in various advisory bodies at a national, European and international l Guests at the debate were also welcomed by CU Rector, Tomáš Zima. “Before long we will see European parliament, the supreme body of the European Union; all of us will certainly be a European Union can do for us, the citizens of Europe, the university and society. We must answer the question of what we, as members of the European Union, can do for the Union,” a at the beginning of the meeting. In the subsequent discussion panel, the expectations and ideas with which the Czech Republ European Union, and the extent to which they were fulfilled or otherwise, were discussed b the chief negotiator for the entry of the Czech Republic to the EU, Pavel Telička, for Pri the Czech Republic and European Commissioner Vladimír Špidla and, giving the point of view Member State, British Member of Parliament Gisela Stuart. Ten years ago, Vladimír Špidla was the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic, and it was he final agreements for the country’s accession to the Union. He later became the European Co Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities. In his appearance at Charles Universit how sharply the world’s perception of the Czech Republic changed at the moment when it bec it would join the Union. Suddenly, the country’s voice gained much greater weight. “The wh history is the history of the country’s participation in some kind of integration. The afo Charles IV joined us to the states surrounding us, then we were part of the Danube monarch were the Czechoslovak Republic, which was, in its way, also a form of integration, as it i the very least, Slovakia and Subcarpathian Ruthenia, before the country was forcibly conve protectorate. Even then, we were part of a larger whole, which was, however, a brutal one. episode from the end of the war to the year 1948 we again became part of another integrati is only with difficulty that you will find some period when the Czech lands have not been integration process. Our history is marked by integration, and so the kind of integration we find ourselves is more important than having the choice of not being in any at all. Our years ago was therefore for a safe port, that is, to secure ourselves from the point of vi economy, society and culture. This expectation has, in my opinion, been fulfilled,” added

What succeeded were the options now open to our youth, which are incomparable to those open to us.

Pavel Telička
In his appearance on academic ground, Pavel Telička recalled the opportunities that opened university students on the country’s accession to the Union, noting the opportunity for fr citizens within Europe. “What succeeded were the options now open to our youth, our studen incomparable to those open to us. While at first glance this may seem a banal observation, the opportunity to study abroad may not be of vital importance, study abroad – and the opp travel in itself – represents a prerequisite for a clash, a clash of cultures, of systems, which, in itself, enriches. I am talking about the knowledge and experience we can gain ou Republic, in an environment into which we wished to integrate. This is something that we c extent, bring back with us, and I believe that this has promise as an investment in the fu Mr. Pavel Telička. In her speech, British Labour MP and former British Minister for Health, Gisela Stuart, lo to the future. “Prague is at heart of Europe both in terms of politics and of history and she emphasised at the start. In relation to the crisis in Ukraine, she emphasised the impo international communities and partnerships in the world of today, not only for the securit but also for the possibility of free trade and movement of people. She also noted that the could be, in view of current events, more difficult than the ten just passed. In the second part of the discussion panel, the floor was given to the leaders of the cand the Czech political parties for the upcoming elections to the European Parliament. The deb Jan Keller (ČSSD – Czech Social Democrat Party), Kateřina Konečná (KSČM – Communist Party Moravia), Luděk Niedermayer (TOP 09 with the support of Mayors), Klára Samková (Tomio Okam Direct Democracy), Pavel Svoboda, (KDU-ČSL - Christian and Democratic Union - Czechoslovak Pavel Telička (ANO 2011 movement) and Jan Zahradil (ODS – Civic Democratic Party). On the occasion of this event, held at the CU Faculty of Law, Rector Tomáš Zima opened the exhibition, which presented major figures in Czech 20th century history and their views of exhibition was jointly prepared by the CU faculty of Arts and the Collegium Europaeum of t Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences, led by Petr Hlaváček. Press and PR Office Charles University in Prague Date: 6. 5. 2014