Former Finance Ministrer Yanis Varoufakis launched today his much awaited pan-European Movement that aims to become a political party. The Grand opening took place today, Tuesday, in the wolf’s hole, in Berlin, not so far way from the offices of his foe, the German Fiance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble.
The official name of the political Movement is the “Democracy in Europe Movement 2015″ (DiEM25). Main aims of the movement is “to democratize Europe” and “save the European Union from disintegration” through a radically new way of thinking about the economy, finance and capitalism.”
DiEM25 launch in the Volksbuehne Theatre in Berlin.
Surrounded by a panel of co-speakers and movement-members, Varoufakis said that the Movement’s aim is to push for greater democracy and transparency in the European Union, which he described as a “completely democracy-free zone”.
In his well-known style, Varoufakis sharply criticize the failure of the EU and European leaders to deal with the Refugees’ Crisis and the EU’s un-accountability to any institution or institutional organs.
According to France24.com the former finance minister savaged EU leaders for their “spectacular failure” to deal with the continent’s refugee crisis, “with the possible exception of [Germany’s] Angela Merkel”, his erstwhile adversary during the Greek debt crisis.
Varoufakis, who famously accused Greece’s creditors of submitting the country to “fiscal waterboarding”, has said that his experience of Eurozone finance meetings left him with the conclusion that the EU was fundamentally undemocratic.
“There is no sovereignty,” he said during a debate on Monday, ahead DiEM25’s launch. “The body that makes the decisions is not answerable to anyone – no one can fire it. No one can fire the European Union Council.”
Varoufakis said EU and national leaders had proved their incompetence and lack of vision in confronting the financial crisis and ensuing debt crisis, arguing that they “are just making things up as they go along”. As a result, the EU has been a “comedy of errors for seven years now.”
DiEM25 official website is here, the Movement’s manifesto here.
PS I fully agree with Varoufakis’s criticism on EU and thus on many levels. Maybe he turns out to be better as politician than a finance minister.
Varoufakis “they are just making things up as they go along”
Indeed – Jean-Claude Junkerbond, tells The Telegraph 15 July 2014.
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“When it becomes serious, you have to lie.”
“We decide on something, leave it lying around, and wait to see what happens. If no one kicks up a fuss, because most people don’t understand what’t been decided, we continue step by step until there is no turning back.”
“We all know what to do, we just don’t know how to get reelected after we’ve done it.”
WHAT PUZZLES ME IT THIS – when exactly did Mr. Varoufakis discover that “they are just making it up as they go”
Befort they kicked him out or after ?
I think he discovered it while negotiating. If he had realised before, possibly he would not have accepted the post of “minister responsible for dealing with European lunatics, idiots and crooks”.