“TASTING THE EUROPEAN UNION”

On Thursday 25th of May, before the last session, states of European Union (Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, Ireland and Finland) hosted an informal event which was held in the International Library at the Faculty of Social Sciences.

The main purpose of this informal gathering at the “Tasting the European Union” was to address the topic of the last session – Diversity management. Countries around the world strived to regulate the necessity of recognising cultural differences between different groups of people for many years. This is proven by many documents that states signed to efficiently and appropriately manage differences among people and to provide equal treatment of individuals.

European Union has always been diverse, and it is becoming more so, due to increased migrations. Middle East conflicts and crisis in Africa foster the daily influx of migrants that are fleeing to Europe to start a new better life. Although Europe is not recognized as one of the most heterogeneous continent, strives to implement different programmes and projects to promote cultural diversity. EU is aware of the importance of promoting human rights and equality among people if we want to achieve an open, tolerant and equal society. Equality and non-discrimination are not just empty idealistic beliefs and ideas, but basics principles enshrined in international, European and national laws, which must be continually reaffirmed as a counterforce to xenophobia and racism.

EU as a cradle of democracy and rule of law, founded on equality, solidarity, freedom and universal values of human dignity, places the individual in the core of its activities. As it is said in the Preamble of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the Union: “The Union contributes to the preservation and to the development of theses common values while respecting the diversity of the cultures and traditions of the peoples of Europe as well as the national identities of the Member States”.

Diversity management is becoming more and more important due to the growing internationalism and dynamic changes in the society in general. International community needs to realize that the issues related to diversity are part of our everyday and therefore must be discussed if we want to ensure peace and security in the world. State hosts of the informal meeting – “Tasting the European Union” – are aware how important the last agenda item is for the international community. With this event, members of EU wanted to meet with states from all over the world to share their good practice within the EU and encourage them to thoughtfully and carefully address the topic of diversity.