(Textul original scris pentru publicul olandez.)
Four years ago, I moved from the Netherlands to Romania. The question of why has as the shortest answer – „family circumstances”. „How I feel about it?” - I usually answer with - as a mind-expanding experience unless it's one of those days when doubt creeps in, and the term "bad trip" suddenly seems more appropriate to describe my new life in Romania. I have come to know Romanian culture as profound, passionate, and full of humor, perhaps a bit oversensitive to condescendence, but also respectful, warm, and open to foreigners like me. However, Romania is governed by a stubborn elite for whom national interest is a vague ideal, and self-interest is more concrete and urgent - this can lead to frustration.
Educated as a cultural anthropologist, I write articles for Romanian media on social topics, such as corruption and unequality. Through writing, I have become involved in the public discourse and see the tide changing - I increasingly hear hostility towards the European Union, described as colonial and as a system of exploitation. Undeniably the progress of Romania after joining the EU has unfolded differently as promised. The European plan to relocate production to cheaper Eastern European countries did not take into account the entrenched elite with their bureaucracy and indifference. The result was a withdrawal of foreign investors, who prefer to produce in a well-regulated country, and since then, only the workers are brought in from Romania. Romanian production has been wiped out by European competition that, in terms of scale and production means, had a huge headstart - Romanian supermarkets are full of fruit and vegetables from the West, potatoes and onions from the Dutch Flevopolder. As if they couldnt grow in Romania! Harvested and dug up in the Netherlands by... Romanian immigrants. It is estimated that 7 million Romanians have left the country, seeking their fortune in Western Europe but rarely finding it - far from family, children, and friends - working in low-skilled jobs – living in an economic exile.
Occasionally, I am in the Netherlands and have the privilege of traveling with my Dacia with Romanian license plates, which is, in a way, a small anthropological experiment to put myself in the position of the Romanian labor migrant. To my surprise, I am approached very differently, few waving hands when I let someone pass in traffic, stern looks where I park. As Dutch people, we take pride in our tolerance and empathy, but I came to consider this as only valid for internal use, it might still work for advertising. From a Romanian perspective, prejudice and self-complacency appear more typically Dutch.
This also precisely characterizes the atmosphere in which Eastern Europe awakens from the European dream - with the feeling of not being considered equals, the feeling that they have been assigned the status of a conquered people – their position as a "tovaras" (comrade) in the Soviet empire was preferable to that of a labour-migrant in Western Europe, uncertainly wandering from country to country, never really welcome anywhere. In this light, melancholy emerges everywhere in Eastern Europe, Ceausescu is now affectionately nicknamed Ceasca, he would never have let this happen to Romania! So, we see the strange phenomenon that the formerly unpopular Hungarian president is suddenly seen as an example by many Romanians; he dares to tell the truth to Europe. Eastern Europe, with Poland and Hungary at the forefront, is starting to resist Western dominance. Not always at government levels - ministers and officials personally benefit from European integration, so things still might seem to run well in Brussels, but among the population, there is broad skepticism.
The European dream initially also revolved around "Values." But which values? The Christian values that are resisting the upcoming LGBTQ+ movement in the eastern countries? Maybe the ideals of Enlightenment and rationalism? Not really something you can bring up on the Balkans! The ancient Greeks then? We all subscribe to them, also enjoying the democracy they invented - but which hardly works anywhere anymore! In America, the left and right are in a stranglehold, in the Netherlands, single-issue parties are popping up like mushrooms, with a corresponding life-cycle. While in the West, the woke/unwoke divide is mainly drawn between urban and rural areas, this divide is also becoming a new division line between Western and Eastern Europe - and we don't see it!
Our shared values don't seem deeply rooted enough to withstand the pressure of conflicting interests. An unproductive frame that has developed is that of a two-speed Europe. Western European as a forerunner, the rest will follow at their own speed. In which debate is it helpful to label your partner as falling behind? Will it help him to catch up? Wouldnt it be wiser not to avoid the question anymore - do we still have the same destination in mind? We will have to be more convincing and open-minded in making our European values really shared values, and it will only work if we can see our partners as equals, with respect for everyone's right to be mistaken.
So - step out of your ivory tower, exchange your ticket to the Mediterranean or the Indian ocean for Cluj or Krakow. I know, we're not all anthropologists, and many countries are interesting - but Eastern Europe is not only incredibly interesting but also much more relevant to get to know than the Seychelles or Madagascar. It's about our shared future; the democratic unity that Europe is will become unmanageable if we're not willing to delve into each other. Rather than expanding Europe further, the urgency is to get to know each other better - this way, the European adventure can still become a mind-expanding experience. But if we persist in our condescendence and indifference, I foresee a "bad trip" that has already slowly begun. Strange, unsettling visions will slowly replace the European dream!
