On December 10, the Maastricht Consulates Prize on EU Law 2024 was awarded at Maastricht University. The prize of € 1,000 is granted for the best master thesis in the filed of EU law written at the Faculty of Law during the academic year 2023/2024.
The Corps Consulaire à Maestricht (the Consul Association of Limburg) has been operating since 2012, bringing together the honorary consuls appointed in the Province of Limburg, The Netherlands. This association aims, among other things, to promote knowledge about the EU among the general public. Studio Europa Maastricht spoke with honorary consul of Luxembourg Fernand Jadoul and honorary consul of Austria Marie-Claire Nijssen about their roles and the current challenges facing Europe.
Euregions as drivers for European cooperation
For Fernand Jadoul the role of an honorary consul is not just a ceremonial task but a practical way to share the European values that he strongly believes in: “I am a consul of Luxembourg and have the Dutch and Belgian nationality so I am “Beneluxois” par excellence. That is perhaps why I am so enthusiastic about the Euregio, the Benelux and of course also about Europe, because I was also able to work in Brussels for nearly 15 years,” he shared.
Jadoul sees Euregions like Limburg as a great example how cross-border cooperation can bring Europeans together regardless of their cultural and other differences: “Consuls primarily work for one country, but that country always has international relations of course, and that means that you must have an interest in international affairs in any case. All border areas and Euregions in Europe together account for more than 30% of the European population. And in border areas people live and work close to each other and understand each other other’s history, culture and customs much better. That’s why I am deeply convinced that the Benelux, and also the Euregions, could serve as a driver and example for European cooperation,” he emphasized.
“I believe it is necessary that the public’s knowledge of Europe increases.”
The consul also pointed out the role of educational institutions in spreading the knowledge about Europe: “Monnet and Shuman, the founding fathers of the EU said: “Nous ne coalisons pas des États, nous unissons des hommes”, meaning “We should not unite states but European people.” Therefore, I regret that past year, in the debates during our Dutch Parliamentary elections, neither Europe or the EU were subject for a good conversation. As a chairman of the Consul Association I feel that Europe is declining in importance in many ways and on a global scale. I believe it is necessary that the public’s knowledge of Europe increases. This can surely be done through the media, but also and especially through education. And Maastricht University is the international university par excellence. As honorary consuls we are convinced of its great importance. This is also the reason why we took the initiative for this award,» he said.
Unity against political chaos
The topic of European unity is also close to the heart of honorary consul of Austria Marie-Claire Nijssen: “The biggest challenge for Europe, in my opinion, is staying united. As an honorary consul, you naturally have a limited role in that, but you can see how fragile it sometimes is. Look at Germany, where the government has fallen. In France, there’s political chaos. In Belgium, the government formation is still unresolved. Even in the Netherlands, there are major uncertainties. This fuels the efforts of those who want to weaken Europe. They try to pit countries against each other, making it all the more crucial to safeguard unity,” she noted.
A full-time lawyer in Heerlen, Nijssen believes the Maastricht Consulates Prize on EU Law is also a significant contribution to promoting knowledge about the EU:
“The idea behind it is to bring Europe to the forefront for students, highlighting the importance of European cooperation and cultural ties. To put the role of this award ceremony into perspective: I think it’s incredibly important to realize early in life—as a person, but especially as a student, and particularly as a law student—that the world doesn’t end at the borders of the Netherlands. Crossing borders, both literally and figuratively, is essential for developing a broader perspective,” she concluded.
