Toothless European Citizenship / Šimon Uradnik

was that they viewed it only through the lens of the content of this institute — of every individual right that the Treaty enshrined 36 — rather than from the perspective of its form, which in the future may be filled with an innovative essence as, at last, proved the Court of Justice many times in its case-law. Yet, their opinion was not incorrect without further as the nationals of the Member States had already possessed, before the constitution of Union citizenship, most of the rights in, according to E. Olsen, ‘ citizenship acquis ’ 37 which might be defined as an organic and non-systematic set of rights, respectively, duties. 38 Like the first swallow of spring might have seemed Case of Martínez Sala, 39 which occurred at the end of the 1990s. The Court of Justice could begin to perform its fateful role as the engine of European integration with the strategy of gradual extension and widening of fields where principles of Union citizenship, hence, of Community and later Union law, apply as it is apparent in the following text. Albeit citizenship of the Union had initially been defined without attributive limits, the Danish declarations, consequently, the result of the European Council in Birmingham in 1992 — the Birmingham Declaration, which enshrined that ‘citizenship of the Union brings […] citizens additional rights and protection without in any way taking the place of their national citizenship ’, 40 narrowed the interpretation elections to the European Parliament in the Member State in which he resides and the right to protection by the diplomatic or consular authorities. 36 At that time, the right to move and reside freely, the right to vote and to stand as a candidate at municipal elections and in elections to the European Parliament in the Member State in which he resides, the right to protection by the diplomatic or consular authorities, the right to petition the European Parliament, and the right to apply to the Ombudsman. To that effect, see Treaty on European Union [1992] OJ C 191 TITLE II Article 8a-8d. 37 Espen DH Olsen, Transnational Citizenship in the European Union: Past, Present, and Future (Continuum 2012) 100. 38 Which in this day and age still exist in the context of the rights to good administration, of access to documents, to refer to the European Ombudsman, and to petition the European Parliament. In spite of that, these rights are mentioned at sections regarding citizenship of the Union, they are not exclusively devoted only to Union citizens. Wherefore, for others than Union citizens, it is of an organic nature. To that effect, see note 281 below. 39 In Case C-85/96 Martínez Sala [1998] ECLI:EU:C:1998:217, the Court of Justice took a stand that citizens of the Union can rely on their status of Union citizenship in cases of discrimination on the basis of nationality; therefore, the access to social benefits in a Member State must be equal and nondiscriminatory both for Member State’s nationals and for European citizens who reside there. 40 Emphasis added by the author. ‘Birmingham Declaration’ (1992) Annex I.

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