PRESENTATION READING

HAAS, E.B. (1968), THE UNITING OF EUROPE. POLITICAL, SOCIAL,

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC FORCES 1950-1957 (2ND EDITION; STANFORD,
CARLIFORNIA: STANFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS).

CHAPTER 2: THE NATURE OF SUPRANATIONALITY

(PP. 32 - 59)

GABRIEL UDOH
MYLA JOHANNSEN
JEMICHA BIBERA
THE NATURE OF SUPRANATIONALITY
• No precise definition.

• European Coal And Steel Community (ECSC)

• A legal body of pre-federal structure. Henry Mason
• A partial federation
• A union of States, with a federal framework subject to International Law Rules

• A supranational/federal institution. Jean Monnet

INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATION VS. FEDERATION

• Federation;
• Form of government
• Sovereignty/Political Power
• Central/Local Governments
• Independent Units/Centre
I/O vs. Federation
- Members & Subjects
- Scope of tasks
- Methods of Decision Making
- Independence of the Decision Makers
I/O VS FEDERATION (CONTD.)
- Nature of Decisions
• IO – mere recommendations, not binding on member States
- Execution of Decisions
• IO – freewill of States
- Evolution of Scope
- Duration and Terminability
• IO – terminable, whether Charter permits or not.
• Fed. – attempts at withdrawal usually fails.
ECSC AS A FEDERATION
• CRITERIA:
• Membership, Subjectivity, Scope of Tasks
• DECISION MAKING, VOTING RULES, INDEPENDENCE OF DECISION
MAKERS
• INSTITUTIONS UNDER THE ECSC
• The High Authority – initiates actions
• Consultative Committee – advisory body to the H.A.
• Common Assembly – Parliamentary checks on the H.A.
• Court of Justice – arbitral tribunal and constitutional interpreter
• Council of Ministers – representatives of governments
Some of these are dependent on the States (Units) and the other arms.
ECSC AS A FEDERATION (CONTD.)
• WHEN DECISIONS BIND WHO
• The decisions of the Consultative Forum and the Common Assembly are NEVER binding.
• The Court of Justice judgments bind every other arm.
• Decisions of the Council of Ministers; only binds when treaty requires.
• H.A.; “Decisions”, binding. “Recommendations”, not binding (member States). ARTICLE 14

• The supranational institutions of the SCHUMAN plan definitely constitute the pre-cursors of
the future federal European institutions – Larange.
• ECSC is hardly a Federation; it has a TREATY not CONSTITUTION. Not an IO either, the
treaty did not consider withdrawals.
ECSC AS A HYBRID FORM; SHORT OF A FEDERATION

• Hardly federal
• Compelled to act within a particular framework
• No clearly/distinctly defined functions for the organs
• The HA, legislates and administers
• Council of Ministers legislates, controls HA
• Assembly, does not legislate, yet tends to control
• Only the Court is truly independent with capacity to take binding decisions
• It also places checks and balances on the others.
MEANING OF SUPRANATIONALITY
• Division between central and units of power
• The units yield some of their powers to the centre
• HA can not compel member States on some of its opinions and
decisions

• STRUCTURAL Description of Supranationality;

• …the existence of governmental authorities; almost a federation BUT
NOT FULLY A FEDERATION.
 Uni
t1

FEDERAL SYSTEM
Central Government Central
Governm
Independent Units ent
Centralization of Power

Evolutionary Uni Uni

t2 t3
 • Member • Memb
State 1 er
State
Econo Securit 2
INTERNATIONAL my y
ORGANISATIONS
Union of States

Voluntary submission Sports Law

Decisions not binding on
States
• Member • Memb
State 3 er
State
4
 Memb
er
State
1

SUPRANATIONAL Memb
INSTITUTIONS er
Union of States
State
Full submission of powers in SOME areas
2
The Institution is more powerful

Decisions are mostly binding on Members

Memb
Members retain some powers
er
State sovereignty eroded
State
Neither an IO nor a Federation; just somewhere in-between
3
The transition process from IO to Federations
SUPRANATIONIZATION
Membe
r State
A process of integration, as well 1
Membe True
as an midway attempt at r State Member Member Federali
2 State 1 State 2 sm
transforming the doctrine of Membe
r State
3
International Organisations to
full Federations, or even more. Supranationalizat
IO ion
Federalism