Mona Eltahawy, The Guardian, 12 August 2011. Fair use.
The European Union touts itself as a model of democracy and press freedom. Such a claim to be a “city on the hill”, the very beacon of reason and decency in a troubled world, is the silver thread of its diplomacy, the pillar of its soft power projection. “The Union's action on the international scene shall be guided by the principles which have inspired its own creation, development and enlargement : democracy, the rule of law, the universality and indivisibility of human rights and fundamental freedoms”, says Article 21 of the Treaty on European Union.
