Josep Borrell must apologise for 'clumsy' jungle remarks reeking of colonialism

MEP demands statement after UAE summoned EU officials to explain 'racist' comments

Mr Borrell’s comments sparked outrage. Reuters

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell should apologise for controversial comments made last week comparing Europe to a “garden” and the rest of the world to a “jungle” that “could invade the garden,” MEPs told The National.

The language used by Mr Borrell in front of students at the European Diplomatic Academy in the Belgian city of Bruges is problematic because it harks back to an oft-used image in colonial Europe of the white man’s burden to educate and civilise the global South, said German MEP Hannah Neumann.

“I don’t think Mr Borrell meant to be racist or colonial. The problem is that he used strongly colonial racist terminology so he should apologise if it was an honest mistake,” she said.

Mr Borrell said that "the gardeners should take care of the garden, but they will not protect the garden by building walls. A nice small garden surrounded by high walls in order to prevent the jungle coming in is not going to be a solution. Because the jungle has a strong growth capacity, and the wall will never be high enough.”

"The gardeners have to go to the jungle. Europeans have to be much more engaged with the rest of the world. Otherwise, the rest of the world will invade us," said the 75-year old Spanish politician.

Mr Borrell’s comments sparked outrage and prompted the UAE to summon the acting head of the EU delegation to Abu Dhabi.

The UAE said the remarks were racist, inappropriate and discriminatory.

Mr Borrell doubled down on his comments during a press conference on Monday. Asked by a reporter whether he felt misunderstood after being advised to take his retirement and being labelled a neo-con and a racist, he answered that he was “disappointed to hear some of the interpretations that have been bandied about.”

He said that he believed that Europe had “the best combination of political freedom, economic progress, economic wellbeing, and social cohesion”.

His comments in Bruges were "meant as a message of solidarity, speaking to young Europeans, telling them that they have this good fortune,” he said.

'Not a paradise'

For Ms Neumann, who chairs the European Parliament’s delegation for relations with the Arab peninsula, Mr Borrell should “know better”.

“Mr Borrell represents the EU in the world,” added Ms Neumann, “His comments neither represent the EU’s foreign policy nor what Europeans think their role in the world is.”

Some commentators linked Mr Borrell’s statement to EU insecurities and a common perception of being dwarfed by the US-China rivalry.

Witold Jan Waszczykowski, vice chair of the European Parliament’s committee on foreign affairs, said that while the EU was a “successful instrument to integrate Europe, promote economic peace, progress, and keep peace, it is not a paradise.”

“The EU does not have accurate answers to contemporary world problems,” said Mr Waszczykowski, who is from Poland.

“Considering contemporary problems and ideological divisions, I would hesitate to recommend the EU as a model of development and integration for other regions of the world.”

One Arab diplomat in Brussels said that Mr Borrell’s remarks may point at the EU’s “struggle to define its role between the US and China”.

His analysis was echoed by French MEP Christophe Grudler, who described Mr Borrell’s words as "clumsy".

“In the EU, we constantly have to remind ourselves that we represent the first market in the world,” said Mr Grudler.

“Europeans that they must have faith in their own continent, but we mustn’t either become excessively confident and arrogant,” he said.

Mr Borrell may have wanted to reassure aspiring EU diplomats in Bruges that they have an important role to play.

“Europe can play an important mediator role between the Chinese and Americans,” said Mr Grudler. “We can share our values in a fraternal context, not as if we were invested with a mission. We must cultivate our gardens together.”