Opinion | Erupting Europe: Conflicts Of Ideology, Education, Economic And Energy Flaws

Lt Gen Devendra Pandey

National power rests not only on wealth, infrastructure or military capability, but also on social cohesion, economic vitality and public confidence

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Europe’s street unrest is not a sudden breakdown of order. It is a warning that unresolved contradictions in education, migration, economic policy, energy security and political ideology are converging.

The eruption was decades in the making.

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Europe’s recurring street protests reflect more than immediate grievances over wages, education or public services. They raise a deeper question: how has a continent with advanced infrastructure, universities and welfare systems reached a point where many young people doubt their future?

The pressures differ. France grapples with inequality and secularism; Germany with industrial, energy and integration challenges; Sweden with residential segregation and parallel social structures; and the United Kingdom with immigration, identity and religious practices within civil law. These are not identical crises, but different expressions of vulnerabilities accumulated through political choices, economic restructuring and postponed correction.

Education Without A Credible Promise Of Opportunity

Education should provide knowledge, practical skills, critical judgement and the ability to earn a livelihood, but in Europe, qualifications have failed to lead to productive employment and thus the frustration. The focus of education has been on teaching arts or humanities and not on technology, vocational competence and adapting to a changing economy. Teacher shortages and mismatches between qualifications and jobs add to the problem.

Schools should encourage debate while teaching the consequences of political choices and the responsibilities accompanying rights. However, the education has become a basis of ideological conformity rather than inquiry. Young people can be misdirected, particularly when teachers present contested opinions as unquestionable truths. As ideological moorings are being established at a very young age when the brain has not evolved to discriminate, the orientation, confusion and polarisation is bound to happen. Classrooms in schools have become a debate about gender choice, rights of all types, Gaza and Palestine, a playground of religious and ideological assertions, the conflicts are bound to happen.

Young Europeans are ambitious and digitally connected. They inherited promises of prosperity, inclusion and freedom, yet now face insecure work, unaffordable housing and limited mobility and thus legitimate dissatisfaction has also added fuel to fire.

Ideology, Identity And Rights

European politics has rightly emphasised inclusion, equality and........

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