newsitems

 

  * Bonn/Angelo Marcopolo/- New EU Commissioner on Energy nominate for 2009-2014, Günther Oettinger, Prime Minister of the federated State of Baden-Württemberg (11 Million inhabitants), speaking to "EuroFora" at Bonn, during the debates of the largest group of MEPs in EU Parliament : ChristianDemocrats of the European People's Party (EPP), gathered here for the Statutory Congress of EPP Heads of State and Government after winning the 2009 EU Elections, stressed that EU should carefully examine all allternative possibilities among various routes and means of Energy Transports :

- "In connection to Near Asia, Caucasus, Azerbaidjan and other Countries, South Stream and Nabucco are some of the biggest issues in my EU Commission's dossier", ( i.e. Energy), "in its entirety", he observed

- But, "we have to see and decide on all the Possibilities", Oettinger carefully added, replying positively with a crystal-clear "Yes" to "EuroFora"s question if he found interesting the Rhine-Danube River corridor No 18, that EU earmarked as a TransEuropean Network (TENS), and could play an important role in Energy Transport from Central Asia (via Russia or Georgia, Ukraine, etc) via EU's recent extension up to the Black Sea, after Bulgaria and Roimania's 2007 accession, and thanks to New Technologies of Liquefied Gas, which allow to transport it in containers.

Timely, he said that shortly after Romanian President Traian Basescu, a strong supporter of EU - Central Asia Energy transport links via the "Cheap, Safe and Ecologic" Sea and River Ship links, and mainly the Strategic Danube - Rhine corridor, has just succeeded a tight but solid win at the National Elections last Sunday.

 

Oettinger spoke to "EuroFora" after a Debate organized by  EPP's MEPs on how to "ensure a Successsful Recovery from the (Global Ecnomic) Crisis : Building Ethical, Responsible and Robust Financial Systems for the Future, and enhancing the Social Market Economy".  

Prime Minister of Latvia, Valdis Dombrovskis, Swedish Finance Minister Anders Borg, and Kurt Lauk, President of the Economic Council of the Governing EPP Party CDU/CSU, as well as ECB's Members, etc. were among the Key Speakers, together with EPP MEPs' vice-Presidents Oskar Karas from Austria and Vito Bonsignore of Italy, who concluded the debates calling, inter alia, also for action on Natural Environment, Energy, Research, New Information Technologies, etc, but also on Social Values in a free market economy.

EPP MEPs were welcomed in Bonn for Study Days on "the the Future of Europe", by Germany's Parliamentary Secretary of State Peter Hintze, and Governing CDU/CSU's Chairman and co-chair at EU Parliament, Werner Lange and Markus Ferber, respectively, after an inaugural speech by the President of the largest Group of MEPs in EU Parliament : ChristianDemocrats/EPP, Joseph Daul of France, steming from nearby Strasbourg's area.

Meanwhile, a "hot" Competition is going on, during various parallel and successive meetings organized in Bonn between "17 Candidates for 10 posts of EPP Party's vice-Presidents", who will be selected by EPP's 2009 Statutory Congress the 2 following days, as the experienced Head of EPP Parliamenary Group's Press and Communication service, Robert Fintzhenry, said to "EuroFora".

Given the current importance of EPP in both EU Parliament and EU Council, after a series of successful European and National Elections in several key EU Member Countries recently, such a Political Competition is normal, particularly when what is at stake is how to shape Europe's Future.

Innovation, with strong Political Will, productive Investment roots, "Green Growth" and Internationalisation, were at the focus in Strasbourg's "European Business Area", already looking on how to shape the after-Crisis new era, during French Prime Minister Francois Fillon's visit to a High-Tech big Industry's landmark, at Alstom's Transport factory, famous for its High-Speed and Eco-Trains spreading from Regional areas up to Russia and other Countries, at nearby Reichshoffen, as well as to the larger Chamber of Craftsmen in EU's History, which celebrated 110 Years of Constant presence in Rural space despite all Global Crisis and still absorbed 1/3 of new SMEs created recently, ready to renovate 50% of its craftsmen by Young people in the next few years.

    France and Europe are now "in the Middle of a New Stage of Transition" between an old and a new Economy, before and after the Global Crisis, Fillon stressed.

    - "At the Heart of Industrial Innovation", the "New Challenge of Environment protection", brings "a large part of our Growth Potential in the "Green Growth". And "the Winners, in this New Deal, will be those who will anticipate, by finding how to transform the Environmental constraints into Opportunities for New Markets and in Competitivity stimulus", he explained.

    Initialy highlighted by French President Nicolas Sarkozy's declarations, earlier this year, on Environment-friendly Innovative Industrial Investments, as f.ex. in modern automatic computerized production systems renovating Historic Forestry Wood Sewmill at nearby Urmatt (See : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/sarkozyforests.html ), this is also  a model strongly supported by OECD's Secretary General, Angel Guria, in statements to "EuroFora" after his annual speech at CoE's Assembly this Autumn in Strasbourg, who announced that the International Economic Organisation has just received a new mandate to systematically work on "Green Growth" during the next 3 to 5 Years.
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    France and all the EU have a very strong Research and Education level, in many areas among the best in the World, but their links to Industry need to be boosted, Fillon observed, agreeing with EU Commission's recent conclusion, (Comp. : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/researchorturkey.html )  

 - That's why we must, "now, give an International Dimension to the Poles of Competitivity, which are at the foundations of our Industrial policy, by aiming to strengthen cooperation between Research, Business  and Industry", the French Prime Minister anounced.

    "F.ex. in the area of Eco-Technologies", where we shall soon create "New Poles of Competitivity", Fillon anounced near Strasbourg, Headquarters of Alsace Region, in which, Senate's vice-President, Philippe Richert, recently proposed to precisely establish an "Eco-Tech" pole, concentrating New Technologies which protect Natural Environment.

    Alstom's Giant Factory, amidst Reichshoffen village's splendid Green Nature, was chosen by Fillon as a concrete example :

    By giving a great importance to Research, developing attractive and efficient Public Transport systems, and innovative ways for Energy efficiency, as well as cooperating in the production of Renewable Energy Sources, "Astom has all the cards to win the game of Green Growth", he observed.

    Fillon said that  shortly after important meetings with Russian Prime Minister Poutine, and while Alstom's CEO, Patrick Kron, recently anounced a "Strategic Partnership" of the leading French mega-company with Russia's biggest Industrialist in Rail, TMH, to modernize production methods and create New Models of Rail Transport, adapted to Russia's railroad business, according to New Technologies developped jointly by Alstom and TMH (Trans-Mash-Holding).

    - "Our structural Partnership with the leading Russian company aims at the long-run : It's doesn't have to be limited from the start by determining only certain concrete projects, because it has ambitious Strategic aims for the Future, as Mr. Kron made it clear", significantly said to "EuroFora" Alstom-Transport's Director of Communication, Christine Rahard.
    
    This might include, sooner of later, also what "EuroFora"'s founder has been supporting at least as early as from the beginning of 2005, at the eve of an exceptional Spain - France - Germany - Russia Quadripatrite Summit at Elysee palace in Paris,  i.e. the idea to create a PanEuropean Fast Railroad Axis linking Madrid to Paris, Berlin and Moscow, all the way through the main body of the European Continent, and progressively extended to other European Capitals as well as to the huge Trans-Siberian, up to Vladivostok, at the Pacific Ocean, facing Japan, China, Canada and the US.  
    
    This obviously fits well the much larger and Geo-Politically ambitious New Plan initially proposed by French President Sarkozy on early 2009 to "create a Common Space between the EU and Russia", as well as other Neighbouring Countries, that was warmly welcomed by the new Russian Ambassador to France, Alexander Orlov, (an experienced former CoE Chairman-in-office during the Russian Presidency in Strasbourg on 2007), in statements to "EuroFora" in Paris on September 2009 (See : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/orlov.html ), and started fast to be effectively realized in successful Top Political meetings between the French and Russian Prime Ministers, Fillon and Poutine, in Moscow and Paris, September and November 2009.

    Moreover, Alstom recently added an important new domain of activities in Europe, by taking over, together with Schneider Company, the Energy Transport and Distribution sector from Areva, becoming the "No 1 leader in the World" in the transport of medium voltage Electricity,  as Fillon underlined.

     - "At present, France (as well as Germany) came out of Recession, after Investing in some 1.000 Projects, with some 27 Billion € injected in the Economy, and already 80% of our targets for 2009-2010", Fillon observed, speaking side by side with the Minister in charge of the Stimulus Plan, Patrick Devedjian.

    - "1 Year after the Global Crisis", facts prove that "those who have chosen to stimulate productive Investment, instead of Consumption", have already started to see the end of the tunnel : F. ex. Recent estimations are that France will end 2009 with less Recession than -2,2%, Spain and the UK at - 4,6 and -4,7%, Germany with -5%, etc, while in 2010 predictions indicate a + 1% Growth, i.e. the double of EuroZone's average : +0,5%.
    
     But, at the same time, while Europe and the World are progressively recovering from the Global Crisis, some other, emerging Economies, as f.ex. China, are marking Double-digit numbers of Growth, showing that resources are moving towards that direction, he warned.   

 - "Facing the Global Competition", France and all EU's Industry "must innovate", and focus a large part of its resources in our Industrial Investments for the Future", Fillon concluded, pointint at a forthcoming visit by French President Sarkozy next week in Strasbourg, at the eve of EU's Heads of State and Government Brussels' Summit.

    Significantly, Fillon's statements in Strasbourg were made between two important meetings he had with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Poutine and EU's President Herman Van Rompuy, in the preparation of French President Sarkozy's venue here, next week, to speak about main Investments' Strategy, at the eve of EU's Summit, which is due to discuss also Europe's plans on how to drive the Economy out of the Global Crisis and how to shape the after-Crisis' era.  

    Adding even an Artistic Symbol, Fillon inaugurated at Strasbourg's European Business Area, an original Sculpture focusing on "Innovation", based on "Anamorphosis" (re-shape) technique : It presents a differend image according to the point of view, and/or of the spectators' movements, as the sculptor said.

    Joining Big Industry and High-Tech with Craftmanship, Fillon also visited the biggest Chamber of Craftsmen in France, that of Alsace Region, ("Chambre des Metiers d'Alsace"), which represents some 17% of jobs, 1 out of 3 new business created, based on quality of service, but without out-sourcing, anchored mainly at Rural areas where it celebrated ist 110th Anniversary.   

    - "Thanks to the Digital Economy and modern Telecommunications", it's not only Big Industry, but also Craftsmen who can cultivate a conquering spirit at foreign markets, observed the French Prime Minister, (a strong supporter of Internet and President Sarkozy's promise to find ways to progressively spread Access to High Speed Networks accross the country, as he recently showed in a Paris' Conference on the "New Digital Economy" : See : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/digitalsociety.html )    

Even when Internet was initially used only by a few pioneers in Europe and elsewhere, "EuroFora" remembers well that the daughter of American Journalist Bob Sablatura, a Texas News Reporter, founder of the "Reporters.Net" e-mail Worldwide network, (where you needed to prove, by several published Articles, Newspaper's coordinates, etc., your Journalist status, in addition to paying a fee before getting a precious "reporters.net" pioneer e-mail address...), had created an innovative then Flower trade with fresh Roses offered and delivered on demand, through regional network links : Beautiful Flowers could be shown, chosen and delivered on the spot, thanks to an efficient Website and e-mail system, which has became a "routine" now, many years later, but was an innovative breakthrough back in the Past before 1995, not only for beginners in Journalism, but also for Craftsmen..   

 An area obviously useful for resisting and resorbing the Global Crisis' aftershocks, adding on the spot a Human and social presence of proximity business, as it was shown, inter alia, also with 3 concrete examples of young ladies creating a new Flower trade or Jewelry at Alsace region's villages, in parallel with a young man taking over and renovating a traditional Woodcurve cabinet-maker business existing since the 1800ies and founded by his grand-father, (etc).

    It all gave an opportunity for the French Prime Minister, side by side with the well known in Strasbourg former EuroMP, Herve Novelli, Minister for Trade and Enterprise, to anounce measures to boost in France big SME's, as in Germany, as well as the creation of a new legal status for individual business.

They both stressed in Strasbourg, headquarters of the European Court of Human Rights and of EUROCORPS, that, now, with Lisbon Treaty, new horizons on Human Rights and EU's Security and Defence have become possible and could evolve fast, mainly via the new method of "reinforced cooperations", but effective developments, and their timing, depend on political will....

In addition to EU's new Charter on Fundamental Freedoms, which entered into force today, Lisbon Treaty makes it possible and incites the EU to also become a member of the older and larger panEuropean Convention on Human Rights :

 A "useful" move both in order to ensure a "coherence" on EU Citizens' rights' case-law between the EU Court of Justice at Luxembourg and the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, and because "they don't cover exactly the same areas", Brun observed to "EuroFora".

Significantly, he spoke on the sidelines of a joint EU - CoE Conference on Childrens' Rights, fex. vis a vis Adoptions, trafficking, etc, where participants (EU/CoE Officials, politicians, experts, NGOs, journalists, and even individuals whose life had been seriously affected by various related issues) held "hot" discussions highlighting various problems still in need of the right answers, well beyond an International Hague's Treaty and a specific CoE's Convention, which still left several unanswered questions open

For the Legal, technical matters, "we have been prepared since a long time ago, so that we can move quite fast" for EU's accession to the ECHR, the experienced EU's Head of JHA's services told us.

According to CoE's sources, this might, eventually, include, fex. also a guarantee that EU institution's acts would be monitored by a special EuroCourt's Chamber composed by EuroJudges coming only from EU Member States, and not from other, Third Countries, among PanEuropean CoE's 47 Member States.

- "But the ratification process might take longer than scheduled", Brun warned. Eventual delays might come "not so much from EU Member States, since they have all, already accepted Lisbon Treaty which provides for EU's accession to the ECHR, but from others" : The PanEuropean "CoE (under whose auspices works EuroCourt) has 47 Member States, i.e. 20 Countries more than the EU (fex., since the end of the "Cold War" and Germany's and Europe's ReUnification : Russia, Ukraine, and other former "Eastern European" Countries, but also Turkey, etc., since the particular era when the "Cold War" had started in the Past : 1950).

So, "we don't know, in advance, whether there might be any objection or delay from anyone among these 20 more Third Countries, which are now members of the CoE, but not of the EU", he observed.

That's one of the reasons for which "the ratification (of EU's entry into the ECHR, which will open the possibility for EU Citizens to challenge EU Institutions' acts if they affect their Human Rights) might take as long as about 3 or 5 Years more", the EU Top Official carefully estimated.

 - "In fact, it all depends on Political factors", Alain Brun concluded, pointing at the incoming EU Commissioner on Justice and Home affairs, Mrs Viviane Reding from Luxembourg, who has been appointed in order to succeed to Jacques Barrot from France in the framework of the New EU Commission from January 2010.
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    But developments might be faster on another, partly complementary, issue of particular importance to Strasbourg-headquartered European bodies : EU Defence and Security capabilities, mainly with EUROCORPS, the multi-modal and multi-national European Army's "Etat Major" :

    - After Strasbourg Treaty entered into force, at the beginning of 2009, ratified by all 5 "Framework Nations" (France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain), to which are added other 5 "Sending" Nations represented by Liaison Officers, while EU Parliament was voting a landmark Resolution calling for the creation of a European Defence and Security policy based on the use of EUROCORPS' tool,  it has a Legal frame and Democratic support for further developments of a European Defence, observed his New Chief :

    - "What is needed now is that somewhere among the framework nations, emerges a "Driving Force" to boost the European Defence and Security policy", stressed from the outset EUROCORPS' new Commander for 2009-2010, Lieutenant General Hans-Lothar Domroese from Germany, speaking to "EuroFora".

 

Perhaps significantly of EUROCORPS' Enlargement possibilities, his new Commander took over his duties by succeeding to a Spanish General, just before Spain chairs the EU in the 1st semester of 2010, and was present at a CoE event on the "double Anniversary of Romania's National Day and of EU Lisbon Treaty, on December 1st 2009", as CoE's Deputy Secretary General, Mrs Maud de Boer-Bucquichio observed

    Domroese, speaking the day Lisbon Treaty entered into force, akcnowledged that the possibility it provides for "Reinforced Cooperations" speaheaded by initiatives undertaken by some pioneer EU Member States and open to all other willing EU Member Countries is an adequate and efficient tool in that direction.

    - "But, in fact, it all depends on Political WIll", EUROCORPS' new Commander warned.

    Domroese, who has already served even at Afghanistan for a few months at the beginning of 2009, aqreed however with "EuroFora" that, at least at the start, EU's Defence capabilities' development can become soon Popular among EU Citizens, fex. by protecting EU's external borders, intervening in Peace-keeping operations in preference around Europe's Neighbouring Countries, (fex. in Cyprus, if a Peace deal for its ReUnification is made with a European/International Guarantee), helping to face "Natural Desasters", etc

    The new EUROCORPS' Commander, who took over his duties on September 2009 for 2 crucial years, speaking at the CoE to "EuroFora" appeared optimistic but also careful to further enhance both EUROCORPS' capabilities and political support in 2010.

    ESDP was the only one among France's 2008 EU Presidency's priorities who did not had enough time to be fulfilled then, particularly after it had to struggle (successfully) both against the unforeseen Global Economic Crisis and to stop an unprecedented Russia - Georgia War.

    Significantly, EU Parliament has recently decided to create, for the 1st time, a specific "Security and Defence Committee", which had been initially entrusted to the experienced German f. MEP Carl Von Wogau, from nearby Fribourg, (the "father" of EU's Monetary Union among MEPs, since he had worked for 10 Years as former President of EU Parliament's Economic Committee for the creation of EuroZone, before starting to help build EU's Defence).  After June 2009 EU Elections, EU Parliament elected as new President of its Security and Defence Committee the mainstream new MEP Arnould Danjean, from the Governing French Party UMP, a specialist of ESDP and GeoPolitical issues with personal experience even on the spot (Balkans, etc), who is well known among French President Nicolas Sarkozy's close councilors, as well informed sources from the Presidential Elysee palace said to "EuroFora".

What's a "hotter" issue at stake, than Social clashes, Conflicts for Energy sources, Torturers/Murderers' Impunity covered up by a State, even International Wars, etc. ?  - "Human Children", is the astonishingly unexpected reply emerging from recent European events in Strasbourg !..

An EU-CoE sponsored Conference in Strasbourg on Childrens' Human Rights and Adoption proved, above all, that a Child can be the "hottest" issue of all, both in Individual, Family, Social and Political life :

In more than 15 Years of Press work for European and PanEuropean News, never before had "EuroFora" seen a CoE's Secretary General denounce aggressions against her person ; Experts lose their temper and yell one against the other ; Participants in a Colloquy applauding passionately in favor of one or another side among opposite views in a Public Debate ; interested People pile up in endless but patient queues to enter the CoE and massively stay to follow events for 2 whole Days up to the end of a Conference, (contrary to the usual phenomenon of "Desertification" after a mid-term reception) ; cold-blooded Officials or Diplomats betray their feelings by saying that they "don't want even to see them, because of what they've done to" X or Z, in an exceptionally emotive reaction against this or that side among those involved in Children adoption issues ; a CoE technician risk his physical integrity to repair alone an inaccessible ventilation machine that someone had blocked depriving people from Oxygen to breath until they almost faint in a confined room with blocked windows (as it sometimes occurs when someone attempts to undermine an event) ; and, finally, a Journalist specialized in Foreign Policy issues be more interested in debates about ..adoption, than to follow what was going on, at the other side of CoE's central Palace building, in its top Political body, the Committee of Ministers !...

Not even the Russia - Georgia 2008 War, nor the Greco-Turkish tensions or Cyprus' issue, the Balkan dramas of the 1990ies, or big Economic, Oil-Gaz conflicts of interests, attempts of a recalcitrant State to hide grave Crimes including persisting Torture, Murders, Enforced Disappearances, illegal destructions/usurpations of Family Homes, etc, and other normally "hot" Political and/or Human Rights core issues, hadn't ever attracted such an obvious attention, with so much interest and so passionately..

Is it because the symbolic image of a Child can speak both for our own private life, our family and friends, and for a whole Society, a Social group or class, a People, a Nation, a Country, an Historic period, as also of the whole World (as, fex. in the famous image of a Human Embryo in Arthur Clark/Stanley Kubrick's "2001, Space Odyssey," Science-Fiction film), perhaps of all Humankind ?

This augmented the echoe of a British Expert's strange wording, Robert Wintemute, who holds a chair at London's Kings Kollege, complaining about what he called : - "a limited Supply (sic !) of Children" worldwide...

But his loud plaidoyerie for Homosexual couples (Gays or Lesbians) to be allowed to "adopt Children" from anywhere in the world, without any specific condition or limit, under pretext that, otherwise, they would face "unacceptabe Discrimination" (the homosexuals, not the children),

provoked a strong emotional reaction by a Young Girl of Asian origin, Dutch Citizen, who had herself been adopted and had a personal experience (apparently Ms Eun-Shil Boots and/or Rani Wielda from Amsterdam, ONG "Terre des Hommes")  :

- "What about the interests of the Child ?", she asked. We are concerned by the fact that adopted Children often HAVE Parents. And how can a Baby "consent" to be given to any among 50 homosexual couples who are searching to get 1 available child ?
We should better think what is the best interest of a Child. It's an hypocrisy to skip that by simply claiming that, otherwise, homosexuals would be "discriminated", she criticized. - "Why place a poor Child in such a double difficulty, when adoption itself is often a drama, to have to face also another heavy problem, risking to handicap his/her life before even it has a chance to start ?", she questioned, (warmly applauded by a large part of the participants).

In fact, what wasn't explicitly said this time, but has already been denouced by other researchers and International Human Rights' NGOs, is that if adoptions of Children by Homosexual couples are allowed, this inevitably risks to provoke, worldwide, a Massive "demand" of Children, since this category of the population is the only one to be entirely unable to give birth to its own babies, and, given the "Limited Supply (sic !) of Children", as that British Expert characteristically said (See supra). Then, this growing contradiction worldwide, would inevitably provoke a Pressure to start massively abusing of thousands of "Spare" Embryos, recently stocked via "Fertility Treatments" in controversial circumstances, and/or to start massively "creating" and giving birth to thousands of Human Embyos by paid "subrogate Mothers" (a practice generally criticized for Health and/or Social abuse risks), or even by exclusively "Artificial" means : In all these cases, by exploiting Homosexuals' demands, this obviously threatens to lead towards a non-democratically controlled Technocratic apparatus taking power over a Massive Artificial reproduction of Human Life, with evident risks for all Humankind...

As the EU Commission's acting Director on Justice, Freedom and Security, Alain Brun, said to "EuroFora", currently, "the EU hasn't any foreseable project to act specifically on Adoptions as such, since they are not included in the "Stockholm Program" prepared by the Swedish EU Presidency, but this is a Cross-roads where meet many other, various issues on which we are working, as fex. the fight against Human Trafficking".

This leaves the area with only Hague's International Treaty on adoptions, mainly a tool for cooperation between Countries of Origin and Host Countries, and CoE's Convention on Childrens' Rights, which has only been signed by the UK and several other Countries, including this week by the Netherlands and Spain, but not yet ratified. Inevitably, loopholes are looming on various concrete issues, often addressed just through ECHR's case-law.

It became obvious also at another interesting Testimony of an Austrian Citizen, Fritz Froehlich, now aged more than 30, who discovered, many years after the events, that he was an adopted child with living Parents, brothers and sisters, from a Family of ex-Yugoslavian origin, whose Identity had been hidden to him. - "I struggled for years, traveling all over Europe and even in Canada, to try to find my real origins, initial identity, who was my father, my mother and all my original family, and I succeeded, finally, to learn at least a part of the truth, but too late : My original father, who had died meanwhile, had worked as a lawyer and a judge, before being obliged to flee, apparently by politically motivated harassment. My family had been obliged to emigrate, and faced hard moments. Finally I found one of my brothers living in Canada, and we re-started to have some personal relations. But all this was a very tiring, time consuming and an expensive query that I had to do alone, he described.

- According to the European Court of Human Rights' case-law, "every Child has a Right to know the Truth about his/her real parents" on such issues, stressed EuroJudge Dragolub Popovic from Serbia. Inter alia, he cited also the case of "a Child abandoned by his Mother", in the Finikaridou affair "from Cyprus".

Speaking afterwards to "EuroFora", EuroJudge Popovic acknowledged that this is an additional reason for which f.ex. the Turkish Government has to seriously investigate the famous case of Greek Cypriot "Missing" Child Christakis Georgiou, that some believe he might be still alive after being eventually adopted by a childless Turk, following his transfert to mainland Turkey reportedly in order to be treated for a wound inflicted during the 1974 Turkish Millitary Invasion of Cyprus, when he was aged only 4,

Christakis' Mother recently received even Phone calls from Turkey by youngsters claiming that they thought that they might be her "Missing" Child. By an astonishing coincidence, If Christakis had survived his wounds and was still allive, he would have today the same age as the ..Austrian Citizen who discovered, many Decades later, that he was, in fact, an adopted kid from ex-Yugoslavia, and that the truth about his Identity and original Family had been hidden to him for half of his life..

Speaking from the "other side", a Married Couple who had adopted a small girl from Romania proudly showed her Photo, saying that they were "grateful for having been given an opportunity to create a Family with a wonderful Child", as they said, applauded by a part of the audience.

But reports about Thousands of Poor, abandoned and/or familyless Children living in collective groups, among difficult material and affective conditions, at various Public and/or Caritative Institutions, in Romania and other Countries in Europe and elsewhere, originating particularly among Poor People, provoked mixed reactions :

- "It's too easy to try to evacuate such problems by allowing to separate these children from their poor families and to give them to be adopted by rich people in foreign countries", protested a young lady, herself a former adoptee. - "Instead of separating them, why not help these Families to have the elementary material means to raise their own Children ?", questioned critically a young lady, applauded. 

  

                                                                                                                                                         The issue is far from being theoretical or limited to Romania only : On the contrary, a Decision voted by CoE's Committee of Ministers, this same week in Strasbourg, while supervising how ECHR's judgeements are applied, brought to the surface a series of judgements which have already condemned repeatedly  the Czech Authorities for practicing a controversial "Placement" of "Children in Public care, motivated only by material and Economic grounds", i.e. obliging Poor Families to be separated from their Children, only because they are poor !..

 - "This Problem seems to be of Systematic character in the Czech Republic", stressed CoE, officially "inviting the Czech Authorities .. to avoid placing Children in Public Institutions on Economic grounds".            

Indeed, the fact that the concerned ECHR's judgements concerned 2 cases involving numerous applicants (the "Wallova and Walla", and the "Havelka and Others" cases, on applications submitted in 2004 and 2006, resulting to ECHR judgements published in 2007), clearly indicates that the problem rather concerns many people.                                                                                     

That's why CoE "took note with interest of the information submitted  recently by the Czech Authorities concerning .. in particular ...the .. July 2009 National Action Plan for Transformation of the Care System for Children at risk", while also asking for a full and concrete implementation of ECHR's judgements before "September 2010".

CoE's Director of Human Rights and Legal Standards, the experienced Jan Kleijssen, concluding this original Conference, by endorsing its quasi-unanimous call for more protection to Childrens' Rights, quite rightly explained that they had tried, together with the EU, to organise a "Multi-level, multi-faceted, Pluralist structure, going from Officials and Experts, of various relevant International or National Organisations, until NGOs, Journalists and People who had interesting Personal Experiences on the issues.

Thus, fex., witnesses related to "EuroFora", how a loving Family, who really cares for its Children, to the point to make even hard sacrifices for their welfare, can often succeed to make them feel happy and flourish, even in the hardest material circumstances, even deprived of elementary facilities, condemned to extreme poverty by various events :

F.ex., a Young, Middle-class Married Couple's Socio-Professional Life suddenly faced a Brutal Shock, when a caring Father was unexpectedly killed, in suspicious circumstances in the middle of a Conflict, only weeks before they had their own Baby born, while all their personal private Properties and Economies were illegally blocked at the country where their dead parents lived, by sly abusers who explolited the tragedy. At the same time, others harassed the victims : F.ex. (according to their sayings and some proof), after a Criminal attempt by a thug to stage an "Accident" against the Mother at the 9th Month of her pregnacy, (by pushing an "Alarm" to suddenly stop a huge mecanically moving staircase, when the victim was standing alone 15 meters over the ground, brutally pushed to fall and be killed or wounded with the Baby), a strange Hate apparently went as far as to provoke even an abnormal but dangerous Infection, via an unscrupulous agent, to both the Mother and her Baby at Birth, which left the poor Woman bleeding for Months, and the Child threatened by atrocious Health risks until it becomes 10 or 12 years old. Excluding to abandon his Wife or Child, but without anyone to help, the young Father was obliged to stop brillant University Research, just a few Months before final achievement, and urgently start to do any Job, even Humiliating, Dirty, exceptionaly Hard or Risky, without any relation to his University studies and capacities, which destinated him to become soon a Professor or a Senior Judge. (Fex. Serve to Restaurants, Wash dirty dishes, treat hasardous Waste in a far away Factory from 5 o'clock in the morning, type silly copies for others among humiliations for years, etc). Facing frequent harassment by thugs whose impunity had made them shameless, the suddenly and brutally impoverished young Family, among various incidents, had to leave their Home and seek refuge to a far away, impoverished suburb, where their child was initially targetted by Discrimination at School, regardless of his capacities, and even their only means of transport : 2 old bicycles, were destroyed by sly vandalism.

Thus, during a suffocating Summer heatwave, they had nothing else to offer to their small Child, (while others were spending Sea or Mountain Hollidays, or swimming to Lakes and Pools, etc), than .. to desperately try to walk a long way on foot, exhausted, facing the Heatwave, Noise and Pollution by passing Cars, until they crossed long, Dusty fields desertified by Drought, and managed to find, at last, a few square meters of Shade under 2 or 3 Trees, in the middle of a huge no-mans-land..

But, there, right in the middle of nowhere, a "Miracle" happened : The young Father saw a beautiful giant Butterfly, approach the poor Family, and, at his astonishement, she "accepted" to get gold of her, with silent but swift moves. His first thought was to ask the Mother to bring their Child closer, carefully, without making any noise or move which might frighten the Butterfly. He softlly passed the Butterfly's wings accross the tiny fingers of their small Child, who looked amazed, with a Divine Smile, the beautiful Butterfly surprisingly staying quiet at his soft baby-hands. Then, the poor Child, lifted his head and returned to his loving Father and Mother what they felt as the Brightest Smiling Eyes on Earth : Fragile but beautiful as the Butterfly, for unforgettable moments, before it flies away with the Wind.

 

A few weeks later, their child, feeling happy and proud with this authentic memory, had a 1st big success at School...

All these facts, events or memories, curiously triggered by this unusual EU-CoE's Conference, clearly tend to prove that Arthur Clark and Stanley Kubrick were probably right, when, in their famous "2001 Space Odyssey" Historic film, they concluded with a superbe image of the Earth facing a "Star - Child", a Human Embryo surrounded by a glooming aura, progressively growing bigger and as luminous as the Sun, until it becomes the Univers' Centerpiece : As also another Visionary Artist, Andrei Tarkovsky guessed, together with Stanislav Lem, in their unforgettable "Solaris" film, after all, the biggest stake in the World isn't Humankind, better pictured in the Symbol of a Child's eyes ?