newsitems

*Strasbourg/CoE/Angelo Marcopolo/- Opening an important Session of CoE's Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE: 18-20 October 2017), which is due to Debate also a Controversial Move for Catalonia's Quest of Autonomy, the PanEuropean body's President, Gudrun Mosler-Thörnström, from Austria, made things Clear from the Start :

- "Devolution (of powers) is essential", and "Municipal and Regional Self-Govenment, is Indispensable, within the Limits of each State's legally established Territorial Borders", she confirmed, as CLRAE's Top Representative.

+ "But", at the same time, "It's, certainly, Out of Question to see Our Nation-States Implode !", she sharply Warned, as a Top Official of the CoE.

 - In fact, "in a Europe of Values", "there is No room for Selfishness, be it National or Regional", Mosler-Thörnstrom Warned, (while several Mainstream Medias, f.ex. from the USA, etc., have recently Speculated that a main Motivation for Pro-Independence Catalan partis, would be, not so much Culture, History or Education, nor Democratic Liberties as such, but much More an alleged Reluctance to Financially Contribute into National Solidarity Mecanisms Helping Poorer Regions in Spain).

 CoE's Local/Regional Autonomy Watchdog's President was, in fact, reacting in Strasbourg, in tune with EU Commission's President,Jean-Claude Juncker's famous relevant Statement, Earlier in Brussels, that EU would Not Interfere inside Spain's Internal Affairs for a so-called "Mediation" to that Different with its Catalonian Region, simply Because, if a Europe with 28 Member States is, already, quite Difficult to Govern, then, a Europe with ...98 States, certainly, would be Too Hard !

Meanwhile, CLRAE has scheduled just for a Public Debate, Tomorrow Evening, Thursday, 19 October 2017, on "the Situation in Catalonia, in Spain", at its Chamber of Regions.

But withOut any Draft Resolution, as also EU Parliament did, Last Week in Strasbourg, (Comp., f.ex.: ....).

He also speculated that the Leader of the Austrian ChristianDemocrat/EPP party, Sebastien Kurz, former Foreign Minister, Number 1 Winner of the Elections, who is normally due to become the next Prime Minister, might, perhaps, find enough Time to participate at the EPP Summit; Tomorrow in Brussels.

But he might, eventually, leave the Foreign Ministry to someone else, Herwig Van Staa added cautiously.

+Meanwhile, Austria is being notoriously a Key for both EU - Russia and EU - USA relations, concerning the latter, in addition to (Austrian origin famous Actor) Scharzenegger's previous California Governorship, nowadays, New US Ptesident Don Trump's Wife, North America's First Lady, Mellania's Birthplace, Slovenia, has also Historic and Cultural links to the Austrian Tirol Region, where is located, inter alia, an Ancien Christian Shrine, visited by a Slovenian Delegation as soon as the Country had become independent, he reminded.

Van Staa is also General Rapporteur of CoE's CLRAE for the Fight against Corruption, and one of his more Speciic Reports (which compose a Series), on the Specific Area of Public Procuement, is scheduled to be Debated and Voted by the PanEuropean body's Plenary Session during the Next Few Days in Strasbourg.

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*Strasbourg/CoE/Angelo Marcopolo/- Experienced, Long-Time President of CoE's Chamber for Local Authorities, Anders Knape from Sweden, speaking to "Eurofora", stressed that Cities' contribution on the Prevention of Deadly Islamist Terrorism, can be important :

- "Eurofora" had pointed at the concrete examples of European Cities including London, Paris, Berlin and Brussels, etc., where ISIS' Deadly Terrorists had cowardly Targetted mainly innocent Civilian People, and asked President Knape what did he think that Cities could do to help Pevent that.

Knape agreed with those who urge to Avoid Ghettos to be formed inside European Cities, also for that purpose.

In fact, the most important starts with Education, he observed. Inter alia, Mass Migrants' Children should not be all concentrated, f.ex. in 1 School, but rather, shared among many Schools.

But, it's also Work, that is important too, he added. F.ex., when you have Education and Work, you can Move around, instead of staying always in a Ghetto, he pointed out.

However, the fact that at least several among those Deadly ISIS Terrorists came from a 2nd Generation of Migrants shows that Integration had Failed somewhere, he critically noted.

Ths doesn't mean that we should Close Mosques, outlaw Preachers, etc, but, when there are sufficient Facts showing that some spread Deadly Hate Speech in certain Hot Areas, then, action should be taken, he carefuly advised.

Ghettor, however, do not emerge, normally, because of some Cities' Policies, but we must act efficiently in order to face and prevent or change them, mainlu by adequate Integration of the concerned population.

At any case, this is a serious and Difficult Problem, Today, that we must Study, Analyse, and Find adequate ways to tackle, he concluded, in substance.

*Strasbourg/CoE/Angelo Marcopolo/- It's clear that Greece canNot bear alone all the burden of those Mass Asylum Seekers/Irregular Migrants who are brought in Europe through Neighbouring Turkey, and Something must be done, stressed the vice-President of PanEuropean CoE's Local and Regional Authorities' Congress (CLRAE), and Head of the Greek Delegation, as well as vice-Chairman of the ChristianDemocrat/EPP Group there, Michel Angelopoulos, speaking to "Eurofora".

In particular, a controversial EU - Turkey Deal in that matter, (quite Lucrative for Ankara), should be Better Re-Definded, he urged.

F.ex., with the exception of proven, real Refugees, all Others should better Stay where they came from, while their Files could be processed here, in addition to EU's Help to those Camps, he suggested, (in line also of Other such recent Proposals, recently made, f.ex, by CoE's Parliamentary Assembly, the EPP party, French, German, Italian and other EU Leaders f.ex. for Africa, etc.)

Among other concrete examples, f.ex.,- "It's Not Normal that, all this Time, Turkey has Pushed Back only about 128 individuals from Samos island, (among Many Thousands who have arrived there, through the Turkish mainland), "and this, according to what Ankara claims", Denounced Angelopoulos, who is also Mayor at  the frontline Island of Samos.

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