CFE/EcoSoc+Digit.Panel/Day-3: Citizens tell EF they can Debate+Change Agenda. Moves Start

*Strasbourg/EUParliament/Angelo Marcopolo/- The 3rd and Concluding Day, of the 1st CoFoE Panel of Citizens, on Eco-Social and Digital Issues, this Sunday, left an UnExpected Feeling of...Resurrection !

Indeed, after some "Introductions" by "Moderators", the Participating Citizens had a "Discussion" Behind Closed Doors, among themselves, (only with "Facilitators"), about Whether they "Agreed", or had any "FeedBack", perhaps Wished "Changes", etc., Followed by a 30 Minutes Long "Break", where they were practicaly Free to have various Topical Dialogues with "Eurofora" and Other Independent Actors (f.ex. See Infra), Before Returning to the Arena (i.e. the "Plenary"), for a Final Stage, ...Marked by a Surprizing ...Revolt-like Spirit !

During that Special "Break", "Eurofora" had a First Real Chance to Freely Speak with several Participating Citizens or Independent Experts, from Various Key Countries, of Both Sexes, Different Ages, etc, contacted at Random. Those Dialogues were Brief, but more Substantial than expected.

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- A First Surprizing input was from a Young Lady, who Insisted that, at last, Now, Participating Citizens had quite "Enough" Time to Really Speak, Think and Debate between them, on almost All "Hot" Issues they Liked... This Last-Minute Optimism was apparently Supported also by anOther Young Girl and a Young Boy, who were previously Discussing with her...

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- A Youngster from Italy, appeared much More Serious and profound than expected at First Sight : Paolo Mauro, (No Relation to a former Long-Time Top ChristianDemocrat MEP from Italy), told "Eurofora" that, Instead of a Notoriously Bigger Number of Youngsters Under 24 y.o., (since those aged between 17-24 represented Even Small Kids or Babies (sic !), with the Result to Number almost 1/3 of the Total, (as Verhofstad had already Observed in his Press Briefing, Earlier on Wednesday in Strasbourg), he'd rather Prefer to have "Either a clear Event for Youngsters Only, (f.ex. as "EYE", etc), or Events Organized with All the People", represented Equally ! (By the way, Paolo said that he Dreamed to Study the Natural Science of Physics, but in a way Associated with Philosophy : almost Like the Ancient Greek "Atomic" Philosophers, from Ionia).

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- A serious-looking, well-dressed, Middle-Age Man from Finland, (sitting Alone, as Most Middle-Aged People at this Event, since they are a Minority : See Above), told "Eurofora" that the Main thing for him was to Boost EU's role in Modern "Digital" Technologies, and particularly SmartPhones, Instead of letting various Other Countries in the World (as USA, China, Corea, Japan, Taiwan, sometimes the UK, etc) Dominate that Key Sector of Global Economy and Social Networks, even more... He appeared Glad to be reminded of the Fact that "Nokia", (when it was an Independent Finnish Company, and Not Yet a Secondary Branch of USA's "Microsoft"), had Created the 1st SmartPhones in the World, including even a Unique, Landmark Version of a ...HIgh-Tech "Spacecraft"-looking Device, that my Wife had bought me as a precious Gift, a (Too) Long Time ago...

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- Last, but not least at all, Belgian-Italian University Professor Louis Godart, an Aged but Sportif Man, who had Spoken Yesterday (on Saturday) as an Expert, but was Today (Sunday) Discussing with several Citizens-Participants to the CoFoE with sincere Passion, Agreed with "Eurofora" that a Real, Fully-fledged Education and Culture on properly "European History", Values and Ideas was certainly Needed Nowadays, and Stressed that, in his View, the European Civilisation had Started with the Political Reforms of "Klisthenis", as Early as, Already "Since the 5th Century BC"...

The very Name of Klisthenis, (who is personaly related also with the Famous Pericles, by Family and Political Ideas), Triggers a Series of Links with Democracy, particularly Direct Democracy, as well as Freedom of Speech, Social Reforms and large ConFederation plans, etc., which would certainly be Interesting Also for the Next, 2nd Citizens' Panel, focused on European Democracy, considered to be the Most Popular of all, and due to Start Next Week in Strasbourg (21-23/9/2021).

But, Professor Godart's immediate Aim, Nowadays, was rather to Focus on the Cultural/Education aspect, included in the Present, 1st Citizens' Panel. Indeed, this results clearly from his main Intervention to the Plenary as an Expert, Yesterday (Saturday, 18/9/2021), where he Stressed from the outset that the "1st Founding Cultural Value of EU is Democracy, Born at the 5th Century BC in Ancient Greece".

+ Adding also "Christianity and Humanism", he Urged to "Look Back to Athens and Rome, among our (European) Founding Values", because "I firmly Believe that the EU Must absolutely encourage and contribute that we are feeling to be the Children of a Shared Same History !" "F.ex., inter alia, via promoting Major Exhibitions, including on Paintings, (f.ex. to teach that even Leonardo Da Vinci and/or Dante were European Citizens)". Indeed, "We are the Offspring of a Culture which has taken form over course of Millenia, and the main Leading Figures of this Culture, the Books they've written, the Artworks of this Culture, can make us Feel as Children of one and Same Culture. Here, the EU has an Enormous Role to play. Including by placing European Culture in our Education Systems, to show f.ex. that we are the Children of a Culture which Emerged before 3 Millenaries, mainly at the Aegean (Sea) area", Godart Concluded, (by a Symbolic Coincidence speaking the very "Day of the European Cultural Heritage", which Attracted a lot of People also to Visit with their Families the EU Parliament's Tower-Building here : Comp. Supra).

 ++ As for "Eurofora"s Input here, that we Discussed with Professor Godart, it was more Related Also to the 4th Panel, about European Defense : It consisted into Linking "European Education", particularly in "History", with the Most Important, Collective "Victories" of Multi-National European Armies, Bringing Together various Countries and Ethnicities of the European Continent, where simple People risked and even Sacrificed their Lives in order to Liberate and/or Saveguard our common Land from Foreign Military Invasions and Occupations accross the Centuries, while usual History Books either Omit, or Downgrade the Immense Importance of such pro-European events : F.ex. the Lepante Naval battle of 1571 after a Massacre of Venitians in Cyprus by the Turks, Decicive for the Mediterranean Sea; the "Holly League" of 1594-1606, Uniting the Vatican, Italians, Spain, Germans, Venice, Serbs, Polish, Russians, etc. in order to Help Liberate Europe from the Turkish-Ottoman Empire ; the Croatian Fortress Sisak, saved by Austrians, the Defense of Wien on 1683, the Liberation of all Budapest on 1696, the Serbian Revolution of 1804-1835, the Greek Revolution of 1921-1921, (including the landmark Naval Victory of the French, English and Russians against the Turks at Navarino on 1827, who seeked to Replace the Population of Moreas Peninsula by massively Imported Africans, while the Greek People were thrown to Slavery and Transfered to Africa, as mainly Bavarian Germans had Denounced); and many others, in various contexts through the Centuries.

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=> After all that, the overall Spirit of Citizens-Participants in the Concluding Sessions of this Sunday, 19/9/2021, "Plenary" Debates and Votes, concerning the "Discussion" and "Approval" of "Streams", appeared to have Radicaly Changed :

- Indeed, with a Series of Energetic, Vibrant, and quasi-Unanimous moves, a large Majority of Participating Citizens took the Initiative to Advance well Beyond what had been Already cited by the "Moderators", previously, and Spearheaded the Adoption also of several Added, New or More Developed Topics, such as, f.ex., on "Ethical, Inclusive and Democratic Digitalisation Technologies", "Scientific Research", "European Culture and Identity" (eventualy Boosted also by the Creation of EU Medias due to Promote those aspects), TransNational "European Education", "Agriculture" and "Food Safety", etc....

Sometimes, Citizens had to Repeat, Insist, Argue, and Trigger an EnLarging Popular Support for their Proposals, in order to Convince certain recalcitrant "Moderators", (f.ex. also for "European Education and Research", for "Agricultural Development and Food Safety", etc), But they Succeeded, Most of the times, particularly when Solidarity among them was clearly Expressed in Public.

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However, these and Other "Topics" selected by the Citizens-Participants practicaly Depend on what will happen, Later at CoFoE's Plenary, concerning, in particular, those 20 "Ambassadors", that Each Panel of Citizens is due to Choose Randomly among its 200 Members, (i.e. a Total of 80), in order to Represent them during the most Crucial Part of the Conference, when Final Decisions will be taken.

Curiously, this 1st Panel of Citizens has Just Chosen, Already Today, its 20 "Ambassadors", withOut Waiting... And here, this has Nothing to do with Any Kind of so-called "Direct Democracy" tool, of the king used f.ex. in Klisthenis' Historic era (Comp. Supra). Indeed, then, it was All the Free People (Voting in the "Ecclesia" of their "Demos") who Chose f.ex. an MP for the Parliament ("Bouli"), with a Mandate Duration of Only about 1 Month ! And the Final Legislative Decisions were Not Taken by such "MPs" ("Bouleutes"), competent Only in order to "Prepare" them, But Only by All the Free PeopleVoting All Together, in the "Ecclesia" of their "Demos"... As for the "Executive, Public Officials" (as Ministers, etc), they were roportedly Elected in the Same Manner, But Only for ... One (1) Day ! Last, but not least, the Bulk of Administrative Bureucrats, Secretariat, Staff, Policemen, etc., they were reportedly Selected among ..."Slaves" ! Thus, Risks of Abuse of Power, and/or of Arbitrary Usurpation of Privileges, were Minimized.

But, on the Contrary, those CeFoE's "Ambassadors", are Not Elected by All the European People, (Only Chosen "Randomly" inside a Grouplet of Just 200 Participating-Citizens : Comp. Supra), Neither Limited in the Duration of their Mandate, (since they are reportedly due to Stay inside CoFoE's Plenary as long as the Conference will go on)...

=> Therefore, in real Practice, it seems that it will all Depend from the Authority that will be Recognized in Fact, to the "Resolutions" or "Recommendations" due to be made by the Panels of Citizens by Writting, (as long as they are still there).

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("Draft-News")

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