CoE Chair Amb.Daleres+Democracy Director Markovic to EuroFora:Human Rights learning+New Citizen role

*Strasbourg/CoE/Angelo Marcopolo/- Human Rights' Education as a Cultural link between Europeans, and New Forms of Citizens' participation in Democracy, particularly after a series of unprecedented and innovative Mass Movements around and even inside the Europe, is the "No 1 Priority" of the incoming "3 AAA"' joined CoE rotating Presidencies' Agenda agreed by Andorra, Armenia and Austria (i.e. during 1,5 year, from November 2012 up to May 2014 !), as it results from Statements to "EuroFora" by CoE's Chairman-in-office, Ambassador Dalleres, and CoE's new Director-General on Democracy, Ms Snezana Samardzic-Markovic, and other participants in a 2 Days-long International Conference co-organized jointly by CoE and the EU in Strasbourg, at the eve of an exceptionally important CoE's Committee of Ministers' December 2012 Session on ECHR Judgements' implementation next week, (while even UNO's GA has just adopted a relevant Resolution, symbolicaly at New York : See Infra).

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     - Education on Human Rights and Democratic Citizenship is very Important for the (November 2012 - May 2013) CoE's Presidency by Andorra, and it's even, in fact, our No 1 and only Priority !", stressed from the outset the Ambassador - Permanent Represantative of Andorra to CoE's Committee of Ministers, Josep Dallerès, speaking to "EuroFora".

     -"Because it's very important for the People of Europe to try to Forge a Basis of common Values as joint elements for the entire European Society", and "this is mainly the respect of Democracy and Human Rights", which goes " well beyond all National Cultures, that we must also preserve", and is composed by certain common elements, which are not divisive, but can create a more cohesive society in Europe", Ambassador Dalleres explained, after the opening of the EU/CoE Conference by Andora's Minister of Education and Youth, Ms Roser Sune.

    - In this regard, "Education is the Basis for European Citizens' lives, particularly when it aims to their Well-Being and to Human Development, not only to a so-called "Employability", as CoE's Chairman-in-office pointed out.
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    + Speaking later exclusively to "EuroFora", CoE's New Director General on Democracy, Snezana Samardzic-Markovic from Serbia, revealed that the PanEuropean Organization is currently preparing some new moves on innovative ideas and Forms of Citizens' Participation to modern Democracy, particularly after the various recent Mass Events which appeared in several Countries inside and around Europe, after closely following such new socio-political developments which have still to be seriously studied.

- "New Forms of Citizens' Participation is a very, very Crucial issue" today, and " Participation is something that CoE is interested in, and therefore, it's  monitoring and following closely all relevant developments", she ensured in reply to relevant "EuroFora"s questions.

-  Because, in general, "Democratic Citizenship and Participation  is something very important for the CoE".

+  And  "when it comes to (the so-called) "Liquid" Democracy, now that's something that is present, in Today's life, and we, at the CoE, are looking at all such Innovations", Samardzic-Markovic added.  

- "You know, this concerns an area on which CoE has been working for many Decades, but also when it comes to all Forms involving New Media, New Mechanisms for Direct and/or Participatory Democracy, etc., there is a growing number of People involved in various Countries recently, but we don't have enough concrete Details yet", she acknowledged, with genuine curiosity.

- "Yes, You are Right !", CoE's new Democracy General Director positively replied to "EuroFora"s observation that, recently, New and Massive Popular Moves in such Directions have been developing not only around Europe, I.e. at 3rd Mediterranean Countries, but also inside CoE's and even EU's Member States, such as Spain, Greece, and (mutatis-mutandis) even in Germany, etc., and other Countries, which could be interesting to Study by the CoE

Indeed, we (COE) are interested in any eventually new mechanisms of other forms of Participation, and "Yes, we hope" to have soon something to say and contribute on that. -"But I can't disclose anything before (CoE's) Committee of Ministers decides on January 2013 about some proposals already susbmitted to them", she carefully added.

=> Therefore..  she invited "EuroFora" to "come and see me on January 2013, when CoE's Committee of Ministers will have debated and hopefuly decided on what we have recently proposed, as Co revealed.
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+ The recent Global Crisis provoked everywhere trends which push to Reduce Funds for Education, thus making CoE's specific role on Education and Human Rights even more crucial today, stressed from the outset the New CoE's Director General for Democracy, Snezana Samardzic-Markovic.

- Moreover, nobody has been Born with a knowledge of Human Rights, and that's why it's only Education which could transmit their basic values to all People, she pointed out.
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+Speaking just a Month before EU's "Year of Citizens" starts from Januray 2013, EU Commission's Director on Education and Culture, Pierre Mairesse, stressed EU's will to cooperate with the PanEuropean CoE particularly on issues related to "2020 Strategy"'s Education on EU "Citizenship".
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However, CoE's Director for Democratic Citizenship and Participation, Olöf Olafsdottir from Iceland, appeared more Careful about the paneuroean organization's specific character :

While she welcomed with interest EU Commissioner Vassiliou's recent anouncement of a new EU Program about "Re-Thinking Education's quality", confirming her intention "to read all those documents" published in this regard by EU Commission, on the contrary, Olafsdottir expressed her Reserves on EU's intention to launch a brand new World Ranking system for Universities :

- "That's something rather controversial and perhaps divisive issue, so that, frankly, I don't think that it's for us (CoE) to work on a Ranking system. We'd better focus on achieving at least some Good Common Standards according to the already existing "Bologna process'" Framework" for Universities, CoE's competent Director criticized in reply to "EuroFora"s question, (apparently varying vis-a-vis the interest initially expressed, on the contrary, by the Chair of CoE's Steering Committee for Educational Policy, Jorma Kaupinen from Finland, as he had earlier shown to "EuroFora" on the same issue)...

+ However, Olafsdottir later found that it was a rather "a Good Idea" for the CoE to seriously Study at least all "New Forms of Democracy",  and/or for Citizens' Participation, which surfaced recently among various Popular Movements both around and inside Europe, as "EuroFora" suggested to her.

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+ Meanwhile, CoE's "Charter" on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights was the focus of Strasbourg's International Conference, (organized jointly by the EU and COE), including recent attempts to develop not only a Networking but also a kind of "Soft" Monitoring mecanism with frequent Reports on progress done throughout all the 47 Member Countries of the PanEuropean Organization, (which has also several other "Observer" or "special status" affiliated Countries from nearly all over the World : F.ex. the USA, Canada; Mexico; Japan, etc).

+ Norway's European "Wergeland" Center, an independent Organism funded by the Oslo Government, closely cooperates with almost all CoE's 47 Member States by providing Research and mainly Human Rights' Training on the spot, free of charge, as a key Officer told "EuroFora".

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By a timely coincidence, at the Eve of the opening of CoE's Strasbourg Conference, UNO's General Assembly debated and adoted, at its New York Headquarters, a New Resolution on "Education for Democracy", which makjes a link between democratic governance/human rights and Peace/Development, pointing also at UNO's SG Setember 2012 initiative  on “fostering Global Citizenship”, and urges States to integrate education for democracy, along with  human rights, into national education standards.

According to a UN official Press Release, "the main Outcome of the Resolution would be to "launch ..a Discussion on how to help Educate peoples in the Culture of Peace and Democracy; tolerance of and respect for different civilizations and religions; and in upholding the values of freedom and human rights".

However, "introducing that text, Mongolia’s representative, .. noted  that it had been Difficult to find Consensus", and, therefore, claimed that  , “[w]e have substantially cut down our initial ambitions in order to accommodate the interests of all", even if, according to UNO's Secretariat, in fact,  "all concepts and interpretations Member countries had wanted were included", even if implicitly.

=> On this occasion, Australian Professor in Public Law, and experienced former Human Rights' Commisssioner, Dr. Sev Ozdowski, speaking to "EuroFora" during CoE's Conference in Strasbourg, observed, concerning f.ex. China, that "we are doing Good Trade" with Beijing, "but would also like to deal with a more Predictable" Society, because it's preferable for more long-term Foreign Investments, as he pointed out.  ... acknowledged the fact that at least some among Chinese political leaders seem concerned about the need to prevent eventual tensions and unrest throughout the Country's Civil Society, and that's why they appear hesitant, for the moment, on Western and otheér Countries' attempts to spread general Democracy/Human Rights standards worldwide.
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Meanwhile, concluding Strasbourg's EU/CoE Conference, the PanEuropean Commissioner on Human Rights, Nils Muiznieks, stressed mainly the crucial role that can play genuine "Emotion" in order to Motivate People to care for Human Rights' respect.

Speaking later with "EuroFora", CoE's Human Rights Commissioner agreed that "indeed, it wasn't normal" that, even in cases such as Cyprus' MISSING Persons' serious Violations of Human Rights, which have been Pending at the CoE for Decades, as one of the Longest issues in its History, and desite several crystal-clear Condemnations of Turkey's Authorities by ECHR's judgements, nevertheless, more than 37 Years after the Enforced Disappearances of Thousands of People, "nobody, not even one (1) among those Responsible was ever Found and Punished", as ECHR's well-established case-law repeatedly asks in this kind of cases, contrary to various such attempts to, at least, start providing some elementary Justice, even if only partly, in  various other cases, elsewhere, f.ex., mutatiss - mutandis, in the Caucasus, at Western Balkans, etc., so that Europe might now risk to be bypassed even by ... Latin America, where both the PanAmerican Court's famous standards, as well as certain Countries' National efforts (f.ex. in Argentina, Chile, etc), seem to produce much better results in real practice about fully Investigating to find the Truth on what really happened to the Victims and do Justice vis a vis those Responsible for several Tragic Disappearances of the Past 40 Years...

An obviously important issue of general interest for the Human Rights Community,  among those which will be soon discussed, behind Closed Doors, inside CoE's Committee of Ministers, located at another Building, on the occasion of its December 2012 Session, next week in Strasbourg, on CoE Member States' obligation to implement ECHR's Judgements...

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