Report on the Summer Meeting of International NGOs in the Council of Europe
Secretary General Kloiber represents the Federation of Catholic Family Associations in Europe (FAFCE) in Strasbourg on June 23rd and 24th, 2004.
On June 23rd, two meetings of groups are held at which FAFCE participates regularly.
Mr. Alain Mouchoux presides the meeting of the Education and Culture
Group held on 23rd of June from 9.00 to 10.30 
a.m.
The agenda starts with an approval and distribution of documents on disabled
persons and on formal and informal education. Mrs. Gabriella Battani-Dragoni,
Directress General of DG IV, Education, Culture and Spiritual Heritage,
Youth and Sports make a short statement. The election of the Group Chairman
and the preparation of the Year of Democratic Citizenship 2005 are next
items on the agenda. Other agenda items such as the general opinion of
the education (Manifesto), observations concerning labour, higher education,
research, inter-cultural education and the education of immigrant children
are mentioned briefly only.
Chairman Mouchoux explains that the aforesaid documents will be used as
contributions of the Group at the top-level meeting in Poland next year.
The text of the Resolution on Disabled Persons is going to be elaborated
only.
Mrs. Gabriella Battani-Dragoni praises the cooperation with NGOs as a
source of experience and says that the successful work of the Council
of Europe depends on NGOs. She quotes the newly elected Secretary General
of the Council of Europe, Terry Davis, who places culture as a priority
of the Council of Europe next to human rights. It is the task of the Council
of Europe to establish a community with the highest possible homogeneity
of coexistence. The DG IV has to ensure a functioning dialogue between
cultures and religions. According to Mrs. Battani-Dragoni, the inter-cultural
dialogue must become more transparent. The DG IV does not intrude classrooms,
it checks, however, teaching aids from the points of view of inter-cultural
and inter-religion dialogues. Budapest has developed into an education
centre for young people in matters of human rights and inter-cultural
dialogue. Another crux of DG IV is the sustainability of culture. Within
the sustainable development, the cultural aspect is taken into consideration
insufficiently. At the occasion of the 5th anniversary of the Culture
Convention, she invites NGOs to intensify the cooperation. Mrs. Gabriella
Battani-Dragoni explains in answers to various questions that the DG IV
will continue to support the education in the relevant mother language
including the education of minority groups and the inter-cultural education
by means of music.
Mrs. Olafsdotir appeals to the NGOs present to elaborate contributions
to the European Year of Citizenship through Education and send them directly
to Mr. Mouchoux. An ad hoc committee will process them until September.
It will hand over the collected contributions of NGOs to the Steering
Committee. The NGO Group may nominate one delegate into the Steering Group.
(This invitation applies to FAFCE and its members in particular since
the education towards responsible citizenship should not take place at
schools only but in the families as well. The attendances at elections
into the European Parliament have shown the importance of an all-society
education process towards responsible citizenship.)
Alain Mouchoux is being elected the Group Chairman again.
The Human Rights Group deals with the "European Year of Citizenship
through Education", too. The discussion on this issue started at
the second top-level meeting of the Council of Europe in 1997 and concentrated
on the higher education initially. The European Year of Citizenship was
introduced to schools in 2001. A Glossary concerning the European Year
of Citizenship has been published at the Council of Europe Website.
A stronger participation of European citizens in the political life is
the objective of the European Year of Citizenship.
The DG IV invites NGOs to participate at seminars and projects. Training
programs for teachers and pupils are to be set up within the scope of
the European Year of Citizenship, e.g. an explanation and discussion of
parts of Human Rights Convention at schools.
Mrs. Olafsdotir answers the FAFCE question on the possible contribution
of families to the European Year of Citizenship by saying that an informal
education is a part of the European Year of Citizenship program and that
it plays an important role. It must be taken into consideration, though,
that undemocratic families cannot provide children with appropriate patterns.
Other field of Group activities are psychotherapy and human rights, children
in risk situations (the speaker reports that a Belgian inquiry into this
issue does not mention sexual abuse of children), the protection of human
rights (defenders of human rights suffer restrictions in 11 EC member
countries still), the role of woman in Turkey and the development of Montenegro,
Kosovo and Serbia territories.
Gabriel Nissim from the World Catholic Association for Communication (SIGNIS)
is being elected a new Chairman.
An information day is organized for NGOs with participation status on the 24th of June. The former Director for External Relations, Mr. Hans de Jonge, explains the method of working, objectives and structure of the Council of Europe. Michele Akip, Assistant Manageress of the Department for Social Policy in the DG Social Solidarity and Jean-Marie Heydt, Chairman of the NGO-Group Social Solidarity and NGO representative in the Steering Committee Social Policy use their specific working procedures to illustrate how NGOs can assist the Steering Committee and the Expert Committee. Using another example, they explain lobbying at Parliamentary meetings particularly. The NGO General Assembly, the Liaison Committee and the NGO Groups are discussed in the afternoon. The importance of using the current status in the Council of Europe actively is being emphasized several times. A clear reproach is expressed to those NGOs that do not pursue any activities in the Council of Europe themselves nor do participate at activities of other NGOs.
A new office in Brussels is inspected and a preparatory meeting of the
FAFCE conference in November this year is 
arranged
in the course of participation at the meeting of NGOs in the Council of
Europe.
The new office address will be Rue de Londres 17, Brussels. It must be
made clear that it does not mean a COFACE-FAFCE office association but
that the FAFCE is allowed to use these office premises at a daily basis
(2-3 days every second months) and their infrastructure for a consideration.
After the items of the arrangement have been discussed at the next Meeting
of Presidents (28. -30.11.), an agreement will be made. It has been agreed
that the FAFCE may use the premises before that date already.
The FAFCE conference in Brussels will involve a platform discussion in
the European Parliament on the topic of "Compatibility of Family
and Job" and a social evening for the European Bishops' Conference
(COMECE) on the topic of Families in the EU Constitution.