[E-rundbrief] Info 1022 - Austerity, debt, social destruction in Europe: stop !
Matthias Reichl
info at begegnungszentrum.at
Di Jun 21 16:51:25 CEST 2011
E-Rundbrief - Info 1022 - Austerity, debt, social destruction in
Europe: stop ! Coordinate our strengths - Democratic alternatives are
necessary and possible! Conclusions of a European Conference (Brussel,
31.5.2011).
Bad Ischl, 21.6.2011
Begegnungszentrum für aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
www.begegnungszentrum.at
================================================
Austerity, debt, social destruction in Europe: stop !
Coordinate our strengths - Democratic alternatives are necessary and
possible!
European Conference on 31 May 2011
in the European Parliament (Brussels) - in partnership with the
GUE/NGL Parliamentary group
Our conclusions
This conference reflects an emergency.
It took place at a time when the Euro crisis, the crisis of the EU,
is deepening in the context of a general crisis of financialised
capitalism. Europe, whose bases have been destabilised, finds itself
in a dead end. With the Euro Pact Plus, a fresh limit has been
overstepping the worsening of the social and democratic crisis.
Ecological issues can not find solution in this context.
Europe finds itself at the crossroads — its legitimacy is receding.
More than ever before, the only way out of the crisis lies in
resistance and struggles to reject the Euro Pact Plus, the new
European economic governance, the generalisation of austerity and the
pressure of public debts. It lies in changing Europe to make it an
area of cooperation and solidarity. We must act together in Europe to
counter the divisions, the nationalism and resentment that can only
encourage populist and radical Rightwing trends that are growing today
even as we must link the European issues to the struggles at national
level and everywhere making clear the things we have in common.
The social and political conflict is very tough.
Difficulties are continually worsening for wage earners and
pensioners, for those in insecure employment, young people migrants
and the poorest people, or those being reduced to poverty. Everywhere
women are the worst affected. We welcome as most encouraging the
movements of “the indignant ones” in many European countries for “a
real democracy”.
Convergent demands that mobilise
We have observed that a number of struggles go in the same direction
by bearing the demand for a harmonisation of rights towards the high
levels and that, in an atmosphere of indignation there are many
convergences between social and civic movements, trade unionists as
well as social and political activists.
*
The answer to problems raised in Europe as well as to the
acute difficulties arising in several counties must be European and
united.
*
Economic cooperation at European level must have the objective
of answering to people\s needs. The architecture of the Euro, of the
institutions, of European Treaties and arrangements must be altered to
allow this.
*
The public debts must be reduced: by new revenue; by the
lowering of the interest rates that States and local authorities must
pay; by the reduction of transfers to the creditors; by measures to
cancel the illegitimate parts of debts on the basis of public and
citizen audits that would enable the penalisation of speculators and
the protection of simple savings and pensioners.
*
New systems of public revenue must be carried set up out in
various forms: a fairer and less inegalitarian taxation system; the
stopping of fiscal dumping; the taxation of revenue from capital and
financial transfers; and the suppression of unacceptable kinds of
expenditure, e.g. military ones.
*
Many political measures must contribute to organising a
organising a more radical redistribution of wealth and to push back
social inequalities and injustices.
*
The financial sectors and banks must be subjected to more
restrictive rules, with measures for public and social appropriation
of the necessary instruments so as to work in support of a new mode of
social and ecological development. There must be an end to the ECB’s
restrictive policies.
*
It is essential to reopen the perspective of an upward social
convergence so as to stop the downward spiral of social dumping, the
dismantling of social protection and retirement systems and the growth
of pauperisation.
*
To enable the upward convergence of incomes: the establishment
of a European minimum wage based on each country’s average income to
counter social and wages dumping and making the social minima
proportional the minimum wage. As a matter of immediate urgency, so as
to struggle against social exclusion, no income may be lower than the
poverty level. Women, the prime victims of low wages, are especially
concerned by such a change of direction.
*
To counter the impoverishment of new populations, the concept
of social security must broadened to integrate the population as a whole.
• The most vulnerable populations, crushed by indebtedness and
threatened with expulsion from their homes, as is the case in Poland,
Hungary and Rumania as well as other European countries, must be
assisted and be able to benefit from a right to housing.
*
European subsidies granted to the Eastern countries must in no
case strengthen the indebtedness of local authorities: there must be a
ban on the property of local councils being based on credits or
debentures.
*
European policy regarding migrants must be radically changed
and observe their social and human rights and encourage cooperation
and solidarity.
*
European public services must be preserved and developed so as
to encourage the principle of equality, solidarity and education for
all; research projects needed their societies and the emergence of a
new mode of social and ecological development. This is a fundamental
objective to ensure that social activities remain in the public area
and cannot be transferred as unpaid domestic activity by women or
underpaid wage groups.
*
Ecological and social issues require, more than ever, public
and democratic control of economic decisions: moving on to another
kind of economy is needed at local, national and European level.
*
Democracy is in retreat in Europe, it must be defended and
become more real as is being demanded by citizens all over Europe.
The mobilisations in Europe must be strengthened and brought closer
to favour a radical change of Europe — this is a matter of urgency.
This conference expresses its full solidarity with the movements of
resistance to austerity, the pressure of the debt, and movements for a
genuine democracy.
Several initiatives are already being prepared to enable the advance
and broadening of movements of struggle:
*
19 June: a Day of Action in Spain on the initiative of the
“indignant ones” of the Puerta del sol and solidarity initiatives in
other countries.
*
21 June: A European Day of Action called for by the ECTU.
*
1 October: a conference against austerity and privatisation in
London.
*
15 October an international action launched by the 15 May
Movement (Porta del Sol)
*
1 November: a demonstration against the G20 (near Cannes/Nice,
in France) followed by a Peoples’ Forum.
Several paths are still being discussed:
*
Ways of opposing the Euro Pact Plus and the economic
governance package by multiplying the initiatives and carrying out
campaigns of information and explanation
*
Carrying out public and citizens’ audits on the public debt in
various countries followed by a European encounter to finalise the
synthesis of the results and draw up common strategies to cancel the
illegitimate debts of European States.
*
A variety of actions on 23 and 24 June during the meeting of
the European Council on the subject of governance.
*
Reporting back the work of the conference as part of the
European Social Forum process within which this initiative was started.
*
Deciding on the creation of an open and mobilising “debt and
austerity” network with the aim of drawing up analyses, convergences
and initiatives.
Some questions remained open in the discussion, particularly a
proposal put forward by the Greek participants: should we try to
develop a “common front of trade unions, movements, political forces”
whose aims converge? Or the path of a “citizens’ pact” to rebuild Europe.
Since September 2010, forces involved in the European Social Forum
and In European social mobilisations wished to organise this
conference, a year after the European-wide hyper-austerity agreement.
ATTAC (Germany, France, Hungary, Flanders, Spain), CADTM (France,
Belgique, Suisse, Greece, Spain, Poland), Transform! Europe,
Euromarches, Solidaires (France), FGTB (Belgium), EuroMemo Group,
Forum soziales Europa (trade unionist network), Joint Social
Conference, TransNational Institut (TNI, Amsterdam), Prague Spring II
Network (CEE), Greek social Forum, Austrian Social Forum, Forum social
de Belgique, Hungarian social forum network, Espaces Marx (France),
Socialismo21 (Spain), Copernic Foundation (France), Mémoire des luttes
(France), Patas Arriba, Nicos Poulantzas Institut (Greece), Society
for European Dialogue (SPED, Czech Republic), Initiative des femmes en
mouvement contre la dette et les plans d’austérité, Transform !
Brussels, World march women, Rood (Flanders), Coalition of Resistance
(UK), WIDE (Women In Development Europe), Realpe (European network of
progressive local deputies); cgt-fsu-solidaires of Le Havre on strike;
Mesas Ciudadanas de Convergencia y Accion;
Have also participated: European Association for the Defence of
Human Rights/Association Européenne pour la Défense des Droits de
l'Homme (AEDH); European Feminist Initiative; Ligue des droits de
l’homme (France), Fédération syndicale unitaire (FSU, France) ; trade
unionists from different countries
Contacts:
Verveine Angeli - angeli [at] solidaires.org
Elisabeth Gauthier - elgauthi [at] internatif.org
Christine Vanden Daelen - christine [at] cadtm.org
--
Matthias Reichl, Pressesprecher/ press speaker,
Begegnungszentrum fuer aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
Center for Encounter and active Non-Violence
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