Click on the following links for more information about: 

• EPLO Brown Bag Lunch events
• EPLO Events in EU Member States
  
• Events which are being organised in the framework of the Civil Society Dialogue Network project
• Events which are being organised in the framework of the 'The EU and Peacebuilding: From European Peace Project to Global Actor' project

Discussants:

• Sylvana Habdank-Kolaczkowska - Project Director, Nations in Transit, Freedom House
• Hadija Ismailova - Journalist, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Azerbaijan
• Pirkka Tapiola - Senior Advisor, Strategic Planning Division, European External Action Service

Nations in Transit 2013 is the 18th edition of an annual Freedom House report analyzing the democratic progress and/or backsliding of 29 formerly communist countries in Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia. It is the only comprehensive, comparative, and multidimensional study of reform in the region.

This year's report highlights the diverse developments in the region and the steps authoritarian states take to stifle civil society and suppress independent, political activity. Democratic transformations are challenged continuously as some of these regions want to move closer to Europe and are of geopolitical importance for the transatlantic community. This is visible with democratic setbacks in Russia and Ukraine and continued repression in countries like Azerbaijan and Belarus as well as more competitive, yet still flawed elections in Armenia and Georgia. The public frustration with austerity measures in Central Europe and the corruption in the Balkans are additional hurdles to achieve democracy. After a presentation of the report’s facts and figures, we have invited a number of policy makers, analysts and representatives from the region to comment on the findings and engage in a  frank and informal exchange of views and ideas on how Europe and the United States proceed in supporting democratic transformations.

The Chatham House Rule will be observed.

To register your participation, please contact Charlotte Matthysen.

Turkey is experiencing something unprecedented and unexpected. Of course, there was a chance that the social upheavals and revolutions that shook the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern region could spread to Turkey. However, nobody knew whether, when or under what conditions this would happen. After many days of protest, which started as protest for the preservation of the public Gezi Park to grow into a set of demands concerning the regime, the government and authoritarian decision making, the direction of demonstrations is still unclear. All sections of the opposition from nationalists to Kurds, from the socialist left to the disgruntled middle class seem to agree on their condemnation of the pressure created by a formal democracy that ignores participatory principles and increasingly turns into a one-man-rulership. A non-transparent negotiation process concerning the Kurdish issue, public constructions projects decided and contracted regardless of their social and ecological costs, top-down reforms in education and ruthless police control on any type of genuine opposition have been some of the contributing factors in the accumulation of a potential for reaction and dissent. Baffling is the sheer self-censorship implemented by the mainstream media about these massive protests and police brutality. It is hard to gather and disseminate dependable information about the nature of the events. It is important to clear the air from information pollution, make an even-headed appraisal of the dynamics that set the public opposition free and evaluate these historical moments in terms of their implications for the future of democracy in Turkey.

Speakers

• Olcay Bingöl - Member of Ecology Collective, Training and Development
• Support Specialist Greenpeace Istanbul and activist in Gazi Park Resistance
• Franziska Keller - Member of the European Parliament (Greens/European Free Alliance, Germany); Member of the Delegation to the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee Group
• Dr Özgür Mumcu - Research Assistant Galatasaray University Faculty of Law (TBC)
• Marc Pierini - Visiting Scholar Carnegie Europe

Click here to download the invitation and here to download the registration form.

To register your participation, please send the completed registration form to Marianne Ebertowski.

(NB/ No admittance without confirmed registration)

The objective of this event is to support the European Union Trade Commission's two month public consultation on a possible EU initiative on responsible sourcing of minerals originating from conflict-affected and high-risk areas which is due to finish on 26 June 2013.

Those who will address the audience by Skype or telephone will include:

• Albert Mulikuza Mudukwe - Directeur de Cabinet of the Provincial Minister of Mines
• an official of the Democratic Republic of Congo Government (DRC) responsible for establishing a transparent sourcing process
• Fidel Bafilemba - Field Research Consultant, Eastern DRC, Enough/The Project to End Genocide & Crimes Against Humanity

Other testimony will include:

• Humphrey Hawksley - BBC World Affairs Correspondent (who has done two documentaries for the BBC on the region)
• Keith Best - CEO, Freedom from Torture, who is compiling a report on torture in the DRC
• Mrs. Laure Bulembi - Co-Founder, Mothers of Congo (who is from eastern DRC and currently living in the UK)

Click here for more information.

To register your participation, please contact Robin Marsh providing your passport name date of birth, and city of residence (if you are an EU resident) and passport details (if you are not an EU resident).

A panel discussion which will include MEPs, EU Member State and institution representative(s), and civil society representatives.

Interaction between the floor and the panel will be encouraged.

Questions to be explored

• What is the state of play one year after the adoption of the comprehensive EU human rights package?
• Is the EU now a stronger force for the protection and promotion of human rights or is it business as usual?
• Are tools such as the EU-third country human rights dialogues delivering better?
• What are the 27 EU Member States bringing to the table and what is the role of the European Parliament and EU National parliaments?
• What are the challenges for EU human rights policy moving forward?

Click here to download the invitation.

To register your participation, please contact Emma Hickey providing your name, passport number, nationality and date of birth.

Au début des années 1990, Murhabazi Namegabe, plus connu sous le nom de Mouna, a créé à Bukavu le Bureau pour le Volontariat au service de l’Enfance et de la Santé. Le « BVES » est une ASBL, portée par un groupe de volontaires animés par la seule volonté de contribuer à la promotion, à la protection et à la défense des droits des enfants. Mais dans une région plongée sans interruption depuis 1994 dans les conflits armés, la mission première de Murhabazi Namegabe est d’arracher les jeunes aux groupes armés qui les emploient, à leur donner une formation, à assurer leur retour à une vie normale.

• A notre niveau, en Belgique, nous sommes un groupe d’amis qui pour la plupart connaissons, de très près l’action courageuse de Murhabzi, un homme qui malgré les nombreux prix prestigieux qu’il a reçus, se débat jour après jour pour maintenir le BVES à flot dans d’incessantes difficultés. Notre comité a été créé pour soutenir son action, tant par la récolte de fonds que par le plaidoyer politique, notamment auprès du Parlement européen.
• Sa présence à Bruxelles est exceptionnelle et a été rendue possible grâce à une invitation d’Amnesty dans le cadre de sa participation, le lendemain, à un colloque international organisé par le groupe socialiste et démocrate du parlement européen sur le thème des enfants soldats.

Le film « Rebelle » nous raconte l’histoire de Komona, une jeune Africaine de 14 ans, qui elle-même raconte sa vie à l'enfant qu'elle porte : depuis son enlèvement par une armée rebelle trois ans plus tôt jusqu'aux fréquentes apparitions des fantômes de ceux qu'elle a tués, en passant par le garçon qu'elle aime, Magicien, un albinos de 15 ans.....

Ce film bouleversant, multi-primé, a été nominé aux Oscars 2013 du meilleur film étranger.

Après la projection, vous aurez l’occasion de rencontrer Mouna et de soutenir son action par votre participation au « walking diner » organisé au profit du B.V.E.S., ou par l’achat de livres et autres objets a notre boutique-brocante solidaire. Vous pourrez aussi rejoindre notre comité en tant que sympathisant, ou plus si vous le souhaitez.

Click here to download the invitation and here to register your participation.

The withdrawal of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in 2014 poses a particular challenge for the neighbouring countries in the Afghanistan conflict. To avoid a possible political vacuum and a struggle for power by regional actors, peaceful stabilisation of the conflict has to be based on regional cooperation.

Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung has established a network of policy groups in Afghanistan, Central Asia, India and Pakistan to develop policy recommendations which aim at national and regional efforts to ensure a peaceful Afghanistan Post 2014. In a second step these policy groups are engaging in trust-building interregional track II dialogues on aspects of peace, stability and economic development.

Friedrich-Ebert-Stfitung has invited members of each policy group to Brussels to discuss first results of these interregional dialogues with EU representatives and Brussels-based experts.

Inputs by:

Ambassador Mahmoud Saikal - Policy Group Afghanistan

Andreas Fischer-Barnicol - European External Action Service

Click here for more information and here to register your participation. 

(Deadline for registration: Tuesday 25 June 2013)

N/A

Click here to download the poster and here to register your participation.

Peacebuilding is at a turning point. Traditional liberal approaches are giving way to much-needed, alternative peacebuilding paradigms.

Infrastructures for peace are one such emergent, more effective framework for peacebuilding. Designed as an infrastructure for peace itself, this summit is unique in several ways:

• Team: Completely organized by youth (who like to discuss things with their more experienced friends every now and then);
• Self-practice: Organized by a team of individuals committed to applying principles and practices of peace in their own work, using peace tools and processes as resources for the creation this event;
• Funding: Largely crowdsourced and crowdfunded, with no financial barriers to participation and applying principles of gift and solidarity – one of the first events to apply crowdsourcing to peacework;
• Participants and Location: Making the most of Geneva's international character to attract a wide variety of actors to dialogue on this topic for the first time (including government, the UN, business, artists, journalists, youth, and many others);
• Historical moment: Happening at an important moment in the history of infrastructures for peace and peacebuilding;
• Formats: Featuring interactive and innovative formats throughout the conference to maximize interaction and engagement on the issues at hand;Experience: Providing the experience of various kinds of live infrastructures for peace throughout the conference to facilitate transformational learning and deep understanding.

Click here for more information and here to register your participation.

(Deadline for registration for those needing logistical sponsorship: Wednesday 15 May 2013)

(Deadline for registration for all others: Sunday 16 June 2013)