Since its establishment in 1948 the European Movement International (EMI) has always put at the core of its work the relations between civil society organisations and public authorities. More recently, the EMI started to focus specifically on the establishment and reinforcement of representative civil society in the countries neighboring the European Union and on its dialogue with the respective public authorities.

In this context the EMI has launched a discourse with Civil Society Organisations through two founding congresses:

• one in Algiers in 2006 for the Maghreb countries and Egypt

• one in Ljubljana in 2009 for the Western Balkan countries and Turkey

This dialogue will be deepened at the EMI Istanbul Congress entitled "Civil Society Organisations challenge public authorities: From political commitment to active dialogue" on 11-12 February 2011, organised in partnership with the Third Sector Foundation of Turkey (TUSEV).
 
For more than 400 delegates from the civil society sector of candidate and potential candidate countries as well as from the European Union, together with representatives from National Parliaments, Governments and the European Union institutions, the Istanbul Congress will be a crucial opportunity to discuss and debate on how to best improve the relations between civil society and public authorities.

At this moment in time where the Turkish democratic model is occasionally used as a reference in recent developments in the Arab world, the EMI hopes that the conclusions to be made in Istanbul will be valuable not only for the countries involved in the process of joining the EU but also for other neighboring countries in their evolution towards democracy.

The results of the congress shall lead to a "political strategy", providing recommendations to public authorities and addressing CSOs’ claims for support and enhanced dialogue at the highest level.

To download the programme, please click here
For more information, please contact the EMI secretariat:
Matilde Pinamonti
Phone: +32 2 508 30 84
E-Mail: mpinamonti@europeanmovement.eu

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