The choice is ours!
Samuel Huntington was heavily criticised when he published his book “Clash of cultures” after 9/11. What we are seeing now is about a clash of cultures, rather than Islam as a religion. In a way it is about our form of civilisation, our form of democracy, which in spite of all its weaknesses and the social injustices it creates, remains the “the worst form of government, except for all the others.” as Winston Churchill defined it once, clashing with a “culture” of hatred and intimidation, of brutality and horror.

A clash of cultures is indeed the issue here, but it is not a clash between religions and beliefs: it is rather a form of fascism with a new face, based on medieval values and imposed by modern weapons and modern communication tools. Unfortunately the media hysteria around the tragic and horrifying killings in Paris, Beirut, Ankara, Tunis and other places, left no room for serious analysis. The killings, as a modus operandi and as a cultural phenomenon, seek to impress through the sheer scale of the horror and the pictures delivered live and burned on our memory hard discs like the collapse of the twin towers on 9/11.

Trauma and fear are the desired effects, aimed at undermining our way of living together, in France, Lebanon, Turkey or Tunisia. Terrorism cannot be solved without tackling the root causes – which is no excuse! The unresolved conflict between Israel and Palestine, the war in Iraq built on lies and falsifications, military action for regime change in Libya and Syria without an exit strategy and plans for nation building, are faults of the globalised West. Increasing inequalities globally and a young generation of migrants in Europe and youth in the MENA region who do not have any prospect of a decent life are the ingredients and the seeds for radicalisation and pave the way for right wing populists and extremists.

Are we surprised to find that inclusion isn’t working, that inequality is growing? Looking at the background of the young terrorists and the speed of their radicalisation, our response cannot simply be more surveillance and a reduction of our democratic space. Maybe it is time to understand that security has to do with inclusive societies, with democratic space and with ensuring future prospects for the entire young generation. The rule of law is one side of the coin, the other is integration and inclusion, requiring social investment and an open society.

Protection is more than more police, more army, more surveillance or a declaration of war. Social protection is key for inclusive and cohesive societies! This is our choice. No more business as usual, we need to think big.

Together for Social Europe
Roundtable debate on ’Migration and Fundamental Rights: Will the EU live up to its values?’
17 November 2015
On 10 November 2015, SOLIDAR organised a roundtable debate at the European Economic and Social Committee titled “Migration and Fundamental Rights: Will the EU live up to its values?”.

In 2015 the number of tragedies involving people trying to reach the EU in search of protection and a better life increased dramatically due to the worsening conditions in their countries of origin. The EU responded to the emergency by developing a new European Agenda on Migration which increased the focus on security and border control whilst failing to put in place effective instruments to ensure a joint and comprehensive solution to the ongoing humanitarian crisis.

This round table gave policy makers and members of civil society an opportunity to discuss migration, fundamental rights and humanitarian assistance. Members of the SOLIDAR Advisory Group on migration and fundamental rights and of the IRIS network (Improving social services in SEE) presented their daily work and discussed the link between EU Enlargement and EU migration policies. Tools to support CSOs providing humanitarian assistance to migrants and refugees along the Western Balkan route were also debated.

Here you can read the activity report of the debate and see the photos.

TTIP and Social Services – Conference by SOLIDAR member AWO
19 November 2015
Yesterday, SOLIDAR member Arbeiterwohlfahrt (AWO) from Germany held a big conference on TTIP, CETA and TiSA and the impact of those trade agreements on Social Services in Europe and especially in Austria and Germany.

After an initial statement by Wolfgang Stadler, director of AWO, the German state secretary responsible for trade relations, Matthias Machnig, spoke in favour of TTIP. Wolfgang Stadler set out the concerns of welfare organisations in regard to TTIP and other trade agreements. The public services sector needs to be protected and must not be a part of market liberalisation. He underlined as well that German welfare organisations strongly oppose the plans for regulatory cooperation, where social, environmental, health and consumer standards could be seen as trade barriers. Additionally he criticised the lack of transparency during the negotiations and the planned Investor-State-Dispute-Settlement. The benefits of a trade agreement do not compensate for the risks such a trade agreement carries, and that is why AWO currently rejects TTIP and demands a re-negotiation of CETA with the new Canadian government of Justin Trudeau.
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SOLIDAR book launch, 1 December 2015, 12.00-15.00, European Parliament Library, Brussels
19 November 2015
SOLIDAR invites you to attend the public launch of our edited volume “Progressive Structural Reforms. Proposals for European reforms to reduce inequalities and promote jobs, growth and social investment” (draft programme and online registration) on 1 December 2015.

This publication presents the results of the SOLIDAR Social Progress Lab 2015 which was launched in spring 2015. The Social Progress Lab is a space for academics, policy-makers and civil society to consider the strategies and policies needed to achieve a more social and inclusive Europe.

It contains the analyses of 10 academic scholars from across Europe with a focus on identifying and targeting inequalities, shaping social investment and European policies affecting social safeguards, and thereby seeks to enrich the policy debate at European and national level about alternative structural reforms.

This edited volume includes contributions by Nicolas Schmit, Luxembourg’s Minister for Labour, Employment and the Social and Solidarity Economy, as well as Thomas Händel, MEP, Chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on Employment and Social Affairs. It has been developed with the support of the Social Progress Lab’s scientific advisory group consisting of Dr. Rémi Bazillier (Université d’Orléans, France), Dr. Giovanni Cozzi (University of Greenwich, United Kingdom), Dr. Amandine Crespy (Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium), Prof. Dr. Ferdi De Ville (Ghent University, Belgium) and Dr. Angela Wigger (Radboud University, the Netherlands), with guidance by Dr. Lieve Fransen, special adviser to the Social Progress Lab process.
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Building Learning Societies
Together for validation of learning outcomes of non-formal and informal learning
16 November 2015
On 16 November 2015, SOLIDAR together with Momchil Nekov MEP (S&D) announced their cooperation and the start of the European campaign to achieve the validation of learning outcomes of non-formal and informal learning by 2018!

The Council Recommendation on the validation of learning outcomes of non-formal and informal learning paves the way towards increased cooperation between the EU and Member States with the goal of having national validation arrangements in all countries by 2018. Reality shows, however, that despite a steady trend towards the creation of validation arrangements, most countries need to develop comprehensive strategies to enable validation.

Non-formal and informal learning play a significant role in education and training systems. The Adult Education Survey shows that in Europe 31.5% of adults taking part in education and training participated in non-formal education, while only 6.5% were enrolled in formal education to improve their skills and competences in order to broaden their employment prospects. However the evidence shows that the skills and competences acquired in non-formal and informal settings are often poorly recognised not only by the public and education institutions, but also by employers and learners themselves.
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Organising International Solidarity

CSO views on a more secure European Neighbourhood Partnership
18 November 2015
On Wednesday 18 November the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, together with the Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, Johannes Hahn presented the joint communication on the review of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) to the members of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the European Parliament.

The new policy aims to shift away from an EU-centred approach towards stronger and more equal partnerships to tackle common challenges and seize common opportunities in the Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood. Whilst the communication addresses the common challenges of socio-economic development, youth employability, good governance, democracy and the rule of law, SOLIDAR is concerned about the strong focus given to “hard” security, which features in both the energy and migration sectors, instead of investing in social protection contributing to social and economic stability.
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SOLIDAR on the Paris Attacks
Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité
16 November

SOLIDAR condemns the abject terrorist attacks and mourns the victims. Our solidarity is with the victims and their families. We stand together in solidarity with our French member organisations. We stand together to defend freedom, democracy and solidarity. Hatred, violence and fear must not have any place. We will never submit to terror.

The killers who want to undermine our way of living and create a climate of fear intentionally chose places where people simply come together and share moments of joy.

The challenge for our societies will however be to safeguard the security of our citizens, but also to safeguard open society and ensure more, not less, democracy.
NOUS SOMMES UNIS – NOUS RESTONS UNIS!