{"id":20584,"date":"2022-05-11T16:50:52","date_gmt":"2022-05-11T14:50:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/euroalter.local\/?p=20584"},"modified":"2022-05-11T16:50:52","modified_gmt":"2022-05-11T14:50:52","slug":"bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/","title":{"rendered":"Bringing local voices to Strasbourg – The CoFoE in Porto and the experience of the Portuguese National Assembly"},"content":{"rendered":"

Photo: the Portuguese National Assembly during the TRANSEUROPA Festival 2022,\u00a0 \u00a9 Natacha Oliveira & Maria Ferreira<\/em><\/p>\n

By J\u00e9ssica Moreira<\/em><\/p>\n

On May 7, the Portuguese Closing Session<\/a> for the Conference on the Future of Europe (CoFoE) was held at the Serralves Foundation in Porto. This ceremony, hosting the national Portuguese representatives of the CoFoE in Strasburg, the State Secretary for European Affairs and the Portuguese Prime Minister, marked a closing chapter of the efforts made for the Conference, giving an overview of what was done on the national level regarding the different topics of the CoFoE. More than 200 people attended the event, many of which where young adults engaged in local students\u2019 and youth movements and the general adhesion was so large, that the room exceeded its maximum capacity.<\/p>\n

At the end, the Portuguese Prime Minister, Ant\u00f3nio Costa, sat in front of a large audience for a Q&A session. What ensued was a public display of youth militance for the future of Europe. The questions revolved around six main topics and demands:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. The EU\u2019s and the national promotion of youth participation has to be complemented by structural support measures for the economic and social emancipation <\/strong>of what is considered the most qualified generation in Portugal\u2019s history;<\/li>\n
  2. Ecological commitment needs to be taken seriously and to be seen as a compromise and commitment between generations. More efforts need to be done in order to prioritize ecological and social concerns over profit<\/strong>. Moreover, energetic \u2013 or other form of \u2013 dependencies from countries disrespecting basic human rights have to be avoided<\/strong>;<\/li>\n
  3. Institutional reforms must be proceeded by a stricter regulation of the housing market<\/strong>, allowing young people and minoritized groups to live and develop projects in the cities;<\/li>\n
  4. The example of transnational participative democracy set by CoFoE needs to be traduced in a long-lasting endeavour<\/strong>, fostering the engagement of national communities for the EU project;<\/li>\n
  5. The national education system needs to be revised, allowing more space for creativity<\/strong>, associative behaviour and critical thinking<\/a>. This involves a curriculum reform of history classes<\/strong>, promoting a more critical perspective of historical events. School curriculums should provide more time and opportunities to students to engage in socio-political projects;<\/strong><\/li>\n
  6. The EU and national governments need to preserve their support for Ukraine and debate ways to deepen this aid and to stop Russia\u2019s aggression. The request was made, for Portugal to express a clear and strong position regarding material and humanitarian support of Ukraine<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The Portuguese Citizens\u2019 Assembly and the Conference on the Future of Europe<\/strong><\/h3>\n

    European Alternatives\u2019 and Forum Demos\u2019 representatives joined the event there to represent the work done on the TRANSEUROPA Festival 2022 in Porto, namely the Citizens\u2019 and the Transnational Assemblies held from the 22nd<\/sup> to the 24th<\/sup> of April. These assemblies have revolved around many of the issues raised by the participants in this closing session.<\/p>\n

    The Citizens\u2019 Assembly was part of the national events created in the context of the debate set forth by the CoFoE. Initiated by Forum Demos<\/a>, the assembly held at Ermesinde\u2019s Cultural Forum, on the 22nd<\/sup> and 23rd<\/sup> of April, aimed to explore, in cooperation with 20 national NGO\u2019s<\/strong> and several activists, the issues and responses needed, at national and European level, in order to guarantee the rights of socially discriminated communities and to foster hospitality and equality. The perspectives on these topics where multiple, since the assembly sought to address local, national and European questions regarding the protection of minorities and socially discriminated people<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

    Being part of the project Asssemblies of Solidarity<\/a>, coordinated by the coalition Citizens Take Over Europe<\/a>, the assembly was based on a participative way of making politics that seeks to involve citizens\u2019 horizontally, creating platforms based on their direct participation in the elaboration of policy proposals.<\/p>\n

    Even though the communities involved were bound to local realties, they represented groups present in many European societies \u2013 namely, afro-descendent, Sinti and Roma, and migrant and refugee communities. Gathering 38 citizens, engaged in different NGOs and representing the diversity of Portuguese society, the assembly elaborated a a number of recommendations on the socio-political and cultural challenges faced by these communities in Portugal.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Gathering 38 citizens, engaged in different NGOs and representing the diversity of Portuguese society, the assembly elaborated a a number of recommendations on the socio-political and cultural challenges faced by these communities in Portugal.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    Through this participation, the assembly brought togheter 20 national NGOs working on the rights the different communities<\/strong>, namely ACMET, ADEIMA, Associa\u00e7\u00e3o de Estudantes Africanos em Vila Real, Associa\u00e7\u00e3o para a Integra\u00e7\u00e3o, Centro Social de Soutelo, CIVITAS Braga, Costume Colossal, Cruz Vermelha Portuguesa \u2013 Gondomar\/Valongo, DJASS, F\u00f3rum Ref\u00fagio, KALINA, LAR, M\u00e9n-non, Moinho da Juventude, Movimento Mulheres Brasileiras, NEA, Ribalta Ambi\u00e7\u00e3o, SOS Racismo, TANE-TIMOR e UNA \u2013 Uni\u00e3o Negra das Artes.<\/p>\n

    The assembly thus sought to work on the topics set forth for the CoFoE, namely, \u201cParticipative Democracy\u201d and \u201cValues and rights, state of law, security\u201d. One of the main issues raised was the need to improve internal security for discriminated communities and people, and improve social, medical and economic protection for people belonging to these communities<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

    The Citizens’ Assembly aimed at looking at local and national experiences, in order to develop a project that could shape the future of Europe as a society of the future, characterised by diversity, the guarantee of equal rights and access to these rights, paying particular attention to socially discriminated communities and minorities and the inclusion of these communities not only in consultative processes but also in decision-making processes.<\/p>\n

    The Citizens’ Assembly aimed at looking at local and national experiences, in order to develop a project that could shape the future of Europe as a society of the future, characterised by diversity, the guarantee of equal rights and access to these rights, paying particular attention to socially discriminated communities and minorities and the inclusion of these communities not only in consultative processes but also in decision-making processes.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    Understanding \u201cEurope\u201d as an inclusive and democratic supranational entity, the assembly set up a forum with the objective of thinking about how to include the specific needs and rights of the most fragile communities withing the policy-making processes at the European level, but also at the national and local level, bringing concrete answers to the immediate problems that beset these communities.<\/p>\n

    Our assembly advocated the idea of an inclusive Europe, understood as a welcoming, transnational space and common patrimony<\/strong>. It is pivotal to understand that we live in a network society, in which problems are interconnected and affect all people transversally – but unequally. We believe that the consequences of issues such as climate change or economic crises cannot anymore disproportionally affect already marginalized communities. We believe that right to live in a healthy environment, the right to non-discrimination (regardless if the discrimination is based on racist, economic or gender-identity exclusionary assumptions), the right to affordable housing, healthcare and education as political participation rights cannot remain the privilege of a few but must become the reality of the many. <\/strong><\/p>\n

    \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Photo: the Portuguese National Assembly during the TRANSEUROPA Festival 2022,\u00a0 \u00a9 Natacha Oliveira & Maria Ferreira By J\u00e9ssica Moreira On May 7, the Portuguese Closing…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":20585,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,1,22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20584","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-citizens-rights","category-european-alternatives","category-transnational-activism"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBringing local voices to Strasbourg - The CoFoE in Porto and the experience of the Portuguese National Assembly - European Alternatives<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"fr_FR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bringing local voices to Strasbourg - The CoFoE in Porto and the experience of the Portuguese National Assembly - European Alternatives\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Photo: the Portuguese National Assembly during the TRANSEUROPA Festival 2022,\u00a0 \u00a9 Natacha Oliveira & Maria Ferreira By J\u00e9ssica Moreira On May 7, the Portuguese Closing…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"European Alternatives\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-05-11T14:50:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/52050508149_0e54170484_k.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2048\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1196\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Marta Cillero\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Marta Cillero\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/\",\"name\":\"Bringing local voices to Strasbourg - The CoFoE in Porto and the experience of the Portuguese National Assembly - European Alternatives\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/52050508149_0e54170484_k.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-05-11T14:50:52+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#\/schema\/person\/22a482000088767ac51a1e6286c8ad2b\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"fr-FR\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"fr-FR\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/52050508149_0e54170484_k.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/52050508149_0e54170484_k.jpg\",\"width\":2048,\"height\":1196},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Bringing local voices to Strasbourg – The CoFoE in Porto and the experience of the Portuguese National Assembly\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/\",\"name\":\"European Alternatives\",\"description\":\"Democracy, Equality and Culture beyond the nation\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"fr-FR\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#\/schema\/person\/22a482000088767ac51a1e6286c8ad2b\",\"name\":\"Marta Cillero\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"fr-FR\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7e23f0c5351248c4771d9928f748b58d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7e23f0c5351248c4771d9928f748b58d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Marta Cillero\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Bringing local voices to Strasbourg - The CoFoE in Porto and the experience of the Portuguese National Assembly - European Alternatives","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/","og_locale":"fr_FR","og_type":"article","og_title":"Bringing local voices to Strasbourg - The CoFoE in Porto and the experience of the Portuguese National Assembly - European Alternatives","og_description":"Photo: the Portuguese National Assembly during the TRANSEUROPA Festival 2022,\u00a0 \u00a9 Natacha Oliveira & Maria Ferreira By J\u00e9ssica Moreira On May 7, the Portuguese Closing…","og_url":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/","og_site_name":"European Alternatives","article_published_time":"2022-05-11T14:50:52+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2048,"height":1196,"url":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/52050508149_0e54170484_k.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Marta Cillero","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Marta Cillero","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/","url":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/","name":"Bringing local voices to Strasbourg - The CoFoE in Porto and the experience of the Portuguese National Assembly - European Alternatives","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/52050508149_0e54170484_k.jpg","datePublished":"2022-05-11T14:50:52+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#\/schema\/person\/22a482000088767ac51a1e6286c8ad2b"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"fr-FR","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"fr-FR","@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/52050508149_0e54170484_k.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/52050508149_0e54170484_k.jpg","width":2048,"height":1196},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/bringing-local-voices-to-strasbourg-the-cofoe-in-porto-and-the-experience-of-the-portuguese-national-assembly\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Bringing local voices to Strasbourg – The CoFoE in Porto and the experience of the Portuguese National Assembly"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/","name":"European Alternatives","description":"Democracy, Equality and Culture beyond the nation","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"fr-FR"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#\/schema\/person\/22a482000088767ac51a1e6286c8ad2b","name":"Marta Cillero","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"fr-FR","@id":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7e23f0c5351248c4771d9928f748b58d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7e23f0c5351248c4771d9928f748b58d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Marta Cillero"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20584","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20584"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20584\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20591,"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20584\/revisions\/20591"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20584"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20584"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/euroalter.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20584"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}