Ethics, transparency and politics
In close co-operation with the City of Strasbourg, the Council of Europe’s Directorate General of Democracy and Political Affairs is holding a week of exchanges and discussions on the subject of Ethics, transparency and politics in Strasbourg from 27 June to 1 July 2011. Two events will focus on the various aspects of the subject: the 6th Summer University for Democracy and an international colloquy on transparency and public ethics.
The Summer University for Democracy organised by the Council of Europe for its Network of Schools of Political Studies will be extended this year with an international colloquy held jointly with the City and Urban Community of Strasbourg, the University of Pau and the French national centre for local and regional public service (CNFPT).
Some 1 000 national and local elected representatives, local and regional officials, voluntary sector leaders, media professionals and business leaders are expected in Strasbourg for the two events.
Many leading European and international figures have been invited by the Council of Europe and the City of Strasbourg, including Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Pat Cox, former President of the European Parliament, Chris Patten, Chancellor of the University of Oxford, Philippe Richert, French Minister for Local and Regional Authorities, Joschka Fischer, former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany and Chair of the Council of Europe’s Group of Eminent Persons, Peter Ackerman, founding Chair of the International Centre on Nonviolent Conflict, Emma Bonino, Deputy Speaker of the Italian Senate, Martin Hirsch, former head of the French agency for active solidarity to combat poverty and Chair of the French agency for civic service, Roland Ries, member of the French Senate and Mayor of Strasbourg, Adam Michnik, Catherine Lalumière, Sylvie Kauffmann and Edwy Plenel, among others.
Democracy is based on trust. Citizens who delegate their sovereignty when they vote must be assured in return of the integrity of their elected representatives and public servants. How can a climate of trust be established between citizens and their leaders? How can voter apathy be combated? Can education help overcome the ethical deficit? How can politics, business and the media be protected against the constant quest for profit?
Politics must provide answers to the above questions so as to preserve the democratic system. It is the guarantor of ethics at all levels of public life, starting at the local level. That is where ordinary citizens become involved on a daily basis as stakeholders in public life – which raises two key questions concerning the delimitation of roles between citizens and political leaders and the limits of transparency.
Representatives of the 16 schools of political studies, the school of local democracy in the western Balkans and the school of political studies of Strasbourg-Ortenau Eurodistrict will take part in the international colloquy.
The two events organised by the Council of Europe’s Directorate General of Democracy and Political Affairs and the City of Strasbourg will complement each other in terms of the issues addressed and the participants invited and will be the forerunners to the Strasbourg International Forum for Democracy, which will be held for the first time in 2012.
The forum is set to become an annual global event on the challenges and trends of democracy in Europe and worldwide, like the World Economic Forum in Davos and the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre.
6th Summer University for Democracy - Programme
3rd International Colloquy - Programme and registration
