6th Summer University for Democracy
The 6th Summer University for Democracy represents the highlight of the long efforts of the past year of the 16 Schools of Political Studies, which are engaged in the political education and networking of mid-career and young leaders from politics, business, media and civil society. The Network of Schools of Political Studies, which is now 20 years old, counts thousands of Alumni and represents the strongest network of young leaders in Europe.
FINAL DECLARATION
We, the participants of the 6th Summer University for Democracy, gathered in Strasbourg at the Council of Europe from 27 to 29 June 2011 declare that:
The world in general, and Europe in particular, are faced with citizens’ mistrust of their leaders and political institutions, influenced by a deficit of ethics in the relations between politics and business, as well as politics and the media.
The challenges we identified during the debates of the Summer University reflect the ideas expressed in the report of the Group of Eminent Persons “Living Together: Combining Diversity and Freedom in 21st Century Europe”. We believe that there is no democracy without diversity. The Schools will use the report as a tool to disseminate the fundamental values, such as freedom, tolerance and cultural diversity, among the decision- and opinion-makers in our countries.
We have chosen the theme of “Ethics and politics” for this Summer University, as we consider that active citizenship and good governance must be reinforced, in order to strengthen institutions and make the decision-making process more responsible and accountable.
Our debates concentrated on the necessity of restoring trust between the main actors of public life and the people, a prerequisite for the protection of democratic societies, from the threat of corruption, criminalisation of states, populism and nationalism. The emergence of new media and social networking create a new environment for the exercise of the freedom of expression, independent media and ethics.
Democratic societies, as well as democracies in transition, must be protected from greed, corruption and trafficking of various kinds. Political leaders have a responsibility to act in conformity with the fundamental values of the Council of Europe, in particular in full respect of its European Convention on Human Rights and other binding instruments for the protection and promotion of freedoms and human rights.
At the global level, we call on leaders to fully respect the universal principles and values expressed in the UN Charter for Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
During the 6th Summer University for Democracy, we welcomed the participants and leaders who are fighting for freedom and who are engaged in the transition to democracy and would like to express our solidarity with the peoples of North Africa and the Middle East.
We welcome and support their quest for democracy, human rights and the rule of law and call on European and world leaders to take action to support the pro-democratic movements born from the “Arab Spring” and to assist in a peaceful democratic transition.
We extend our gratitude to the institutions and local authorities, whose unswerving commitment makes it possible for us to hold the Summer University for Democracy every year, in particular the Council of Europe, the French Government, the City of Strasbourg and the Regional Council of Alsace.
We, the participants of the 6th Summer University, welcome the proposal to hold, as from 2012, the International Forum for Democracy in Strasbourg, the capital of peace and reconciliation.
We are very proud that our Network of Schools of Political Studies and the Summer University will constitute the core of this large-scale international event. We believe that the future Forum will strengthen the global debate on democracy and contribute to expanding and reinforcing the School’s Network.
29 June 2011
