General Motion EUMANS 2023

The annual Eumans congress was held in Gdansk, Poland, on March 17-19, 2023, as part of the “Citizens Summit - Democracy, Ecology and Liberty beyond borders: for a pan-European government program”.

Marco Cappato and Virginia Fiume were elected as co-presidents.
 

Below, you can find the General Motion Voted by the Congress. Follow this link for the political materials related to the Citizens Summit

 

ENGLISH VERSION 


The second Congress of Eumans, held within the “Citizens Summit -  Democracy, Ecology and Liberty beyond Borders”, commits the movement to promote direct, participatory and deliberative democracy through civic initiatives and nonviolence at a pan-European level. The Congress Takes note of the introductory presentations of its two co-presidents.

The Congress expresses its gratitude and support for the work promoted by the leadership of the movement during the last 12 months. More specifically, it appreciates the expansion of the network of contacts which has facilitated the coordination and preparation of different European groups and organisations. Their aim was to co-design a set of proposals to govern pressing issues at a pan-European level.

The Congress thanks the leaders and members of European Alternatives and the coalition Citizens Take Over Europe for their active participation in the preparatory phases of the Civic Summit in Bologna and in its plenary session, and for their contribution in structuring debates and European initiatives. Moreover, the Congress thanks all individuals, groups, and political movements who contributed to the preparatory works. 

The last year has been a crucial test for the European Union, its institutions, and its civil society as the war against Ukraine continued. The Congress believes that, though still necessary, there cannot be a military solution for a durable and sustainable peace in Ukraine and around Central and Eastern Europe if political and justice-related responses will not be put in place swiftly. 

To this end, the Congress re-launches Eumans’ appeal EUkrainenow.eu for the immediate inclusion of Ukraine into the European Union, to strengthen democracy across the board and open the doors for civic and democratic participation of the Ukrainian people in the European decision-making process. The Congress invites participants and attendees to share the appeal all over the continent to urge the EU Council and Commission to accelerate the accession process.

The Congress welcomes the work done by Ukrainian, international, and independent investigators to document and map the widespread and systematic violations of International Humanitarian Law in Ukraine. It also welcomes the indictment of Wladimir Putin for war crimes issued on March 17 by the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court

At the same time, the Congress renovates Eumans appeal to the Ukrainian institutions to recognize the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, in order to allow trials in the Hague to start without delay. The Congress encourages the participation of Ukrainian citizens in the synchronized initiatives for a pan-European government of Europe.

The Congress is concerned that on war, ecological issues, personal self-determination, as well as on the rescue and reception of thousands of people fleeing their countries to escape conflicts, persecutions, discrimination, famine, poverty, or who wish to build a better future elsewhere, the EU has not always responded swiftly or in line with the institutional obligations stemming from the dozens of international instrument of human rights that we recognize as our bill of rights

If the European Parliament has been heard in its vocal criticism of inadequate, if not illegal, behaviors of the Council, the Commission and several Member States, civil society recommendations, starting from those adopted by the Conference on the Future of Europe, have been bureaucratically accepted but not taken into serious political consideration. 

The Congress does not believe that vox populi is vox dei, but it is convinced that civil society can play a more comprehensive role in suggesting concrete political proposals also on issues that may not be allowed by the instrument of the European Citizens’ Initiatives.

The Congress welcomes the quality of the three-day debate in Gdansk and the proposals shared during the discussions. At the same time, it urges the leadership of Eumans to take stock of this heritage to complement the proposals that have been agreed upon by participants.

The Congress believes that no participatory instrument provided by the EU should be left unused. A combination of European initiatives - be they European Citizens Initiatives, self-organised citizens’ assemblies, direct actions of civil disobedience, and other forms of nonviolent initiatives coordinated all around Europe - can attract people and organizations who wish to actively consolidate the international Rule of Law and the respect of fundamental human rights for those living inside the EU or at its borders.

The Congress acknowledges the importance of an adequate follow-up to the Conference on the Future of Europe as an innovative reformative citizens-led process which can offer new legitimacy to citizens proposals. Furthermore, it urges the maximum possible cooperation and coordination to promote - as a "package" of pan-European reforms - initiatives through an ecosystem of direct and participatory democracy processes.


European Citizens Initiatives and pan-Eeuropean actions:

  • Strengthening European Democracy
  • Exiting fossil fuels by 2035
  • Adopting a human-rights-centered approach to Cannabis
  • Recognizing Voluntary Assisted Dying as a Human Right
  • Introducing Abortion as a EU fundamental right



Support to existing European Citizens Initiatives:

 

Acknowledging that participatory democracy reaches its peak during elections, the Congress urges Eumans' leadership to promote an exploratory committee to take into consideration the possibility of promoting electoral lists for the 2024 European elections in as many EU Member States as possible, building on the experience, expertise, people, and organizations met in the last year. Those lists, or candidacy in existing or new political groupings, should adopt the 'set of of proposals' as the basis of an electoral platform and commitments for political activities once elected.

The Congress invites everyone who has joined the meeting in Gdansk or who shares the proposals of this motion to join Eumans for the next year.

 

CITIZENS SUMMIT statement 

After three days of discussions, the Citizens’ Summit invites all interested persons to become part of the exploratory Committee of the pan-European government plan coordinated by Eumans and European Alternatives. 

Individuals and/or organizations are invited to express their interest or support for the comprehensive reform plan and/or for one or selected European Citizens Initiatives and contribute to the comprehensive strategy, campaigning, programming, and fundraising activities. 

The Citizens’ Summit urges all interested persons to share the outcome of the Gdansk event with the list of initiatives with a view of strengthening and/or expanding existing networks. The objective is to collaborate towards the collection of signatures on one or more European Citizens Initiatives or to pursue the same goals enshrined in the initiatives through other activities.

The Citizens’ Summit urges all interested persons to share the outcome of the Gdansk event with the list of initiatives with a view of strengthening and/or expanding existing networks to collaborate towards the preparation to collect signatures on one or more European Citizens Initiatives or to pursue the same goals enshrined in the initiatives through other activities. 
 

VOTING PROCEDURES:

Rules of proceduresOrder of the worksBudget