EaP CSF Newsletter 

9 May 2016

For the newsletter in Russian, please click here

EaP CSF Steering Committee Held its Meeting in Berlin

Steering Committee (SC) members of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum (EaP CSF) met in Berlin on 18 and 19 April for their second meeting this year. The main points of discussion included the recent developments in the EaP countries, the EaP CSF regranting scheme, the upcoming 8th EaP CSF Annual Assembly on 28-30 November in Brussels, cooperation with bilateral civil society platforms under the Association Agreements, and future joint events for NPs. Members of the Steering Committee also met with representatives from German Federal Foreign Office, think-tanks, foundations and NGOs.

Minutes of the Meeting

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Human Rights and Conflict Resolution in EaP CSF Address at Platform 1 Meeting

EaP CSF Steering Committee Co-chair Krzysztof Bobiński addressed the Eastern Partnership Multilateral Platform I „Democracy, Good Governance and Stability” In the Forum's address, Bobiński stressed the role of human rights in the context of security and stability, discussed the progress and remaining challenges in the EaP states and ephasized the importance of peaceful conflict resolution.

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Application Statistics for 8th Annual Assembley in Brussels

This year's Annual Assembly will be held on 28-30 November in Brussels. We have received more than 530 applications from the EaP countries, EU member states, and other countries. The selection is currently in its first phase - the review by the National Platforms, Working Group Coordinators and the respective EU Delegations. The final list of selected participants will be available on the EaP CSF website in June. We would like to thank all the applicants for their efforts in filling in the application form and their interest to attend the Annual Assembly! You can find the detailed statistics by clicking on the infographic.

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Steering Committee Statements

Statement on Dutch Referendum About EU-Ukraine Association Agreement

The Steering Committee of the EaP CSF underlines that the continuation of the reform process in Ukraine is a key element in strengthening Europe’s common security based on democracy, the rule of law and a free market economy in both the member states as well as in Europe’s Eastern neighbours.

The unfortunate result of the referendum shows that the case for reform in Eastern Europe needs to be made more effectively to public opinion in other member states.

Steering Committee Statement

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National Platforms

Georgian National Platform Meets Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Protection

On 8 April 2016 together with the Office of the State Minister of Georgia on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, the Georgian National Platform organized a sectoral meeting between the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Protection of Georgia and the Georgian National platform, pursuant to the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Government of Georgia and the EaP CSF Georgian National Platform.

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Belarusian National Platform Meeting Held in Minsk

The EaP CSF Belarusian National Platform (BNP) held its meeting at the conference "Development of the National Platform: new strategies" on 23 April in Minsk. Decisions on the future BNP strategy were adopted. The BNP strategy would primarely be focused on expansion of civil society participation in the EU-Belarus dialogue, cooperation with the EU in terms of democratization and Europeanization of Belarus, broadening of dialogue with the Belarusian authorities, expanding capacity, coordination, and consolidation of the civil society.

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Ukrainian National Platform Statement on Human Rights Situation Crimea

Restricted access to Crimea and intimidation of the local population by the de facto authorities of Crimea have recently made gathering of objective information on the actual situation very difficult. Ukrainian National Platform (UA NP) expresses full support for the demand to ensure unimpeded access to Crimea for international missions, independent experts, human rights activists and media. UA NP also proposes to pay more attention to breaches of not only individual human rights but also of the collective rights of indigenous peoples of Crimea – first and foremost, those of the Crimean Tatars.

Ukrainian National Platform Statement

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Events

Panel Discussion "Dialogue between Citizens and Institutions in Belarus - the Way Forward?"

The European Association for Local Democracy (ALDA) in close cooperation with MEP Bogdan Zdrojewski, the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum and its Belarusian National Platform, CORLEAP, Centre for European Transformation and Lev Sapieha Foundation organised a panel discussion entitled "Dialogue between Citizens and Institutions in Belarus - the Way Forward?" The event took place at the European Parliament (EP) on 26 April 2016. Representatives from Belarusian National Platform and EU institutions shared their insights on fostering a meaningful dialogue between authorities and civil society in Belarus.

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Lidia Gromadzka Joins EaP CSF Secretariat as Administrative Manager

Before joining the EaP CSF Secretariat, Lidia Gromadzka worked as Project Manager at a Brussels-based NGO European Friends of Armenia (EuFoA) where she was responsible for managing project activities and logistics, as well as event management. Previously she gained experience in foreign policy as a Research Assistant at the French Ministry of Defence focusing on Russia’s foreign and energy policy and as a trainee at the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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Upcoming Meetings and Deadlines

10 May 2016: EU-Moldova Civil Society Platform, Brussels

11 May 2016: Working Group 5 Council meeting, Brussels

12 May 2016: EaP Platform 2 - Economic Integration & Convergence with EU policies, Brussels

13 May 2016: Working Group 2 Council meeting, Brussels

23 May 2016: EaP Ministerial Foreign Affairs meeting, Brussels

1-2 June 2016: Working Group 1 meeting, Brussels

1,3 June 2016: Working Group 1 Council meeting, Brussels

3-4 June 2016: Steering Committee meeting, Brussels