Lagumdzija, took part in the Plenary Debate “Populations on the Move: Leveraging New Opportunities for Dialogue”. Against the backdrop of a refugee crisis and with an increasing number of people on the move across the region, main challenges but also strategic opportunities for renewed partnership and intercultural dialogue were explored during the session, highlighting a conversation about the potential of shared societies.
He gave a definition of what the concept of Shared Societies implies and how and why this idea is helpful in any mid and long term solution for the migratory crisis. In addition to this, the Club de Madrid Member stressed the need for focusing on our shared values and abandon double standards and the so-called realpolitik in order to build a better world.
‘We need 2get rid of double standards 9.5 million pple live in #Jordan, 3.5M are refugees. Can u imagine #Europe being hit by 150M refugees? pic.twitter.com/tpUnPapeeE
CLUBdeMADRID (@CLUBdeMADRID) October 25, 2016
What is #sharedsocieties? ‘A society where people can live together united in their differencies & identities’ #MEDFORUM2016 @LagumdzijaZ pic.twitter.com/lMCF7hsmZG
CLUBdeMADRID (@CLUBdeMADRID) October 25, 2016
Prime Minister Jomaa intervened in the inaugual session. He made clear that education, values and youth are instrumental in the process of preventing violent extremism. “The investment in education is the most important. This is a new political logic with a future vision”, said Mr Jomaa to the Mediterranean Forum gathered in Malta. He also made the link between education, politics and future,
“The investment in education is the most important. This is a new political logic with a future vision” @Mehdi_Jomaa @ #MedForum2016 #PVE
CLUBdeMADRID (@CLUBdeMADRID) October 24, 2016
Both Jomaa and Lagumdzija added to the conversation the main ideas of the two projects in which they both respectively participate at the Club de Madrid: Preventing Violent Extremism and the Shared Societies Project.
The first one aims at strengthening counter-narrative messaging. The objective is to improve national and regional responses to violent extremist threats by developing positive narratives using media tools and evidence-based findings. The project was launched last September 28th in Brussels. The Shared Societies project promotes an inclusive society in which all individuals hold equal status and are free to express their differences while integrating their voices within the broader population. It respect’s everyone’s dignity and human rights while providing every individual with equal opportunity.
CdM’s Preventing Violent Extremism project as well as Shared Society project –which has ten years of experience dealing with issues of intergroup relations and achieving positive social integration- contribute on issues such as integration and inclusion, policies for managing relations between refugees and host communities, the application of the Ten Shared Societies Commitments to refugee issues, prevention of extremism and violence, and building cohesive societies.
In this context, it is vital the role of political leadership in advocating for positive policies for shared society against the backdrop of certain political and media narratives advocating for closure in the face of issues on international migration, and the Anna Lindh Forum aims to accelerate and scale-up the impact and reach of intercultural action to counter forces fuelling polarisation and extremism.
Among the participants will be the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova; the Secretary General of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Lamberto Zannier; Facebook’s Lead Policy manager for Counterterrorism, Brian Fishman; and a member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies on the Foreign Affairs Committee, Khalid Chaouki, among others.
The Secretary General of the Club de Madrid, Maria Elena Agüero, will also participate in the outcome session tomorrow Tuesday explaining the main outputs of the forum along with the Executive Director of the Anna Lindh Foundation, Hatem Atallah, the Director for Global Strategic Communication at EEAS, and other experts.
