Dear Comrades,
Although the stock markets continue to break all records and despite the evidence of skyrocketing European economies mass unemployment still prevades.
While in fact having pushed on with dereglementory policies, the European Union today claims to have drafted a »Charter of Basic Rights«. We are in fact experiencing the destruction of social protection systems and public services consequentially allowing for continuous insecurity of employment terms and conditions in addition to precarity of wages. At the same time the jobless are being held guilty for not working and thus being the cause of social exclusion.
We are convinced that there will never be any respect for fundamental rights without a distribution of wealth. The best way to achieve this goal is to organise and coordinate massive demonstrations of European citizens.
We, the associations of the unemployed together with trade unionists in this struggle against exclusion, together we declare open war on unemployment, job insecurity and social exclusion.
Throughout Europe we are working hard to mobilise the unemployed, those on short-term contracts, the salaried as well as all those ready and willing to fight with us to change European public opinion and force political and economic decision makers to carry out concrete and radical measures. At the same time we hope that those left forces represented in this forum will be our allies.
We summon the EU to take notice of the demands of the movements engaged in the fight against unemployment and social exclusement as set out in our »Charter for Social and Basic European Rights« - (which may be found here in printed form). We demand, without further delay, an immediate and significant extension and raise of minimum incomes and benefits for the unemployed throughout Europe.
We stand for a democratic Europe: open, supportive, a Europe that respects the environment, a Europe without discrimination, racism, national chauvinism or frontiers. We stand for an Europe of equal civic and political rights for all people regardless of origin.
We demand:
- an income allowing each and every person a decent standard of living without discrimination of age, sex or origin or of any other form of selective discrimination
- the creation of new jobs with guaranteed salaries and stable terms and conditions of work that are both socially and ecologically beneficial
- immediate general and massive reduction in working hours with the goal of job creation without loss of salary or purchasing power, without flexibility or annualisation
Together with all mentioned associations, trade unions and political forces we will continue to mobilise to show that European neo-liberal logic and it's effects are not a »logical« future.
On behalf of the Secretariat of the European Marches I want to say thank you to the organizing party for the opportunity to participate in this forum. We hope very much that this meeting will be the startingpoint for a close and successful cooperation.
