Projects - Relations with European Institutions
Chair:
Gabriela Frey, gabriela.frey(at)free.fr
Statement of project mission:
EU-COMMITTEE of the European Buddhist Union
The EBU-Committee for European Affairs is responsible for relations with different European Institutions, such as the European Parliament and the Council of Europe. Its main task is to organize work within the frame of the participatory status in the Council of Europe.
The EBU officially obtained participatory status on 29 October 2008. All details of the rules governing participatory Status can be found on: www.coe.int
Members of the EU-Committee of the EBU:
- Gabriela Frey – Chair of the EU Committee, representative to the Council of Europe
- Frans Goethgebeur – President of EBU
- Maria-Angela Fala – Vice President of EBU
- Hans-Erich Frey – Vice-President of the German Buddhist Union
- Parami – Member of EBU
Some information about the Participatory Status in the Council of Europe
The Council of Europe in Strasbourg recognized the importance of Independent non-governmental organisations (INGOs) and gave them the opportunity to acquire consultative status. The Council initiated dialogue with INGOs to meet a three-fold need: to know the views and aspirations of European citizens; to provide direct representation for them; to publicize its own activities through these associations, 417 of which now hold participatory status.
The Council of Europe co-operates with INGOs in all bodies of its organizational structure: the Committee of Ministers; the Parliamentary Assembly; and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council Europe, as well as its Programme of Activities.
Co-operation takes many forms, from simple consultation to full-scale collaboration on specific projects. INGO experts may participate as consultants in various studies or contribute to the work of intergovernmental committees on an ad hoc basis; prepare memoranda for the Secretary General; make oral or written statements to the Parliamentary Assembly's Committees and to the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities; address colloquies, seminars and other meetings organised by the Council of Europe. INGOs report back to the public on progress in Council of Europe projects in their sphere, while making their own expert advice available to the Council.
There are 4 annual Plenary Conferences per year that all INGOs with participatory status may attend.
The meetings in 2010 will be:
- 25 - 28 January
- 26 - 28 April
- 21 - 24 June
- 4 - 6 October
In November 2008 the EBU had a first informal meeting with the Liaison Office of the Council of Europe to identify those fields in which the EBU has most interest, and which would be the most beneficial.
The first Council Meeting of the EBU took place in January 2009 in Strasbourg during the first Annual Conference of the Council of Europe. Fields for our further collaboration have been discussed and summarized.
There are 8 Committees in which participation of the EBU could be possible:
INGO Standing Committee, Human Rights Committee, Culture, Science and Education Committee, Civil Society and Democracy Committee, Social Cohesion and Eradication of Poverty Committee, Sustainable Territorial Development Committee, Gender Equality Transversal Group, and the Europe & Global Challenges Transversal Group
10 INGO groupings are set up at the instigation of those INGOs which share an interest in a particular area of activity and wish to pool their ideas and energies: -
Civil Society, Countryside & Environment, Education & Culture, Extreme Poverty & Social Cohesion, Gender Equality, Health, Human Rights, NGO Towns, North-South Dialogue & Solidarity, European Social Charter and Social Policies.
To start work, the Chair of the EU-Committee suggests working closer with the Science and Education Committee and the Human Rights Committee. Both have Working Groups concerning religious dimension and religious diversity and exchange. For example an important “White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue”, part of which was dedicated to the religious dimension, was elaborated in May 2008.
Every member of the EBU is invited to go to the Web page of the Council of Europe www.coe.int to see where his or her personal interests are, and to inform Gabriela Frey in which Committee he or she would like to work gabriela.frey(at)free.fr.
It should be clearly understood that to sign up for a Commission involves a commitment to be present 4 times a year in Strasbourg.
