arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)

Education is not for sale!
http://www.education-is-not-for-sale.org

ref.: Preparatory meeting for european counter-summit to the EU-conference of the ministers of education in September 2003

Bonn; January 11th 2003
Dear activists,

Like you might have heard already several student organisations and groups want to organise an counter-summit to the official EU-conference of the ministers of education, which will take place in Berlin on 18th
to 19th of September this year. We started the discussion about this in the first European Social Forum in Florence 2002. We also see this counter-summit as a preparation for the next ESF in Paris in November.

The official summit is announced as a Bologna follow-up
(http://www.berlin-bologna2003.de) and the policy of privatisation and commodification and the european harmonisation in this sense will surely be intensified on this occasion. Therefore we need to express students protest. But also we will have to continue our own discussion about our concepts of progressive education and what aims the european student
movement takes as answers to neoliberal reforms.

How to organise and arrange this counter-summit we want to discuss with you on an european level on Saturday the 8th February at 10.00h in the Free University of Brussels, student unions office. Everybody is invited, it is an open meeting.

Agenda:

1.Introduction and presentation of the participants

2.General idea of the counter summit
- aims
- name
- supporters
- fficial summit

3.Program
- workshops
- plenaries
- demonstration

4.Practical things/organisation
- coordination
- media group, legal teams
- accommodation, registration
- finances
- website

5.
Participation in the Anti-GATS-Demonstration on 9th February in Brussels

To get information about accommodation (you must register for that; meeting point on Friday is between 7.00 p.m. and 9.00 pm (and not all the day): Bd Lemonnier 171, 1000 Brussels; it´s a 10 minutes walk from the "Gare du midi"; please use the second contact) from Friday to Saturday, how to get there and to the University please contact:
Benjamin Pestieau under: bpestieau@swing.be

For further information about the meeting and registration for accommodation:
meetingbrussels@education-is-not-for-sale.org

or call: 0049-160-98307609 (mobile; Ole Erdmann)

in solidarity,

Benjamin Pestieau Ole Erdmann René Schuijlenburg Sacha Ismail
(Belgium) (Germany) (Germany/Netherlands) (UK)

February 9: anti-GATS demo in Brussels

On February 8 there will be a meeting of the Education is not for sale network in Brussels. We want to discuss the Demo on February 9, the international action day against GATS and for free education ( Education not profit!) at March 13 and last but not least the protests and forum during the Bologna follow-up conference of the European education ministers in Berlin (September 2003). Sleeping places will be provided. Read the invitation (at the bottom) on this page.

We hope you are all mobilising for the international demonstration against the GATS in Brussels on February 9th. The demonstration starts from the Brussels North station at 2pm. There will be an education block as well. Look for the banner with the text "Education is not for sale" and/or call our information telephone.

More information (telephonenumbers etc.) on this page very soon.

European Demonstration against GATS

February 9, 02.00 PM

Railway station Brussels North, Brussels, Belgium

For the education block :
Look for the banner with the slogan education is not for sale

Are multinationals going to manage our schools, hospitals and our water distribution ?
Will they be allowed, in the name of free trade, to take governments to court because of measures taken to protect workers, health or the environment?

This threat to every citizen will become a reality if the current negotiations of the GATS - General Agreement on Trade in Services are not pushed in a different direction.
GATS negotiations are taking place in the World Trade Organisation with the participation of the European Union and its memberstates.

Before the end of March the European Union must present a list of its services that it is willing to offer for liberalisation. Trade Unions, NGOs and social movements want to hold our politicians to their responsibilities.

Therefore we will take to the streets of Brussels on February 9th demanding:

To protect the right to public services, accessible to everyone, in North and South

To suspend the negotiations on liberalisation of services in order to assess the social, environmental and gender impacts of the current and proposed liberalisation

Transparency in the GATS negotiations, democratic control and access to all negotiation documents

To rule the public services out of the GATS: services such as education, public health, water, communication, electricity, transport and security cannot be the subject of international competition

To preserve the right of countries to regulate public utilities and to implement public regulations e.g. in order to achieve social and environmental objectives and preserve public health services.

To end the pressures put on developing countries and the environment

To guarantee accessible quality social protection based on solidarity

http://www.education-is-not-for-sale.org