ATHENS (NNA) – An end to austerity and the demand for true democracy are the focus of an “Athens Manifesto” adopted at the beginning of June at an alternative summit in the Greek capital.  Civil society activists from 22 countries had gathered in Athens to bring the protest movements from the different countries around the table to discuss transnational strategies.

“The cradle of democarcy is not its tomb” the press statement released after the summit proclaims. The Alter Summit in Athens had been a step forward in the building of more convergence between movements opposed to the current “anti-social and anti-ecological policies promoted by European governments and institutions”, the Alter Summit website says.

The Athens Manifesto was prepared over a period of six months by the 189 member organisations of alter Summit, a network that includes feminist movements, environmentalists, anti-globalization movements, many local solidarity groups, precarious workers and ‘indignado’/occupy movements, networks of critical intellectuals and a large number of national and European trade unions.

The manifesto presented a broad platform for trade unions and social movements with a short list of common and urgent demands on which they had decided to focus their struggles, the press release adds. Furthermore, it was the first time a major European gathering had been convened not to write a text, but to define strategies for actions and for genuine change in the balance of power, based on a consensus already accepted: “This Manifesto underscores the existence of alternatives to build a social, ecological, feminist and democratic Europe.”.

“The tragic situation caused by austerity measures in Greece shows that another Europe is urgently needed. The success of the Athens Alter Summit meeting shows that another Europe is possible,” the network says.

The next step was for member-organizations to examine these proposals and decide which ones would be shared priorities. Prominent among them were actions at the European level against austerity and the "Fiscal Pact", the policies and mandate of the ECB, the gradual privatization of public health care service and “the rise of both a new populist and neo-nazist right”.

The participants at the Alter also expressed their solidarity against the closure of the Greek public broadcaster.

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Item: 130626-01EN Date: 26 June 2013

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