CONTRIBUTION OF AUSTRIA TO THE THEME YOUTH PARTICIPATION
10/08/1998
Mr.Chairman,First of all let me thank the Portuguese authorities for the invitation and congratulate for the excellent preparation of the conference in co-operation with the United Nation's Youth Unit and other UN services.
As you probably know Austria took over her first EU-Presidency for the second half of this year. This gives us the opportunity to set specific priorities and influence the field of European youth policy sustainably.
One of the main priorities of the Austrian Youth Ministry is Youth Participation in all fields of society.
Our goal to reach is as follows:
Austria's strong motivation to choose Participation as priority in the youth policy field was the positive message of the UN -Convention on the Rights of the Child, which clearly states the importance of youth participation as one of the three main topics of the Convention.
But even then we- here in Europe- can't solve the existing problems nicely like unemployment or the demographic disbalance between an decreasing number of young people and an increasing number of people over the age of 60.
Therefore I clearly point out, that we cannot accept the fact, that young people have to become first a minority before we - as adults -are ready to take over responsibility to protect their interests!
What can youth policy do in its responsible fields to guarantee the necessary measures for participation of young people?
Youth policy - from my point of view - has to put efforts on two levels equally and simultaneously:
1. We need a new quality of policy for young people:
That means that in future political measures must be looked into their youth impact.
Youth interests must be embodied in the concrete political work!
2. We need a new quality of policy created by young people:
The voices of young people should be heard aloud in the framework of new forms of institutionalized as well as new forms of open possibilities for participation! We have to make some efforts to prepare the preconditions for concrete forms of youth participation in relevant fields of our society!
The preparation Austrias as far as her main theme Youth Participation is concerned took place at various levels during the last two years:
In Austria there started some pilot projects and initiatives to open channels for youth participation at local and national levels. An interesting example for this good practice was the concept of regional activities, where governmental representatives and decision makers were informed by young initiatives about their whishes and proposals towards the development of participation in various sectors of their daily life.
At federal level I want to stress the emphasis on the creation of the so called Austrian Youth Forum, which consists of 12 young people , the winners of an Austrian competition on the theme participation which took place last year. The members of the Austrian Youth Forum and the Austrian Federal Youth Council are the most important advisory bodies for the Austrian Youth Minister to collect new ideas concerning youth participation and other relevant questions.
Austria prepared a draft proposal for a resolution on youth participation for discussion in the Youth Group of the European Council with the aim to put forward the negotiated draft: to the Youth Council of the European Union under the Austrian chairmanship in November 1998 . For the time being the draft is going to be examined by the relevant bodies of the EU and its member states.
Two young people, appointed by the participants of the European Youth Participation Conference, which I shall refer to immediately, will also have the opportunity to be guests in the framework of the Youth Group meeting of the European Council in autumn this year.
Austria is also very active in the implementation of the Voluntary Service pilot action of the European Commission. The pilot phase with a duration of two years finishes very soon and European Voluntary Service will become a regular programme for young people of the European Union in future. The main goal of this programme is the character of mobility for all young people between 18 and 25.
A preliminary budget for the next two years until the year 2000 was fixed by 47,5 Million ECU.
Mr.Chairman,
dear delegates,
I have been asked to present a short overview of the outcome of the above mentioned European Youth Participation Congress, which took place from the 1st to the 3 rd July 1998 at Graz, Austria.
The objective of this congress was the elaboration of results on three different aspects of participation : the political one, the economic one and the enlargement of the EU due to their meaning for European youth.
The congress was attended by about 120 people, mainly young people from youth organisations and NGO's, civil servants , politicians and journalists from the 15 EU-member states and other European countries like Slovenia, Cech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Norway. The European Commission and the European Parliament as well as the Commissioner Madame Cresson and the Austrian Minister responsible for the Environment, Youth and Family Affairs Mr. Bartenstein were present.
Let me now highlight a few important results elaborated by the young participants of the working groups of the European Participation Congress at Graz last month. Some of the results do not necessarily cover the official Austrian governmental position but reflects the whole picture of democratic decision making processes during the above mentioned congress which also includes the standpoints of NGO's.
Let me start with the specification of the results:
The right to vote - at age 16
The balance between rights and responsibilities at different ages seems incoherent. There should be consistency between the age of voting and other adult rights. The age of entitlement to vote in elections (local, national and European) should be lowered to 16.
Ombudsperson for youth
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child has, at present, been ratified by 191 countries including all member states of the EU. The convention is unique in that it is the first legally binding international instrument of its kind. The main topics of the convention are provision, protection and participation. In the convention, children's rights are primarily described as responsibilities imposed on the government. That is why this convention, in combination with the,,United Nation's World programme of Action for Youth to the Year 2000 and beyond" can be used excellently for the implementation of youth policy on a national and local level.
The proposal for an installment of an ombudsperson for youth could support the supervision and protection of the active use of these rights at local, national and European level.
In a number of European countries special ombudsmen/ombudswomen are already taking care of children's and youth affairs. By establishing an Ombudsman System for Children and Adolescents -at the federal level as well as in each all of the nine Austrian provinces - Austria has created a comprehensive ombudsmen network for young people.
Representative structures/organisations for young people at all levels
Adequate funding and secure establishment is precondition for independent and autonomous youth structures.
The development of political education programmes encourages the development of active youth participation.
Consultations in decision making and involvement of young people in the implementation of policy making at all levels and in all forms of political institutions should be on the political agenda.
Enabling young people to become active citizens
Active economic participation is a basic right for young people , and schemes to guarantee the implementation of that right should continue to be developed.
Active citizenship should not only include direct active participation in the workforce, but also contributing to the economic and social well-being of communities and society at large through voluntary activities, community service and involvement in associations which promote personal and social development.
Education, formal as well as informal one, should strengthen young people's capacity for active citizenship and their ability to make informed choices about their present and future lives as well as the choice to participate.
Information (Media)
Free public access to (new) media forms should be provided for young people. Young people should be involved in the creation of media programmes such as radio- and television programmes and internet sites. Also self-productions of these kinds of programmes should be promoted.
Partnerships between government and business should be developed to ensure, that young people have access to information technology hardware.
The internet system could be used as a communication tool to exchange ideas, experiences and projects. This creates a platform for exchange of thoughts.
Youth Exchange
The participants of the Participation Congress propose the establishment of an European Observatory to monitor the implementation of the EU- mobility programmes.
New approaches to youth initiatives should be introduced to guarantee the widest possible youth participation.
Steps should be taken to eliminate barriers - social, legal, cultural and administrative - to mobility programmes for young people.
There is a need for an enhanced exchange of young people in Europe, especially the opening of the EU-programmes towards youth of Central-and Eastern Europe is an important aim.
Education/ recognition of Diploma
The promotion of complementarity and mutual recognition of educational qualifications at a broader level should be intensified.
Formal and non-formal education should be recognised as complementarity means of facilitating the development of young people's capacity for active citizenship including economic participation. A system of certification of participation in educational projects as well as a cross border recognition of these projects should be guaranteed.
European Dimension
Equal opportunities for social and economic mobility and participation should be offered young people.
Youth must play an essential role at different levels of decision making process regarding the EU-enlargement to the East, in order to develop and consolidate a greater understanding of various aspects of European life.
The step-by step- enlargement of the EU shall bring us middle- and long term advantages as far as the economic, cultural and peacekeeping aspects are concerned.
A very important tool to reach this goal is to reduce fear and prejudices on the one hand and to encourage the dialogue between young people all over Europe on the other hand.
The enthusiasm and the interest of young people for Europe let me hope, that in future we won't have only a Europe of the politicians, a Europe of the experts and managers, but a Europe of citizens, who will participate actively, equally and self confidentially on the project Europe.
Youth Impact Statement
Young people are among the most powerless group in society, and often have very limited opportunities to influence key decisions which effect them.
Youth impact statements, which consider the affect, policy has on young people, should be a fundamental and legal pre-requisite to policy making. This would make it a requirement for policy makers to actively consult and seek out wishes and feelings of young people on various policy issues.
Mr.Chairman,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Allow me to draw following conclusions:
Youth participation- as a political issue- chosen by the Austrian EU-Presidency, is seen as a measure to put in concrete terms the overall intention of the Treaty of Amsterdam: active citizenship, transparency of EU-policies and relevance to the citizen. The treaty wants to stregthen the political principle of European citizenship, which includes the prohibition of discrimination due to age.
The main rational of youth participation does not lie in young people being young but in young people being citizens.
Participation of any citizen of a democratic society should be self evident. Participation is about taking responsibilities on both sides, and mutual respect as well as mutual commitment are indispensable preconditions for successful participation.
More participation of young people creates great opportunities and chances where all aspects of society are concerned.
Thank you very much for your attention!