Final Declaration of the 20th Conference of the European Foundation Center
Rome Conference participants highlight the need to respect human rights
Rome, May 16, 2009 – At the closing session of the 20th Annual Conference of the European Foundation Center (CEF), delegates approved, by acclamation, a declaration confirming their agreement with the sentiments expressed by Giorgio Napolitano, President of the Italian Republic, in the opening session of May 14, mainly with regard to the growing dangers of xenophobia and intolerance.
European Foundation Center (CEF)
Conference Statement – Rome, May 16, 2009
We, as participants in the Annual Conference of the European Foundation Center, are pleased to meet in Rome. Our conference addressed issues of poverty and social exclusion. We were very excited by the speech of the President of the Republic of Italy, Giorgio Napolitano, at the opening session of our conference, during which he warned of the growing dangers of xenophobia and intolerance. However, it is with great regret that we witness the emergence of a climate in Italy that is symptomatic of a general trend across Europe that leads to measures related to undocumented migrants that undermine people’s basic human rights.
We recognize that migration is a complex and challenging issue for all European member states. As members of the Foundations, we are committed to an inclusive and tolerant Europe; we work to do this alongside citizens and civil society organizations, as well as government agencies. We strongly encourage the governments of all member states to work individually, together and with the institutions of the European Union, to create a framework for dealing with migration in ways that truly respect the dignity of all human beings, as defined in the Convention European Union of Human Rights.