Herewith Encod invites you to participate in the first Authentic Civil Society Forum on Drug Policies in Europe, to take place in Bermeo, Spain, on Sunday 23 June 2013
On this forum every participant is invited to engage in a discussion on ways to develop and implement strategies to promote an end to the war on drugs in and from Europe.
Below you can read about Encods motivation to organise this event, to which you are wellcome to assist. Please use the following registration form for this purpose. If you have any questions, please let us know.
REGISTRATION FORM
Organisation:
Country:
Name(s):
will participate in the GA in Bermeo, Spain.
Questions: ….
Please copy this form into an email and send it to info@encod.org before 15 June 2013.
If you cannot come to Spain, you may be able to follow the forum over the Internet. Please let us know if you wish to receive the instructions to participate in the streaming.
Motivation
Encod was founded in 1993, upon the request of the European Commission, as a platform of civil society organisations who would be involved in a continuous dialogue with EU authorities with the aim of designing a European drug policy. This dialogue never took off, nor did European drug policy. But Encod became a network of some 150 organisations of European citizens who all agree about one thing: drug prohibition must end, drug policies must be based on public health considerations, all adult people must be allowed to grow plants for their own personal use.
Since 2007 the European Commission organises a yearly session of what is called the Civil Society Forum on Drug Policies in the European Union. The Commission is solely responsible for the organisation, the agenda and the reporting of these sessions. As a result all efforts to have a substantial dialogue on the course of drug policies in Europe are neutralised. Under these conditions “civil society involvement” is a hollow concept, designed to cover up for the daily failure of authorities in the EU to reduce harms and dangers related to drugs.
Encod believes a just and effective policy on drugs is a part of the Europe that previous generations wanted to build after the scourge of two world wars. It is part of a Europe where peaceful co-existence, transparency and effective governance are the tools to build peace and prosperity. A Europe in which policies are applied that reduce harms and increase benefits.
Encod invites all organisations and individual citizens who believe true progress can only be achieved by an authentical dialogue between concerned parties, to join the First Authentical Civil Society Forum on Drug Policies in the EU. On 23 June, we will discuss general aims and objectives, and concrete planning for a first appearance in Brussels later this year.
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