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CLUB OF MADRID: SHARED SOCIETIES PROJECT -
DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP FOR DIALOGUE, DIVERSITY AND SOCIAL COHESION:
06/01/08
(MaximsNews Network)
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UNITED
NATIONS - / MaximsNews Network / - 06
January 2007 -- Eighteen
Club of Madrid Members and 11 internationally renowned experts participated in
steering meetings of the Club of Madrid's Shared Societies Project:
Democratic Leadership for Dialogue, Diversity and Social Cohesion, in
Madrid, November 20-21, 2007.
In
the area of Leadership for Dialogue, Diversity and Social Cohesion, the Club of
Madrid has developed The Shared Societies Project.
This
initiative comes in response to a widespread call from leaders for effective
policies and practices to increase dialogue and improve social inclusion in
communities and nations.
Project
components focus on some of the challenges that are key to managing dialogue,
diversity and social cohesion, including women’s political participation, next
generation leadership, dialogue among religious and political leaders, and
democratic dialogue in the Arab world.
The
Shared Societies Project aims to make “a world safe for difference;”
providing policy tools for addressing the challenges of difference and
transforming them into opportunities for a shared, democratic future.
The
objective of the global program is to support leaders seeking strategies and
best practices to improve government and leadership mechanisms and institutions
to respond to and manage the challenges of dialogue, diversity, and social
cohesion.
The
Shared Societies Project will identify and collect best leadership practices in
managing social cohesion and make these available to current leaders.
“Shared
societies do not just happen. They need to be built,” said
Project Co-Chair Cassam Uteem, the former President of Mauritius.
Jenny
Shipley, Project co-chair and former Prime Minister of New Zealand, said: "Encouraging
and supporting leaders of today and tomorrow to not be afraid of the issues of
difference within their communities and to feel both supported and enabled to
deal with them and advance these issues in a healthy and wholesome way is really
the goal of this project."
These
inaugural meetings highlighted the importance of The Shared Societies
Project.
As
the world is confronted with ever more interaction between communities and
societies become more diverse, leaders have to face up to the differences
that are there and deal with them rather than exacerbate them.
The
Shared Societies Project aims at providing policy tools for addressing these
challenges and transform them into opportunities for a developed, democratic
future.
Some
of the Club Madrid participating Members agreed that they wished they had such a
project during their time in office.
Chandrika
Kumaratunga, Club of Madrid Member and former President of Sri Lanka said,
"If I had a project like this or if the Club de Madrid had existed when I
first started trying to make peace in my country, I would not have been so alone
in doing the work I did."
Club
of Madrid Members of the Working Group endorsed the working documents (Statement
of Commitment, Vision, Rationale, Principles and Assumptions) and planned
course of action for this project.
The
documents have received the input of the Expert Advisory Panel formed by more
than 15 international experts that will provide academic input to the project.
The
steering meetings were made possible thanks to the vision and financial support
of the Alan B. Slifka Foundation and hosted at the Madrid’s regional
parliament.
The
Shared Societies Project includes four component
projects:
a)
Democratic Dialogue & Freedom of Association (focus on Middle East/N.
Africa)
b)
Women, Political Participation and Leadership (focus on Africa)
c)
Religion, Democratic Leadership, and Intercultural Dialogue
d)
Developing Next Generation Political Leadership for Shared Citizenship
The
global program is the “umbrella” for all four projects, and draws upon them
to identify and extract existing leadership experiences that have been effective
in creating and sustaining social cohesion.
The
program will develop case studies that will nourish a “social cohesion
portfolio,” and then disseminate and advocate on behalf of the findings and
recommendations at the international policy level and through the component
projects and related national and regional efforts.
-
Democratic
Dialogue and Freedom of Association in the Arab World
The
Club of Madrid, in cooperation with the European Commission and the UN Democracy
Fund, is conducting a project on democratic dialogue and freedom of association
in Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia.
This
project brings together leaders of the Arab world and of consolidated
democracies in an intercultural dialogue on critical issues related to free
association and democratic participation.
-
Women’s
Political Participation and Leadership
Women’s
political participation is a critical component of democratic dialogue and
social cohesion.
The
Club of Madrid, based on the leadership experience of its Members, and with
support from the European Commission and the Canadian Government, is addressing
and strengthening women’s political participation and leadership in Nigeria,
Sierra Leone and Uganda in 2007-2008.
The
project will be complemented with other initiatives on women’s participation
and gender issues in Iran, West Africa, and in inter-religious dialogues.
-
Religion,
Democratic Leadership and Intercultural Dialogue
The
Club of Madrid, supported by the Norwegian Foreign Ministry and in cooperation
with the Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights of Club of Madrid Member Kjell
Magne Bondevik (former Prime Minister of Norway), and the International
Foundation for Dialogue Among Civilizations of ex President of Iran Mohammed
Khatami, is co-organizing encounters with religious and political leaders to aid
in the search for relevant experiences and policy and leadership solutions that
can may promote coexistence among people with different religious and cultural
beliefs and backgrounds.
-
Next
Generation of Political Leaders for Shared Citizenship
Taking
as a starting point previous work with the Council of Europe on youth and
political leadership, and the recognition that long-term solutions to these
issues must include the active participation of the next generation of political
leaders, the Club of Madrid proposes a focus in this area.
We
are seeking funding for this project component.
The
Club of Madrid receives specific requests to assist leaders facing the
challenges of social exclusion and the need to construct processes and
mechanisms for dialogue and cohesion.
We
have conducted successful projects in response to requests to work with leaders
on national dialogue initiatives in Bolivia, Ecuador and Timor Leste.
Under
the Shared Societies Project, the Club of Madrid will continue to consider these
requests and respond to them when Members feel we can have a positive impact.
For
more information on this project please contact nespinosa@clubmadrid.org
Club
of Madrid – Democracy that delivers
The
Club of Madrid is an independent organization dedicated to strengthening
democracy around the world by drawing on the unique experience and resources of
its Members – 70 democratic former heads of state and government.
In
partnership with other organizations and governments that share its
democracy-promotion goals, the Club of Madrid provides peer to peer counsel,
strategic support and technical advice to leaders and institutions working
towards democratic transition and consolidation.
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Nations, U.N.,
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