Paris, 26/04/2001 (Agence Europe) - As we mentioned, 626 students from throughout Europe (the same number as the number of MEPs but from over 20 countries) are meeting in Strasbourg from 26 to 28 April to discuss and formally adopt the "European Charter of rights and duties of students, the Strasbourg Charter".
Organised by the Young Europeans - France with the backing of the European Commission and the French Ministry for European Affairs and supported by the European Parliament, debates will be opened Thursday evening by an address by Pierre Moscovici, Minister of European Affairs.
Friday, work will be conducted within committees, on: - Europe's political future. Alain Lamassoure MEP will fuel the debate, which will be based on a questionnaire aimed at determining what the young expect of Europe (see below); - the role of the young in Europe's development; - equal treatment between students; - conditions of studies in Europe; - the duties of European students.
Saturday, the 626 young people will adopt the "Strasbourg Charter", having:
(a) adopted, at an initial plenary session on the political future of the European Union, a text on the political end-goals of the EU (which will be the preamble to the Charter). Alain Lamassoure will speak in this debate, based on the questionnaire debated in Committee on Friday, comprising, in particular, a certain number of major questions; - has Europe to be built on a "federal model"?; - what substance to give the notion of European citizenship?; - Should the EU provide itself with a Constitution?; - what should the share of competencies be between the EU, States and the regions? (Lamassoure is the EP's rapporteur on this subject); - should Europe's borders be set?; - what to expect of the social Europe, a "European diplomacy", a Defence Europe and the claim of a European culture?.
(b) discussed and voted on amendments to the Charter prepared within the four committees.