Brussels, 27/02/2002 (Agence Europe) - Representatives from the Civil Society Contact Group, which was recently created to establish a structured dialogue between the Convention Presidium on the Future of Europe (see EUROPE 18-19 February page 8), met with Jean-Luc Dehaene, Vice President of the Convention in charge of dialogue with the NGOs and civil society.
The delegation was made up of representatives from the European Environmental Bureau (representing Green 8 environmental protection NGOs), Amnesty International (representing the human rights Contact Group), the Liaison Committee of Development NGOs and the European Trade Union Confederation.
These meetings will be held on a regular basis in order to ensure civil society's participation in the work of the Convention. Mary McPhail, Secretary General of the European Women's Lobby (EWL) declared that the meeting had been "very constructive" and "that we had made a good start to establishing a positive working relationship with the Praesidium. I'm pleased that Mr Dehaene supported the Contact Group's commitment to ensuring that the voices of women and young people are heard by the Convention."