After the welcome speech by the Communist Party of Wallonia in the Executive Board meeting in Brussels, Pierre Laurent, the newly elected EL President, affirmed that following the success of our 3rd congress, it is time to put in action what was decided: “The urgency of the crisis forces us to act rapidly and efficiently concerning party political decisions and the execution of our first campaign: the creation of a Fund for Social Development and Solidarity”, through the Citizens’ Initiative instrument. This new tool approved by the Council and the European Parliament will be implemented by the party in its own way, giving the chance to open a public debate that can end with the adoption of a new political/legislative proposal of one million citizens by the EU.

The Party of the European Left has defined its roadmap for a European Left project committed to the populations of the countries that are in a fragile situation, paying for a crisis that is under the responsibility of the banks and markets. With the austere mechanisms of the IMF and the reinforcement of Merkel and Sarkozy's neoliberal policies, the proposed method of creating currency would never be enough. The creation of the proposed fund offering low rates or even zero interest loans for public investment aims to create employment, develop training, research, public services, useful infrastructure and environmental projects.

During the next two years, the European Left will be engaged and, even if the collection of signatures from citizens will only start in November, the awareness and information campaign will proceed immediately with a number of actions in six or seven Member states. In March, the first public initiative of this campaign will take place in Athens, to symbolically show EL solidarity with a country that is in such a sensitive position after the austerity measures imposed by the government and the IMF. An experts meeting in Portugal about the new instrument addressed to European citizens will precede the six initiatives that will happen in Greece, Hungary, Spain, France, Italy and Germany to spread the proposal to citizens. But the mobilization via national campaigns must be very extensive and the Left wants to address all European citizens in a period of particularly harsh social and economic attacks, but also of attacks on democracy and civil rights.

As the European Left, we must intervene in this crossroads that dismantles the welfare state, bringing a change and a remedy to end to the extreme sacrifice of European Workers and the discontent among the population in general. All sides are imposing a neoliberal and anti-social system in European countries, people are unemployed, don’t have help from the state, the retirement age is being raised and our answer will be given through a joint struggle against the current attacks and concrete measures, as the Fund for Social Development and Solidarity that comes from a tax on financial transactions and contributions from the community budget. The proposal of this Fund will increase the participation of citizens in the European political process and present a real alternative to combat the crisis and overcome the difficulties that recent times have brought. Although it has been in evidence that the legal basis must be deeply analyzed so that the EC won’t obstruct this initiative, it must be shown that there are other solutions for Europe besides submission to financial markets. The campaign throughout 2011/2012 must challenge a negative tendency that is being reinforced. After Greece, Portugal has also entered the cyclone under major pressure from the EU to accept a so called “aid plan”. It is the role of the European Left to impede our countries from entering the dangerous “mechanism” and to give solutions based on real restructuring. The EL Campaign needs the involvement of citizens to be in the centre of the change and to prove that a legitimate alternative exists.

“Eurobonds and the initiative of Papandreou cannot solve the problem of market primacy and would have a perverse effect, the ability to distribute funds has to be aligned with the differences between northern and southern countries, solidarity is the basic point now”, EL vice President Alexis Tsipras declared.

“The initiative and the alternative from the European Left has to be inclusive, not forgetting women, youth and migrants, who have been so affected by the crisis”, vice president Maite Mola added.

The Citizens initiative is a challenge and a chance but making it visible at a national level demands serious work. “We should act with concrete actions and common positions in the public space in these urgent times, dealing with all political actors, and in particular with trade unionists. The Citizens Initiative is a tool and should be used as a tool to reach our purposes”, vice president Marisa Matias.

Felix Cardenas, Bolivia's Vice-Minister for Decolonization, was warmly welcomed in the Executive Board meeting. He said that indigenous peoples’ vision and relation to nature and Mother Earth should serve as a model to the big challenges that we’re facing. To conclude, Mr. Cardenas called for a global perspective that views the world as one and integrates issues such as environment, land and water.

The Executive Board has also agreed to organize the next EB meeting in Budapest on the 15-17th April and reaffirmed its engagement in organizing a meeting there about the situation of the Hungarian Roma community and the ways towards emancipation in Hungary.
Finally, the new EL working structure was approved with a new secretariat composed of Antoni Barbara (EUiA), Fabio Amato (PRC), Natassa Theodorakopoulou (SYN), Kinga Kalocsai (Hungarian Workers Party 2006), Inger Johansen (RGA), Waltraud Fritz-Klackl (KPOE) and the vice president Maite Mola as its coordinator. The vice presidents will also share the different duties/tasks of the Party of the European Left:

Pierre Laurent, President, Spokesperson, relations with parties, associations, NGO’s and trade unions

Alexis Tsipras, Vice President, Relations with parties and trade unions and economic Crisis and alternatives coordinator

Marisa Matias, Vice President, Relations with the European Parliament and communitarian policies, Environment

Maite Mola, Vice President, International Relations and coordinator of Secretariat and EB

Grigore Petrenco, Vice President, Relations with parties outside the EU, Enlargement of the EL

Dieter Dehm, Treasurer, associated to all the Presidency and ExBoard work

After all the executive work, the EL ExBoard participated in the Commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the death of Patrice Lumumba, in Brussels, towards a world without colonialism, imperialism and racism.


Statements of the meeting:
Roadmap of EL campaign
People of Tunisia rise up for rights and freedom - Solidarity with the democrats of Tunisia!

The European Left on the new “Wall of Shame” in Greece

Ivory Coast: Against any military intervention. Trust in the People of Ivory Coast

We call upon the EU to recognize a Palestinian State within the 1967 borders

Statement by the European Left following the presidential election and post-election events in Belarus