FIDE - Europe’s Post

24 September 1987 (CONTRALESA IS BORN) The Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa (Contralesa) is launched to articulate the interests of Traditional Leaders and act as an extra-parliamentary opposition movement. Contralesa was largely set up by Moutse Traditional Leaders, opposed to KwaNdebele Independence. The movement aligned itself with the African National Congress and the United Democratic Front. By the time that Contralesa was launched nationally in 1989, the Traditonal Leaders part of the organisation had become one of the ANC's most important rural partners. After the demise of Apartheid, Contralesa campaigned for the constitutional recognition of the status, role, and powers of traditional leaders in the new democratic South Africa. As a result, Chapter 12 was drafted onto the South African constitution. References Oomen, B (2005), Chiefs in South Africa: law, power & culture in the post-apartheid era, New York: Palgrave Division of St. Martin's Press.| nelsonmandela,' Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa',[online],Available at www.nelsonmandela.org[Accessed: 13 September 2013]

It's "#Kosovo", not "#Republic of Kosovo" says the #Bakoyannis #report. The #CouncilofEurope's Rapporteur for Kosovo, Dora Bakoyannis, finalized her report on Kosova's accession to the Council of Europe on March 20 of this year. In the 26-page Bakoyannis document, it is pointed out that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe recommends that the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe "accept Kosova's accession to the international organization." HOWEVER, as stated in point 17.1 of this report, Kosovo, according to Bakoyannis, should be admitted to the Council of Europe under the name "Kosovo" without the prefix "Republic of". In the conclusions of the report drafted by the Greek officer, it is requested, among other things, that the #Albanian leaders of Kosova "renounce their opposition to the creation of the #Association of #Serb-majority municipalities." "The authorities must enter into good-faith negotiations for the creation of an association," stresses the report provided by Kanal 10. The creation of the Association, according to the Bakoyannis report, would have to be visible in the event of Kosovo seeking full membership of the Council of Europe. "The Parliamentary Assembly expects the Kosovo government to take essential and tangible steps towards establishing the Association as soon as possible. The Parliamentary Assembly considers that the creation of the Association should be visible during the next examination by the Committee of Ministers of Kosovo's application for membership of the Council of Europe", states the 11th point of the Greek official's report. So what are we ? Who are we? A state that is tending towards dislocation by communes, and towards its international representation as a region ? Oh, and NO, it's not "Kosovo", it's #Kosova, and even "Republic of Kosova". But we forgive you, our own institutions don't have the courage to make the difference.

EU:n koheesiofoorumissa keskusteltiin Suomen maakuntien edustajien ja komissaari Elisa Ferreiran kanssa koheesiopolitiikan ja aluekehityksen tulevaisuudesta. 🌍 Engaging discussions at the EU Cohesion Forum with representatives from Finnish regions alongside Commissioner Elisa Ferreira, discussing the future of cohesion policy and regional development. 🌍 #CohesionPolicy #EU #RegionalDevelopment

#CurrentAffairs ‘Both Parties Have A Lot To Prove’: South Africa’s Unity Government And Challenges Of The New Political Reality South Africa is entering a new political era with the formation of a Government of National Unity (GNU) between the previously ruling African National Congress (ANC) and the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA). This historic coalition, finalized amidst last-minute negotiations, represents a significant compromise from both sides and aims to stabilize governance at both national and provincial levels. https://brnw.ch/21wKRal

As the midpoint of the 2024 election year is passing, the UK general election is set for 4 July, and the US election remains the most significant event to close out the year. Recent turmoil in Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan is a stark reminder: while democracy has arrived, constitutional governance is still a long journey. Democracy, a foreign concept to Asian cultures, has a long way to integrate with local traditions. The South African election, in the backdrop of economic struggles and super high unemployment, managed to form a coalition with dignity and decorum, leaving me deeply moved by this example of democratic resilience. "Peaceful transfer of power from one administration to another cannot be taken for granted" "The true value of democracy is not the ability to put the right people in power. It’s the ability to regularly and peacefully remove the wrong ones from it." #SouthAfrica #Election #democracy https://lnkd.in/eeF7j526

📌 We present our latest article as part of the #HablamosDeEuropa project, where we have been analyzing the situation of the nine candidate countries for #EuropeanUnion membership. Today, Nikola Burazer examines the situation in #NorthMacedonia: 'North Macedonia’s EU integration: Two decades of frustration' ✍ "The support for EU integration in North Macedonia remains relatively high, with 68% of citizens in favour of EU membership, but a lack of progress for 20 years due to reasons which have nothing to do with membership criteria put these beliefs under a huge test" 🗣️ Nikola Burazer is a Serbian political scientist, journalist, program director of Centre for Contemporary Politics and executive editor of European Western Balkans. 🔗 Link to the article: https://lnkd.in/dRfne-HU

In Brussels we have just started the meeting of the EU-Ukraine CSP at the European Economic and Social Committee. The first item covers the implementation of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement and the progress in the “seven steps” outlined by the European Commission in its opinion on #Ukraine application for membership of the #EU.

This is rather a marriage of convenience than a demonstration of how democracy works. Given the dismal track record of these parties as coalition partners, we are in for a somewhat destabilising political scenario over the next 5 years. There is absolutely no cultural fit between the ANC and the DA, let alone an organisational resemblance. What this so-called GNU actually demonstrates is to what extent politicians and their parties will go to ensure and secure its relevance, in spite of their voters’ trust in them. Now, you may conveniently ask what the practical alternative may be, perhaps forgetting what was committed to in the manifestos of these narcissists. Well, it’s simple, South Africa is not better off, will not be better off, nothing is going to change and my view remains that a lack of leadership prevented a re-election, that knowing what we know now, may have lead to a new order as a total necessitated alternative…

#CurrentAffairs ‘Both Parties Have A Lot To Prove’: South Africa’s Unity Government And Challenges Of The New Political Reality South Africa is entering a new political era with the formation of a Government of National Unity (GNU) between the previously ruling African National Congress (ANC) and the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA). This historic coalition, finalized amidst last-minute negotiations, represents a significant compromise from both sides and aims to stabilize governance at both national and provincial levels. https://brnw.ch/21wKTLm

Interesting Conclusions & Recommendations from this document: Conclusions: 1️⃣ Kosovo’s Constitution supports forming municipal associations. 2️⃣ No need for additional national decrees. 3️⃣ Existing laws and precedents confirm this. Recommendations: 1️⃣ Encourage municipal initiatives. 2️⃣ Provide legal clarity and support. 3️⃣ Foster dialogue and cooperation. #Kosovo #LegalFramework #Municipalities #ConstitutionalRights