The Helsinki Citizens' Assembly (hCa) is an organization of

citizen Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection". Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...

s dedicated to

peace Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose gov ...

and

human rights in Europe Human rights in Europe are generally upheld. However, several human rights infringements exist, ranging from the treatment of asylum seekers to police brutality. The 2012 Amnesty International Annual Report points to problems in several European cou ...

. It is a non-governmental organization, working on the notions of fundamental rights and freedoms, peace, democracy and pluralism. hCa works independently from political parties, government and states, aims to: * introduce the basic rights and freedoms accepted in international agreements and outlined by universal standards into daily life * to promote peaceful processes for the resolution of problems through mutual understanding dialogue and peace * to improve pluralist democratic bodies and civil society initiatives * to ensure the supremacy of law and to defend an economic system that promotes the well-being of human life and the environment. The

Helsinki Final Act The Helsinki Final Act, also known as Helsinki Accords or Helsinki Declaration was the document signed at the closing meeting of the third phase of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) held in Helsinki, Finland, between ...

(1975) provided a basis for creating conditions favorable to peace in Europe and made human rights a common value to be respected by all nations in a world which was divided into East and West camps in that period. The word "Helsinki" refers to the historic significance of this agreement. (Taken directly from www.hyd.org.tr) The collapse of the

Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (german: Berliner Mauer, ) was a guarded concrete barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and East Germany (GDR). Construction of the Berlin Wall was commenced by the government ...

and the new global political context this created gave rise to a new peace movement called the "Helsinki Citizens' Assembly". From October 19 to 22 1990, peace activists from all parts of Europe (chaired by

Václav Havel Václav Havel (; 5 October 193618 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright, and former dissident. Havel served as the last president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1992 and then as ...

, then president of

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

) held a meeting. They agreed on the "Prague Appeal" and founded the HCA as a permanent forum, within which peace and civic groups, as well as individuals and institutions representing a broad spectrum of views, could exchange experiences, discuss common concerns and formulate joint campaigns and strategies. As stated in the Founding document (Prague, 1990):

''Overcoming the division of Europe is the job, especially, of civil society, of citizens acting together in self-organized associations, movements, institutions, initiatives and clubs across national boundaries. It means the creation of new social relationships, new forms of dialogue, through which citizens can negotiate with governments and each other, put pressure on political institutions, and, indeed, resolve many issues without the direct involvement of governments. It means the expansion of public -that is, non-State, non-private- spheres of activity and the creation of a European public opinion. The commitment of politicians to open diplomacy must go beyond the ante-chamber of high politics. It is not just a matter of informing journalists or even non-governmental organizations. The Helsinki process from above has to be complemented by an equally significant Helsinki process from below.'' ''Let us therefore found a Helsinki Citizens Assembly!''

The idea was to set up different national hCa chapters, some of which still exist today (e.g
www.hyd.org.tr
. In its first news bulletin, an impressive list of projects and activities was published.Spencer, Metta. 1991.

Peace Magazine. 7 (5): pp.22-23. These included editorials by

Mary Kaldor Mary Henrietta Kaldor (born 16 March 1946) is a British academic, currently Professor of Global Governance at the London School of Economics, where she is also the Director of the Civil Society and Human Security Research Unit. She also teaches ...

and Mient Jan Faber, reports from national committees, various conferences, a directory of 42 national contact persons for HCA, etc. In the early nineties the hCa initiative very much resembled other large international networks, like the

END End, END, Ending, or variation, may refer to: End *In mathematics: ** End (category theory) ** End (topology) **End (graph theory) ** End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) **End (endomorphism) *In sports and games **End (gridiron footbal ...

-Convention and

IPCC The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is an intergovernmental body of the United Nations. Its job is to advance scientific knowledge about climate change caused by human activities. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) a ...

(International Peace Communication and Coordination Center) and many of the activists and organizations of END and IPCC joined the hCa. The main differences between hCa and the two other networks was that hCa had a great potential of being much more than just a network of peace organizations, including also activists and groups working around other issues, like North-South relations.

External links

Helsinki Citizens' Assembly - Vanadzor, Armenia web-site

Helsinki Citizens' Assembly Azerbaijan National Committee

Helsinki Citizens' Assembly - Turkey branch web-site

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Helsinki Citizens' Assembly Human rights organizations

See also

External links

References