Conference in the European Parliament with MEPs and civil society leaders from Poland, Hungary, the rest of Europe and Israel.
On October 11, 2023, DemoCrisis’s inaugural conference gathered 200 people, including MEPs, journalists and activists in the European Parliament. The importance of DemoCrisis’ initiative was endorsed by members of the four major political groups of the European Parliament – Vice-President Othmar Karas (EPP), Vice-President Marc Angel (S&D), and the hosts MEP Róża Thun (Renew Europe) and MEP Karima Delli (Greens), who also provided insights into the democratic context of our region.
In the two panels, moderated by DemoCrisis co-founders Omri Preiss and Dan Sobovitz, Polish and Hungarian civil society leaders and lawmakers explained the lessons learned from fighting for democracy in their countries and enriched our understanding of the challenges at hand: Jakub Kocjan from Akcja Demokracja explained that the pro-democracy civil society drew inspiration from the Israeli pro-democracy movement and “resistance” to bring people out in the streets in June and at the unprecedented “Million Hearts March” on October 1st in Warsaw. United Student Front leader Jozsef Gajzago laid out this year’s civil society awakening in Hungary to combat against the authoritarian regime of Orban and the ruling Fidesz party, including a citizens-ran alternative referendum, in which 115.000 people voted last week. Member of the Hungarian national assembly Tamás Harangozo sent a strong message to European liberal democracies while reflecting on the mistakes of past democratic governments in Hungary: NGOs and trade unions are pillars of democracy and must be supported because they are part of the shields against democratic backsliding. Polish lawyer Michał Wawrykiewicz, who co-founded the Free Courts initiative, emphasised that authoritarian governments openly cooperate and share their playbooks on democratic backsliding but also on how to fight pro-democracy protests, which only reinforces the urgent need for democrats to unite and push back.
First panel: speakers that were physically present (from left to right): Jakub Kocjan (Akcja Demokracja, Poland), Omri Preiss (DemoCrisis), Tamás Harangozó (Member of the National Assembly, Hungary), Jozsef Gajzago (United Student Front, Hungary). Also part of the 1st panel remotely: Mika Almog (Author; Israel), Ofra Kaplan (Activist; Israel). Credit: Picture by Frédéric Mathot.
Benjamin Beeckmans, president of the Brussels Secular Jewish Community Centre (CCLJ), also highlighted that fundamental freedoms are best protected in democratic societies.
Despite the tragic circumstances preventing our Israeli speakers from the pro-democracy movement in Israel from joining us in Brussels, their passionate and emotional accounts from their homes and shelters in Israel left a lasting impact. Their vision for democracy and peace in the face of adversity served as a powerful reminder of the importance of our mission. Furthermore, they highlighted the importance of civil society organisations and civilian initiatives in times of national crisis, as the dozens of pro-democracy CSOs that had been active against the Israeli government’s judicial coup shifted their extensive networks at once after October 7 to take care of crucial relief efforts, such as housing, food, clothing and more for families displaced by Hamas’s attacks.
Dr Maya Sion of the Mitvim Institute powerfully argued that democracy might not be a perfect regime but it is “the only political system which allows the replacement of bad governance, gives hope for improvement, calls for accountability and demands that representatives take care of all the citizens and residents of their country”.
