What The Best Foundation

citizen power small-scale Urban


Inés Sabanés, member of United Left in Madrid, was very clear in a few weeks ago raised the need for a real current reheated civic able to act from the academic , scientific, professional, labor, environmentalists, culture, immigrants, precarious, students, dependent, unemployed, etc., as an expression of struggle against impotence that leads to disaster. (Say I'm talking about Madrid.'s Office. 01/27/1911). civic A stream that already exists in the Canary Islands and is alive. At least they indicate the important and numerous demonstrations in which many different groups have participated since the turning point that led to the demonstration against the 23.11.2003 Vilaflor towers in Tenerife.

Also in Madrid, was convened on February 19 a meeting whose primary purpose was to initiate a process of convergence citizens around a network of civic meeting tables. In the words of its promoters seek to find ways participation and political action naturally inserted in the lives of citizens, to generate real processing capacity, for discussion and action become a source of learning collective and brotherhood. (Convergencia Ciudadana) . We believe this and no other is the model to follow if you want to bring about real political change in the Canaries. A model to facilitate the gathering of all possible groups to generate a broad citizens' movement from below. A critical current to articulate an alternative political discourse to the current political and protest with sufficient force to bring about change in them. With great foresight the deputy commented in his article that initiatives alone and in isolation are not sufficient engine of change: we must work for change, creating a movement that will enable us to a discourse of political regeneration and alternative Madrid. A movement that we believe should crystallize in the creation of a progressive political party that is able to attract votes and gain some influence in parliament. That energy should be channeled politically citizen somehow. A process obviously slower than one can find results in the medium term.

The essence of these movements is to work with some twigs different from those used in conventional politics, away from the style of politics of the major parties. The high level of voter turnout and political disaffection that indicate the surveys show that there is room to introduce a different style of politics where the only objective is to achieve not only greater share of power. The aim should be to deepen the level of democracy, participation and real welfare of the citizenry. Therefore, these movements claim to be supported by a broad base with which they are citizens continuous contact and learn to solve local problems by facilitating and encouraging the active participation of citizens in defense of their rights and improving their quality of life. Fleeing the political personalities, a network organization structure supported by the vast possibilities provided by new technologies and a flat organization with total absence of hierarchies, are other common features of these movements.

We are embarrassed to support any policy initiative, is the color it is, but I must say that the Canary Islands had some political groups who have been born following this scheme. Have been the result of pioneering citizen initiatives are based on groups that have led the protests against a model of economic and social development clearly unjust, wasteful of natural resources on which official spokesmen do nothing but spread that there is no alternative. Poor results in the elections of 2007, this year are a litmus test and is, in our view, the only alternative to traditional cutting policy installed on the lack of rotation of candidates and the absence of original proposals only aspire to the policy of revival , the more of the same, to maintain the current status quo .

A model, if you want citizen participation, which necessarily will meet the unfair and undemocratic election law Canaries although a high wall, you can save by promoting a strong partnership between the political forces of civic inspiration. Candidates are not talking about joining, we talked to reach concrete agreements in public areas of their programs to create a broad front, city, political and policy alternative to the three major parties dominate political props in the Canaries. Perhaps naive sin but we see no other realistic option to an electoral law that is a real barrier to entry into parliament and urged to be rethought.
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A front should be progressive to the rightwing policies of all major parties and canaries because this multidimensional crisis plaguing the world since 2007 is the result of conservative and neoliberal policies. Modestly, we believe that the axes should articulate the big deal would be:

1 - The defense of the public and implementing more government to solve the current mess. Obviously a more efficient state that is capable of promoting effective regulation aimed at pursuing the public interest and the elimination of social inequalities. There are services that only a public entity can provide equity and equality. Neoliberal capitalist ideology and the whole network of actors who seconded, proved to be wrong and this multidimensional crisis is the confirmation. Resolve the current economic situation through privatization processes generate more inequality and strengthen the usual.

2 - The promotion of citizen participation in public affairs through realistic forms of participatory democracy. It should abandon the current conception of democracy in which participation is limited to its own bureaucratic methods of the past century and finding new forms of effective participation by citizens. New technologies can help a lot.

3 - The environmental protection and territory as a base to create an alternative development model to the present. The environment, the land that sustains us, is a category that is beyond ideological distinctions of left or right. It is a category base, central, affecting everyone equally and therefore identify with people of different ideologies.

for democracy, pluralism and freshness we give them a chance.

Photo 1: Windmill.