Forum: participants commit to consolidating democracy
Regional, Politics, 12/13/2004

Participants in the first Forum for the Future committed to strengthening the basis for democracy, consultation and cooperation in the Middle East.

The Forum, co-chaired by US Secretary of State Colin Powell and his Moroccan peer, Mohamed Benaissa, highlighted the importance of "broadening the scope of participation in politics, public affairs, and decision-making, within a framework of the primacy of law, fairness, and equality among citizens, including for women."

Participants, which included Foreign and Finance ministers of Middle East region and the eight most industrialized countries (G8), also insisted on the importance of "the guarantee of an independent justice system and freedom of expression, with a view to consolidating the role of all components of society, including NGOs, and strengthening the participation of all social strata in the political life of their countries."

"Political development is a long and demanding process, which only the nations concerned can initiate, the Participants reiterated their conviction that a process of political reforms in the region must recognize that the pace and scope of change will vary from country to country," they said, insisting that reform should "must emerge from within the societies of the region and should not and cannot be imposed from outside."

"The Forum for the Future hopes to provide a setting for an informal, flexible, open and inclusive dialogue, devoted to strengthening democracy and the participation of civil society, to developing skills training, and to encouraging the growth of modern economies that generate wealth and that are well integrated into the global economy. It is the pillar of the Partnership for Progress and a Common Future, which is the framework for dialogue and cooperation based on shared responsibility and mutual respect, with the objective of co-development and the promotion of appropriate political, economic, social, and educational reforms, in harmony with the values, and with the special cultural, religious, and historical characteristics of the countries of the region, and in accordance with their respective possibilities and resources," participants underscored.

The Forum, whose first edition ended Saturday, included debates that were marked by "frankness," and encompassed a set of proposals on all sectors, particularly security, peace, stability and development in the region.

Previous Stories:
  Civil Society Forum to submit recommendations to Forum for the Future   (12/11/2004)
  Forum for the Future: a non-constraining dialogue space, Moroccan government spokesman   (12/11/2004)
  Political and economic freedom go hand-in-hand, Powell   (12/11/2004)

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