11-02-2009, 07:46 PM
I notice that there are a lot of posts on here to draw attention to problems in EU Member states, and those countries surrounding the EU that might join.
I am worried that these posts are not seen by people who can do something about it!
Obviously it is good to publicise these issues. Even in a country with a free media, no newspaper or TV channel can cover everything that happens! And I am not sure how free any of our media is... I learn a lot reading these forums :-)
In the past, I have signed petitions run by charities and organisations like Amnesty International. Can I ask you, have these organisations had any effect on the situation in your countries?
How would users (and the Admin) of this forum feel if we started to approach politicians and humanitarian organisations? How might we do this?
Perhaps we could even draft out some proposals for the EU? There are common problems, like autonomous areas for some communities, concerns over immigration, the reporting of wars (such as Bosnia and S. Ossetia - it is quite clear from this forum that different people have been told different things!)
Thre is also the issue of how to "help" (for want of a better word) neighbours and would-be members of the EU. I am thinking of the recent posts from Turkey and Moldova. Is it appropriate to "help," or will interefering make matters worse?
We could tackle these problems wholeistically: if we protest about each individual issue, we will never stop protesting! Besides, it is impossible to know the detail of every country's problems. What underlying issues are at fault?
I am worried that these posts are not seen by people who can do something about it!
Obviously it is good to publicise these issues. Even in a country with a free media, no newspaper or TV channel can cover everything that happens! And I am not sure how free any of our media is... I learn a lot reading these forums :-)
In the past, I have signed petitions run by charities and organisations like Amnesty International. Can I ask you, have these organisations had any effect on the situation in your countries?
How would users (and the Admin) of this forum feel if we started to approach politicians and humanitarian organisations? How might we do this?
Perhaps we could even draft out some proposals for the EU? There are common problems, like autonomous areas for some communities, concerns over immigration, the reporting of wars (such as Bosnia and S. Ossetia - it is quite clear from this forum that different people have been told different things!)
Thre is also the issue of how to "help" (for want of a better word) neighbours and would-be members of the EU. I am thinking of the recent posts from Turkey and Moldova. Is it appropriate to "help," or will interefering make matters worse?
We could tackle these problems wholeistically: if we protest about each individual issue, we will never stop protesting! Besides, it is impossible to know the detail of every country's problems. What underlying issues are at fault?