FIRST PLENARY:
Asia-Europe relations in a changing global context: the impact of the crisis in Asia and Europe
AEPF-8 participants confront ‘crisis of crisis’
MORE than 400 representatives of civil society groups from across Asia and Europe have come together for the Eighth Asia-Europe People’s Forum (AEPF-8) in Brussels to confront the global financial “crisis of crisis” and its “brothers and sisters” of crises on food, climate change, trade and investment, and job losses.
Civil society groups from Asia and Europe noted how the global financial crisis has impacted on Asia and Europe and their relationship with each other.
At the first plenary, Marica Frangakis of Attac Greece said the “heart of the whole” parallel leaders’ forum of the Asia Europe Meeting (Asem) lies on “the crisis of crisis.”
She said European leaders recognise that there is a “migration of crisis” coming full force to Europe, affecting first Iceland and Greece, and lately Ireland.
John Hilary of War on Want noted how Europe looks to Asia as a force to reckon with. “Asia offers new huge markets and sources of raw materials,” he said
And the Global Europe agenda is meant to force new opportunities for European companies in Asia in terms of source of natural resources and government contracts, with capital free from limitations, he said.
Also at the first AEPF plenary, Philippine lawmaker Walden Bello noted that Asem began as Europe’s expressed interest on Asia following the creation of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec), which was the United States’ way of “lassoing countries into a trans-Pacific free trade area.”
“The European Union thus opened this dialogue (venue) with Asian countries hoping to counteract the forces of Apec,” he said.
Now, he said, Europe’s interest is how to pull out of the crisis. |
