International Politics
With all our strength for a liberal world: This is what the Foundation for Freedom is working for across the globe.
News
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"We are witnessing the birth of a new liberal camp in Israel"
On 18 June 2023 an important event marked the 75th birthday of Israel and the 40th birthday of the FNF office in Jerusalem, celebrating "40 years of liberal dialogue". Over 100 liberal partners and friends from Israel and the Palestinian territories gathered at the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation to listen to the speeches of Tzipi Livni, former Deputy Prime Minister of Israel, Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, Deputy-Chair of FNF and former German Minister of Justice, and Steffen Seibert, the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany in Israel.
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Berlusconi's legacy continues to have an impact
Silvio Berlusconi, the dazzling, controversial media entrepreneur, has significantly changed Italy's party landscape through his many years of power - including media power. With the restructuring of the Italian right, Berlusconi's policies contributed massively to the emergence of a bipolar party system. Populism from the left and the right have since become part of the political mainstream; from the left-wing populist 5-Star Movement and to the far-right "Brothers of Italy," whose leader Giorgia Meloni has led the country's fortunes since her election victory last September.
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New Greek Government Takes Shape
The Greek elections held on June 25th witnessed a significant negative turnout, with voter participation reaching its lowest level since the restoration of democracy in 1974, providing a notable decline in civic engagement. However, amidst this context, notable political developments emerged.
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Reshape Europe Hackathon
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation North America hosted its Reshape Europe Hackathon in Washington, DC, from May 13 to 17, 2023, with the theme "How can we make the EU more visible in the United States?". Four two-person teams conceptualized and proposed methods to achieve this goal. They were given three days to work on their proposals, after which they presented their finished product to the judging panel, and a winning team was selected.
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This is how liberal Europe comments on the EU asylum compromise
Hardly any observers had evaluated this agreement possible after years of tug-of-war over asylum reform: At the beginning of June, the interior ministers of the EU member states, including Nancy Faeser (SPD), voted in favor of a significant tightening of European asylum policy. The traffic light parties also justified their approval on the grounds that an agreement would have failed if Germany had abstained. Overall, it could be observed in the debates that a broad majority in Europe was in favor of more control in immigration.
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Innovation and Education: Which policies help both to cross-fertilize each other?
This was the core question of the Liberal Forum Armenia taking place in a country famous for IT innovation and one of the leaders in exporting ICT services. The forum provided a space for discussions among politicians, academics and civil society organizations. FNF Board member Dr Maren Jasper-Winter also visited Armenia and talked about the educational policy cycle and its challenges.
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He who sows violence
Two acts of bloodshed shock Serbia and bring hundreds of thousands of people to the streets in protest against the pervasive violence. On May 3rd and 4th, a total of 18 people, mostly young, lost their lives in two killing sprees. Serbia is in shock: Such an outbreak of violence has not been seen since the wars of the 1990s; people are grappling with their anger and grief, and the entire country is struggling to cope. For the first time, the regime of President Aleksandar Vučić appears vulnerable. Pro-government mass demonstrations are planned for Friday, while regime critics will take to the streets again on Saturday. Is autocracy in Serbia wavering?
