A delegation with Swedish parliamentarians from the Moderate party and the Social democratic party visited Turkey on February 9, in regards to the country’s work on a new constitution. During the day, a number of meetings with Turkish politicians, scholars and representatives from NGOs were conducted at the Swedish embassy in Ankara. The goal was to exchange ideas and experiences on constitutional issues. The discussions came to focus on, among other things, the country’s election system and the role of minorities in Turkey. The visit was arranged by the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation and the Olof Palme International Center, in cooperation with the Swedish embassy in Ankara.
Electoral Fraud in the Russian Duma Elections
December 8th, 2011 Foreign Policy | News | Russia | Seminars
From left Ulrik Nilsson, Elisabeth Björnsdotter Rahm, Stefan Caplan och Margareta Cederfelt.
Opportunities for electoral fraud were definitely present, said four moderate MPs who visited Russia during the Duma elections on December 4. On Thursday the team shared their experiences and analysis at a breakfast seminar arranged by the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation.
In particular, the election observers pointed out, there were ample opportunities to cheat during the so-called mobile voting (for elderly at home) and at the many unattended ballot boxes in the more than 90,000 polling stations around the country. Ulrik Nilsson mentioned electoral lists where United Russia had beforehand been marked with a cross. Stefan Caplan noted that at some of the polling stations, he visited, there were more ballots than voters, after polling closed!
“United Russia’s grip of the Russian soul is decreasing significantly”, said Ulrik Nilsson at the breakfast seminar when he was asked about what the election results might lead to.
He and other observers gave the audience a unique insight into what happened in a number of the many polling stations. The images showed flaws in the system which allows for cheating and fraud.
Lack of valsekretess was also something that many of the observers noted. How ballots reviewed by election officials (all have a ballot where you check for the party you vote for) and how many people voted together. (more…)
Arab Spring didn’t change a lot for Israel
November 16th, 2011 Other countrie and regions | SeminarsOn November 16, Hirsh Goodman, Senior research associate at the Institute for National Security at Tel Aviv University, visited the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation and voiced his opinion about “How the Arab Spring Changed Israel’s Role in the Middle East.”Karin Enström, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee presided over the seminar.
Hirsch Goodman, Israeli Expert on national security.
The audience of about 30 participants listened to Hirsh Goodman when he declared that much has been the same in the months following the Arab spring. Though, he is worried about all weapons that currently are in circulation in countries bordering to Israel – countries with in many respects unstable structures. Still he argued that Israel’s daily cooperation with Egypt works quite well.
“The bloodshed in Syria is likely to be prolonged”, said Hirsh Goodman and explained that in Israel a certain relief can be noted as the Arab The Arab Spring has Not Really Affected Israel states now are looking inwards, towards their own. He also pointed out that the expectations of change, following the Arab spring, were not very high in Israel. (more…)
Professor Anders Åslund spoke about how the Baltic countries managed to curb the financial crisis.
Professor Åslund is one of the world’s leading experts on the former Soviet republics and has been working as an economic advisor to the governments in the Baltic states, Russia, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan and other countries. Currently working at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington DC, professor Åslund has written numerous books, most recently “How Latvia came through the Financial Crisis,” together with the Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis.
“In an economic crisis, you have to cut down on bureaucracy. In Latvia, it was cut down by 30 percent and the wages in the public sector was reduced on average by 26 percent”, according to Åslund (more…)
On the third day of the Book Fair, JHS focused on Belarus and Internet Freedom.
In a seminar in the morning, Andrey Dmitriev, member of the opposition in Belarus, and Brit Stakston, expert on social media, discussed under lead of Cecilia Brinck, Member of the Swedsih Parliament. (more…)
Apart from the seminars, the Hjalmarson Foundation also arranges casual discussions in the JHS Stand.
Walburga Habsburg Douglas, MP, talked about the past and current situation in the Balkans, and made som wishes for the future of the Balkan countries. Habsburg Douglas is the author of the preface of the book “Balkan Blend”, published by JHS. (more…)
The theme for JHS’ activities at the Book Fair in Gothenburg is how new media can be a part of the changing of a society.
At the first day of the fair, a seminar was held on the stage of the International Square. Javeria Rizvi Kabani, project manager at the Swedish Institute and Erik Benngtzboe, chairman of the Young Conservatives, discussed the current situation in the Middle East. (more…)
Video: Release of the Swedish issue of the Principles
May 31st, 2011 Ideology | Seminars | Theme: Principles
The Swedish issue of the Principles for a free Society is presented by Dr. Nigel Ashford, followed by a debate between Fredrik Johansson, Head of Public Affairs on KreabGavinAnderson and Isobel Hadley Kamptz, writer and journalist (more…)
Now in Swedish: Principles for a Free Society
May 27th, 2011 Ideology | Seminars | Theme: Principles
From left: Nigel Ashford, Isobel Hadley Kamptz and Fredrik Johansson.
The study guide Principles for a Free Society is published for the first time in Swedish. Author Nigel Ashford attended the book release in Stockholm to tell about story behind the book and to answer questions.
Originally written in English by Dr Nigel Ashford, the book has been translated into multiple languages, including Russian, Spanish, Turkish – and now Swedish. Written for the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation in the 1990’s the book was intended as a study guide in the former communist countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Today, the book is used in several of the Foundation’s program countries, including Latin America, Turkey and the Balkans.
Principles for a Free Society introduces twelve crucial principles and values that are at a base of any free, democratic and open society. The principles cover civil society, democracy, equality, free enterprise, freedom, human rights, justice, peace, private property, rule of law, spontaneous order and tolerance. (more…)
Conference on the Developments in the Balkans
May 14th, 2011 Albania | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Croatia | Macedonia | Seminars | Serbia | The Balkans | The European Union
Oskar Öholm greeting Nicola Lazic. Flaked by Stefan Dragojevic, Kire Ilioski and Jens Ahl.
On May 13-14, 2011, the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation organized a round-table conference with leaders from cooperation partners in the Balkans. The conference focused on the continued integration of the Balkan states into Europe as well as other aspects of the European Union.
“The Countries in the Balkans have to push for membership. The EU never invites anyone to join,” said Walburga Habsburg Douglas, MP and member of the Hjalmarson Foundation board. Her view was shared by the participants. (more…)
Release of a New Book: Balkan Blend
May 12th, 2011 Seminars | The Balkans | The European Union | Uncategorized
The anthology was discussed following a presentation of the book made by MP Walburga Habsburg Douglas.
The authors in Balkan Blend, a new anthology published by the Hjalmarson Foundation, all describe – from their different views – the advantages of an EU membership for the Balkan countries. The book does not give any final answers and the views sometimes go apart, for instance in regards to the Kossovar independence.
An audience of about 40 people attended the release of the book <i>Balkan Blend – The Road to Renewal/i> on May 12. After a few words of welcome from the Chairman of the Foundation, Göran Lennmarker, Walburga Habsburg Douglas, MP and a Hjalmarson Foundation board member, gave a brief introduction to the eight texts in the book. “The anthology does not present any consensus opinion and the views sometimes differ,” Walburga Habsburg Douglas noted. She explained that all the writers, from their different views, describe the advantages of an EU membership for the Balkan countries. “I hope this presentation will encourage you to delve further into this book,” Walburga Habsburg Douglas summarized. (more…)
Discussion about the Internet and its Implications for Developments
May 6th, 2011 Development Aid | Seminars
Minister Gunilla Carlsson and Ambassador Matthew Barzun.
Freedom, Aid and Democracy were the theme of a seminar hosted by the Hjalmarson Foundation on the Convention of the Moderate Party for local and regional decision makers.
“The number of internet users has doubled since 2005” Hanna Hellquist, State Secretary at the MFA and the Moderator of the session, opened the seminar. She then introduced the two panelists, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Gunilla Carlsson and the US Ambassador Matthew Barzun. (more…)
Focus on Latin America
May 3rd, 2011 Foreign Policy | Latin America | Seminars | The Dominican Republic
Marcelo Schrubbe.
Political winds in Latinamerica was the theme of a seminar held in Stockholm May 3, 2011. Eduardo Quiñónez, Chairman of the Youth Section of the ARENA party in El Salvador’s capital San Salvador and Marcelo Schrubbe, local politicians in Blumenau and Chairman of the Youth of the Democrats, in Brazil, visited Sweden and the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation. The audience learned about their political work and development in their respective countries.
“61 percent of the population is under 30 and a third of them tell us that they are interested in politics. It is group that we in the ARENA Youth Section want to reach before the 2012 elections, said Eduardo Quiñónez.
He told that the issues that young people in El Salvador are most interested in are: economy, education, environment and safety. The latter is a question of being able to live without fear for criminal gangs that are a reality particular in the capital, San Salvador. (more…)
Diaries of dissidents – Daily Routines in a Belarusian prison was presented to a Swedish audience on December 7, 2010. The next day the book was presented in Swedish Parliament by the Parliamentary Belarusian network as host. The book is written by 15 Belarusian in opposition to the regime. They all kept a diary during their time in jail – so called “administrative arrest” which most of the time last for 10-15 days. This is a recurrent penalty imposed for everything from “swearing” to waiving the Belarusian white-red-white flag.
Stanislau Bohdanovich and Andrei Sarotnik told the audience what it is like to live and act politically in a dictatorship. “I was in the square [opposition protests after the 2006 election through the camp on October Square in Minsk] and arrested” said Stanislau Bohdanovich. He and others said that there were many hundreds of democratic activists who were sentenced to administrative arrest. (more…)
80-90 percent of Macedonians is for the EU and also NATO membership, said Vasko Naumovski, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for European Affairs in the Macedonian government when he, on November 17, spoke at a breakfast meeting arranged by Hjalmarson Foundation. Vasko Naumovski spoke in reference to the European Commission’s annual Enlargement package, presented on 8 November, and the progress made in Macedonia. “Sweden welcomes the accession negotiations with Macedonia,” said the Foreign Ministry and Foreign Minister Carl Bildt at the time when the EU report was released.
A group of diplomats and moderate members of Parliament were invited to listen to Vasko Naumovskis views on EU membership. The picture he gave was multifaceted. On the one hand, the Macedonian progress is mainly in the political sphere, on the other hand, Greece still stalling the membership negotiations. This applies to the name Macedonia, which also is the name of a province in Greece:
“It is as if Russia would oppose Europe called Europe since much of Europe is in Russia. Or that Moldova can not be called Moldova since there is a province in Romania with the same name”, said Vasko Naumovski. When asked what the name issue means for ordinary people in Macedonia, he replied: “In opinion polls 80 percent of the respondents answer that national identity is more important than membership in the EU and NATO.”
Vasko Naumovski added that he and his government is certainly willing to compromise to resolve the name issue; to overcome this obstacle to EU membership. And by the way, he said, this was already done in 1995 when Macedonia changed its flag. He was cautiously optimistic, explaining that today the Prime Ministers of both countries meet to talk. This was unthinkable just a few years ago. Nothing concrete has yet come out of this. ”But of course we are willing to compromise!”
Four Russian opposition parties have recently initiated a political cooperation. It is expected to have a common presidential candidate in the 2012 elections. Two of the party leaders participated in the annual round table conference on developments in Eastern Europe organized by the Hjalmarson Foundation. In addition the upcoming elections in Belarus were discussed. As developments in Ukraine.
Each autumn, a number of top politicians and analysts from countries in Eastern Europe gathered over the weekend in Visby on Gotland. The discussions at these conferences is always informal, and should not be quoted elsewhere. This creates an open and constructive debate climate, which is appreciated by the participants. (more…)
The Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation participated in the Gothenburg Book Fair, manning a stand at the so called International Square. In addition, the foundation arranged three popular seminars. All of the activities put focus on freedom of speech at the Internet and was a part of the Foundation campaign “Internet Freedom”!
Targeting students, the Foundation organized a seminar at the smaller stage of the International Square. Hanif Bali, MP from the Moderate Party and Juras Stankevic, Belarusian opposition politician, discussed the frequently reoccurring abuses and human rights violations committed by authoritarian regimes at the web. Juras bore witness of the situation in Belarus whereas Hanif discussed how Sweden could assist through technology in helping dissident bloggers in dictatorships to spread inconvenient truths. Magnus Nilsson, Moderate local politician, chaired the discussion. (more…)
Trade can help both democracy and liberty along the way, said Ewa Björling, Minister for Trade. “We have been trading free since the Vikings’ time,” she said, explaining that CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility), anti-corruption and safeguarding the environment are some of the areas that Sweden today, in various forms, are exporting. The seminar presented a report – Trading for democracy and freedom – written by Ewa Bjorling.
“I am convinced that trade can contribute to values that go beyond the economic – to peace, human rights, freedom and openness,” Ewa Björling writes in her report. She is convinced that trading indirectly contributes to a greater respect for human rights and free trade “contributes to increased prosperity, which in turn strengthens the ability of people to actively work towards a larger freedom.” (more…)
High Level Conference about the Balkans and the EU
May 8th, 2010 Albania | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Croatia | Macedonia | Seminars | Serbia | The European Union
Standing are Minister for Foreign Affairs Antonio Milošoski from Makedonien (to the left) and Genc Pollo, Minister for Innovation and ICT in Albanien.
May 7-8, the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation arranged a round table conference on the EU integration of the Balkan countries. The participants were high level politicians from the Foundation’s sister parties in four Balkan states. The group consisted of some 20 politicians including two ministers – the Macedonian Minister for Foreign Affairs Antonio Milošoski and Genc Pollo, Albanian Minister for Innovation and ICT.
Among the issues discussed at the conference were membership and security in the Balkan region. Göran Lennmarker, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Foreign Affairs and the Chairman of the Foundation, reminded the participants that although the path to a membership may seem endless to the Balkan countries, the situation was once the same for the Baltic states. Today, those countries are all EU-members.
Numerous participants noted that Sweden is the most enlargement-friendly member of the Union. In addition, they emphasized that this, the third Balkan conference arranged by the Foundation, constituted an excellent opportunity to “openly discuss problems and exchange experiences among friends”.
The participants discussed obstacles on the path to full EU membership – such as bilateral conflicts. Nevertheless, the participants agreed that there is indeed a development in the right direction.
- Since we met last time, we have achieved visa freedom for, for example, Serbians, said Nikola Lazic, Serbian parliamentarian and International Secretary for the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS).
The participating parties where Albanian Partia Demokratike e Shqipërisë, Bosnian Partija Demokratskog Progresa and Stranka Demokratske, VMRO-DPMNE from Macedonia and Serbian Demokratska Stranka Srbije and G17Plus.
Paul Rusesabagina
“A discussion on the development in Rwanda” was the topic set for a seminar arranged by the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation on April 28, 2010. Paul Rusesabagina whose story inspired to the film Hotel Rwanda and Christian Holm, MP, who recently returned from a study trip to Rwanda both participated in the seminar. The seminar turned out to illustrate the difficulties of getting opponents to settle around a negotiation table.
On one hand, it has been claimed that although Rwanda remains one of the world’s poor nations, the country has, in the last fourteen years, undergone a significant positive development in the economic sphere. The Rwandan government has focused on preventing new conflicts between ethnic groups.
On the other hand, it is claimed that despite international assistance and political reforms, Rwanda still has problems respecting human rights. As late as last week, two oppositional newspapers were closed down and government permission is needed in order to found oppositional parties. (more…)
Major Political Leader Discussed Eastern Partnership
October 17th, 2009 Eastern Europe | Seminars | The European Union
Top: Petro Poroshenko. To the left: Rasa Jukneviciene. Small photos from the top: Temuri Yakobashvili and Alexander Vershbow
The discussions in these annual conferences are always informal, and should not be cited elsewhere. In that way, an open and constructive channel for debate is created. This is most appreciated by the participants:
“It’s not just the sessions, but also the discussions during the breaks and dinners” explains Dag Hartelius, Swedish Ambassador in Warsaw. Joining the seminar for the fifth time, Hartelius was one of the close to 50 participants participating in the seminar.
Several participants were enthusiastic about the network which has been built up during previous conferences. The appointment of Andrius Kubilius and Rasa Jukneviciene, both frequent visitors to previous conferences, as the Lithuanian Prime Minister and Minister for Defense, was seen by many as a positive sign.
The list of participants this year includes several ambassadors, party chairmen and ministers from Austria, Belarus, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, the US and Sweden. The delegation from Georgia, which included the minister of reintegration, Temuri Yakobashvili, found its home country to be the topic of debate at several occasions during the conference. During an intermission, he asked for increased political pressure on Russia to live up to signed treaties regarding the occupied areas in Georgia. Without foreign pressure, he claimed, this will never come true.
The visa issue is also of major importance to Mr. Yakobashvili, and a priority shared by most countries neighbouring the EU. Gerald Knaus, the Austrian chairman of the European Stability Initiative, explained that the Balkan countries, which have fought for an increased freedom of visas to the union, will be able to travel freely into the EU member states within a year. For some of the countries, this might come true already at the start of the new year.
“Previously, the Interior Ministers in the EU countries used to block visa reform, referring to security measures, while the Ministers for Foreign Affairs used to argue in favour of it. However, two years ago, the EU decided to state certain criteria for countries aiming for visa freedom. This has been a success. Today, three out of six Balkan countries have already implemented the EU-criteria – Macedonia has fulfilled all the criteria whereas Serbia and Montenegro have managed to realize most of them, according to Knaus.
In his view, countries like Georgia and Turkey should try to get permission to start the same process, which he considers “strict but fair”.
Within the frame work of historical events falls the visit of the Ukrainian Minister for Foreign Affairs to the Visby seminar. Petro Poroshenko had been Minister for a mere seven days when arriving in Visby. Due to the unstable situation and the conflicts between President Viktor Yushenko and Prime Minister Yuliya Tymoshenko, the seat as Minister for Foreign Affairs had been vacant for eight months.
“I have been appointed by the President and confirmed by the Prime Minister” Petro Poroshenko explains during a coffee break in Visby.
He views his appointment as a sign of good luck for the future political climate – and for the Presidential election in the beginning of next year. It is his ambition to be able to present his country with one voice in the important EU-Ukraine conference, held in Kiev on December 4, 2009.
Energy policy was one of the topics discussed during the Visby conference. In this area, Petro Poroshenko has a straight forward position: Ukraine should be added to the EU energy policy “based on a memorandum dating March 23 2009”. This reflects on an energy agreement between the European Parliament and the EU members striving for more efficient energy markets.
Such an increased efficiency is of utmost importance for Ukraine. The idea is to modernize, thereby significantly decreasing the need for energy, Petro Poroshenko explains. In essence, this could imply complete energy independence for Ukraine. The most important aspect is not, says Mr Poroshenko, independence from Russian gas but “an increased efficiency in the Ukrainian industry”.
The neighbouring countries’ relations to Russia were of great concern for the participants. “Where is Russia heading?” being the primary question, a question with multi dimensional answers.
For Rasa Jukneviciene, Lithuanian Defence Minister, the issue of Kaliningrad, is of national interest. While being formally part of Russia, the Kaliningrad region is geographically severed from Russia and is situated by the Baltic Sea, bordering Poland and Lithuania. According to Jukneviciene, the smuggling of tobacco and oil products from the region into Lithuania is a problem. In addition, the Russian military personnel and equipment stationed in Kaliningrad is being upgraded. For the neighbourhood, the common military Belarus-Russia exercises, which are being held in Kaliningrad and Belarus, are also of major concern. Putin’s ascent to power has also altered the situation.
“Previously, Kaliningrad enjoyed some independence, and people could travel more,” Rasa Jukneviciene explains.
Nowadays, decisions are to a larger extent taken in Moscow. A concern is also the anti- European views which are spreading in Russia. “As a result of propaganda, many Russians find Lithuania, Georgia and other neighbouring countries to be main threats to Russia”.
Ambassador Alexander Vershbow, Deputy Defence Minister, responsible for international security, joined the conference from Washington DC. He assured the participants that the Obama administration has Europe in mind – the whole of Europe. “However”, he added on the topic of Russia’s neighbours, “I understand how worried they are”. Vershbow argued that “the interest of minor states should not be negotiated away”, while dealing with Russia. Moral support is important, he claims. As is the possibility for common Russians to visit western countries.
”It is important to provide visa and financial support so that i.e. Russian doctors and local politicians may visit the US to see the available alternatives to politics in their home country.
Foreign minister Carl Bildt participates in the conference for top politicians arranged by JHS 16-18 October, 2009.
Intense program at the Gothenburg Book Fair 2009
September 30th, 2009 Foreign Policy | Latin America | Seminars | The Baltic StatesOn September 24-27, the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation participated in the Gothenburg Book Fair, with a showcase. In addition, the foundation arranged three seminars. Keeping in mind the over all focus of the fair, the foundation also presented two newly issued books. While the first one “The triumph of Democracy – 20 years since the fall of the Berlin wall” describes how democracy conquering communism, the other “Red Tornado” covers the increasing dominance of Hugo Chavéz in Latin America. Both books may be downloaded in Swedish at this site.
The celebration of the 20’th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall was also the main focus for one of the foundation’s seminars. Three of the authors of the book participated and gave their view on communism and the reasons for it being abandoned. Walburga Habsburg Douglas was one of those who cut the iron curtain between Hungary and Austria. Richard Swartz for a long time held the position as correspondent for the Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet in Central- and Eastern Europe, whereas Cecilia Stegö-Chiló traveled and wrote frequently on Eastern Europe during the year of 1989. (more…)
During two intense September days, eight Belarusian opposition leaders visited Sweden, invited by the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation. At the very same day of their visit to the Swedish Parliament, oppositional activists were arrested in connection to a demonstration in the Belarusian capital Minsk. They had gathered to mark the ten year anniversary of the disappearance of two people critical of the government. Speaking as the chairman the European Union, the Swedish government filed a complaint regarding the development in Minsk.
In the photo from left Alaksandr Kazulin, Zhana Litvina and Anatoly Lebedko.
In a public seminar, arranged by the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation on Thursday 17th of September, the Belarusians further witness of the risky life of political activists. For example, people belonging to an “un-registered” organization may be put into prison for two years. “Most of us are members of such organizations” Alaksey Yanukyevich, chairman of the Belarusian Popular Front, explained. While the Belarusian president Aleksander Lukashenko has recently taken some steps to meet recent EU demands for a release of political prisoners as a condition for further cooperation between Belarus and the EU, the opposition leaders remained skeptics.“He would never agree to anything which might challenge his authority” argued Anatoly Lebedko, chairman of the United Civil Party. “For an entire two months, there were no political prisons”, Tatsiana Reviaka from the human rights organization Viasna added cynically. (more…)
