EUROPEAN CLASSES DESCRIZIONE DEL PROGETTO

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Angelina Potter
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EUROPEAN CLASSES DESCRIZIONE DEL PROGETTO Il progetto EUROPEAN CLASSES 2012-2013 si è svolto nel mese di novembre 2012 nel castello ( Landkommanderij ) di Alden Biesen, fondato nell 11 secolo in

1 EUROPEAN CLASSES DESCRIZIONE DEL PROGETTO Il progetto EUROPEAN CLASSES si è svolto nel mese di novembre 2012 nel castello ( Landkommanderij ) di Alden Biesen, fondato nell 11 secolo in Belgio dai Cavalieri dell Ordine Teutonico, costituitisi in gruppo all epoca delle crociate medievali. Il castello, utilizzato oggi come centro culturale, è sede di conferenze e di festival internazionali oltre che delle Classi Europee, settimane di studio intese a promuovere la cooperazione internazionale tra giovani studenti di scuole secondarie dell Unione Europea. Tale soggiorno ha consentito ad un gruppo di 11 studenti del nostro liceo di effettuare una simulazione di una seduta del Parlamento Europeo con precedente presentazione di proposte in seduta plenaria e discussioni ed emendamenti in gruppi multinazionali. Infatti, attraverso la presentazione di problematiche comuni quali l immigrazione, la riduzione dell utilizzo di energia nucleare, le pari opportunità e la comparabilità dei sistemi educativi e le successive discussioni in gruppi multinazionali costituiti dalle varie scuole europee partecipanti al progetto, sono stati elaborati commenti e redatte relazioni riportate poi in assemblea. I gruppi, rappresentando diverse delegazioni degli Stati membri dell'ue, hanno alla fine della settimana simulato una vera e propria seduta del Consiglio dei Ministri del Parlamento Europeo, imparando a superare le barriere linguistiche e a comprendere diversi punti di vista nell esplorazione di problemi comuni, allo stesso tempo difendendo le proprie posizioni. Gli studenti hanno preso parte, inoltre, a workshops creativi e ricreativi, ad attività sportive e a visite guidate alle città di Aachen, Bruxelles e Leuven.

IMMIGRATION (lecture delivered on November 7th, 2012) 1. Explaining Our Choice And Our Point Of View We are Italians. We are a people of sailormen and migrants.

Since the very beginnings of our history, when Greek seamen and traders founded flourishing colonies of everlasting beauty on our shores, layers upon layers of strangers have blended into what we are

2 IMMIGRATION (lecture delivered on November 7th, 2012) 1. Explaining Our Choice And Our Point Of View We are Italians. We are a people of sailormen and migrants. We have contributed to the making and to the wealth of other countries, others have contributed to ours. Since the very beginnings of our history, when Greek seamen and traders founded flourishing colonies of everlasting beauty on our shores, layers upon layers of strangers have blended into what we are today, making us better. We are the result of a melting pot no less than the United States, and so is the rest of Europe. Migration has shaped countries and peoples ever since prehistoric times and it cannot be stopped forever, whatever the laws, whatever the efforts. We believe that migration is born out of necessity. No one would leave his family, his home, his country, his culture, bound to unknown lands that might never get to sound familiar to him if he weren t in desperate need. We believe it is our duty to help those who, fleeing war and poverty, land on our shores. Others Germans, Swiss men, Americans- accepted us when WE were in need; WE accepted thousands during the Arab Spring, and we are proud for the lives we helped to save. But at the same time we are convinced that no one nation can carry alone the economic and social burden when thousands are in search of a new life. These are the considerations our proposal has stemmed from. 2. A Brief Outline Of The Problem (comment to the PPT presentation) The Schengen Treaty is one of the most emblematic achievements of the European Union. It has granted passport-free travel to Europeans. During the Arab Spring this signature feat was at risk of being rolled back because the surge of migrants fleeing toward Europe caused political dispute. The Italian Prime Minister and the French President called for border control to be reimposed to resolve what they described as exceptional difficulties. As a matter of fact, the tiny Italian island

3 of Lampedusa was pushed under pressure by a lot of migrants from Tunisia and Libya. Mr. Berlusconi called on other E.U. countries to share the burden of dealing with migrants. When the E.U. failed to respond, Italy granted the Tunisians temporary residency permits that allowed them to travel across the Schengen zone. As migrants reached the Alps, France reacted by rounding them up and sending them back. Commission said it was better to review the system. Critics say that 25,000 Tunisians should not pose a challenge to passport-free travel zone if we take in consideration the fact that northern European countries have offered asylum to a greater number of migrants than Italy. Chauzy, director of communications for the Geneva-based International Organization for Migrations says that the economic downturn has increased resentments to migrants. The truth is that border controls are an ineffective way of stopping migrants. Recently more and more migrants have sought refuge in Europe. At a E.U. meeting in Brussels the ministers promised a cooperation with Egypt and Tunisia offering to help rebuild civil institutions and boost economic ties. In theory they said they were in favour of democratic change, social justice and economic development. But the assembly in Brussels was dominated by fears about Europe and the problem of migration, especially in Lampedusa, that is considered as a gateway to Europe for migrants from Africa. Since 2009 the number of immigrants from Libya to Italy has increased. Unemployment is 43% in Spain, 25% in Italy, but many Tunisians still see their best chance for a better life in Europe rather than at home. In the future Europe will need more foreign workers because the E.U. s active population will start falling as early as 2014, and projections suggest the E.U. workforce will shrink by 50 million over the next 50 years. E.U. foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton has already asked E.U. governments for an additional $1.4 billion loan for North African countries. If Europe s governments help to rebuild the region, the Arab world will be more democratic, more advanced and more productive. Patras is one of Greece s biggest ports, always considered by migrants as a gateway to the West. To reach the port of Patras they use vehicles, usually trucks full of fruit, where migrants hide among boxes. Customs officers stop trucks to check and the vehicles are often confiscated. Over 80% if those entering the European Union now pass through Greece. The typical route is through the north-eastern corner of the country, across the Evros river from Turkey. They continue through Athens and down to Patras, in limbo until they think it is the right time to leave. Ships here leave to Italy and the vehicles on board often travel further still. The influx of new arrivals here has made immigration a hot social issue. Recently, the anti-immigration Golden Dawn party promised to lay landmines along the border with Turkey. The buildings where migrants stay are vast and squalid labyrinths, scrawled on the walls and usually dirty. They come to this troubled country with dreams of Europe. But Greece is sinking further into crisis and the mood here is darkening, on all sides.

4 Immigration is one of the main problems in Italy. This issue has been addressed by the Italian director Abatantuono in the film Cose dell altro Mondo-Things of the other World. The story deals with an entrepreneur who asks migrants to leave and return to their countries at once; but the day after the city is in panic; people are confused because all the immigrants have gone back home leaving their jobs. At this very moment the society collapses (industries haven t got any workers; families lose their caregivers) : only now Italians understand the importance of these people and the manager begs them to return back. 3. Conclusion Europe s history has been shaped by migration. For centuries, merchants, craftsmen and intellectuals crossed the continent to practice their trades or start new lives. Millions emigrated from Europe, first to the colonies and later to America. Also Europe has a long history of forced migration: from the expulsion of the Jews from Spain to the population shifts in southeastern Europe caused by the many wars between the Russian, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires. Immigration is a process that has always existed, since the waves of migration of the Roman Empire until nowadays. We use to consider this event as a problem that has to be solved but we don t understand that it s just a normal process, unstoppable, necessary to allow our society to evolve. Just consider how many immigrants helped rebuild the German industry after the second world war, when West Germany underwent economic development, supported both by the Marshall Plan and by the flow of migrants from less developed areas of agricultural Europe. To overcome the lack of manpower both in the agricultural field and in the industrial and building sector and to go on with the reconstruction of the country, the German governments opened the doors to foreign migrants. Of course, immigration also poses problems and we want to show that the only way to reduce its bad consequences is to share all together the burden of migration. You might think that this problem should be solved by the countries that suffer it but our opinion is that we aren t Italians, we aren t Spanish, we aren t Swedes but just European citizens, so Italy s problem is Europe s problem!

5 THE ITALIAN PROPOSAL ON IMMIGRATION Immigration is one of the most dramatic issues in contemporary society. There are a lot of different opinions about it. As a matter of fact it definitely creates a lot of problems because each government is expected to ensure a good standard of living to both citizens and immigrants granting everybody freedom and social justice. In order to do that, a country has to be stable itself and not all of the European countries are stable. In Europe 24 million people are out of work and joblessness amongst the young reaches 43% in Spain and 25% in Italy. Most of those entering the European Union now pass through Greece, Italy or Spain. They come with dreams of Europe but because of this one of the achievements of the European Union, the Schengen treaty, which allows passport-free travel to Europeans, might be rolled back. Border controls, however, are an ineffective way of stopping migrants. We must therefore agree on how to organize the flow of people and welcome immigrants. This is what the Italian delegation suggests, in the pursuit of a joint solution. 1. After entering a European country, immigrants should be identified, even by taking their fingerprints, and sorted out according to the reason why each of them left his/her country. Priority should be given to those seeking political asylum who would be tortured or killed if they were sent back to their countries. 2. Immigrants should be allowed to enter European countries and remain there for three years. In this lapse of time they must find a job and learn the language, which they must prove to know at least at a basic level by taking a test. Refugees should be allowed to stay independently of the test as long as their situation of danger lasts. Whoever commits a crime should be sent back to his/her own country. 3. All the countries that accept immigrants that cannot be immediately employed in their economic structures should receive both national and European funds according to the number of people they have to take care of. The money is necessary to guarantee immigrants a humane treatment, which they cannot presently get in the existing overcrowded dirty temporary identification and detention centres. Part of the funds shall be used to finance projects for integration and schooling, also involving local communities.

A Story Of Ancient Travellers (from the joint diary of the students) Once upon a time, far away in called Alden Biesen. People from all on an amazing journey.

Belgium there was an ancient castle, corners of Europe met there to embark ladies of the castle gave the travellers stables and food for their empty Since they were so tired after the long journey,

As darkness conquered the sky, they gathered in the nicely furnished halls of the castle to prepare for the next day s activities.

6 A Story Of Ancient Travellers (from the joint diary of the students) Once upon a time, far away in called Alden Biesen. People from all on an amazing journey. The noble asylum, beautiful chambers in the stomachs. Belgium there was an ancient castle, corners of Europe met there to embark ladies of the castle gave the travellers stables and food for their empty Since they were so tired after the long journey, the travellers decided to stay for a whole week. After a while they started to approach one another curiously and to tell stories about their own countries using the ancient method of Powerpoint. As darkness conquered the sky, they gathered in the nicely furnished halls of the castle to prepare for the next day s activities... The horses were restless so the knights and ladies rode to Aachen, in Germany, to visit the Cathedral and sit on the throne of Charlemagne. Back at the castle, our brave heroes played games to strengthen their friendship. The next day they devoted some time to Arts and Crafts. The King and Queen of Belgium were eager to meet the noble foreigners and invited them to the capital, Brussels. On their way back to Alden Biesen, the tired travellers stopped to rest and eat in the town of Leuven, softly lit by hundreds of lanterns. On the last morning everyone put on their smart clothes, finally revealing they were highly ranking messengers whose mission was to have their countries proposals accepted by the Council of Europe. At night, all together, the young messengers from all over Europe celebrated the end of an extraordinary week of work and fun in the warm atmosphere of a cave called the cellar bar.

PatMedMUNCXI European Union European Immigration Crisis

PatMedMUNCXI European Union European Immigration Crisis Europe has often been seen as a magnet of safety to those living in countries where the only lives they know are that of war and instability. This