World Forum for democracy satellite events

The challenges of free speech and democratic debate online

Roundtable debate at College of Europe, Bruges, Belgium

3 November 2015, 8.15pm, College of Europe, Bruges, Belgium (upon invitation only)

There is no doubt that new information technologies have a contribution to make towards better democracies and more informed public debates. They allow for a stronger and better interaction between citizens, decision makers and public administration, and also contribute to enhance the access to information. However, there are also challenges for democracy associated with their use: from opportunities of communication surveillance, challenges to data privacy to the diffusion of rumours and lower quality debates. The European General Studies Programme organizes a debate in association with the World Forum of Democracy. The Professors BENOÎT-ROHMER and HAARSCHER and Professor TUÑÓN NAVARRO (Visiting Scholar from the Universidad Carlos III Madrid) will address some of these issues in an open discussion with students.

Speakers:

Prof. Guy Haarscher, College of Europe/Université Libre de Bruxelles
Prof. Florence Benoît-Rohmer, College of Europe/Université de Strasbourg
Prof. Jorge Tuñón Navarro, Visiting scholar, College of Europe/Universidad Carlos III

Digital whistleblowing: blessing or curse?

A roundtable debate at Hertie School of Governance, Berlin, Germany

17 November 2015, 6.00-7.30pm at the Hertie School of Governance, Berlin, Germany. The event will be followed by a reception.

The digital era has brought remarkable opportunities to advance open government. An open, transparent government often allows citizens of a democracy to control their government, monitoring state capture and graft. The invention of social media and its increasingly wise usage furthers the translation of transparency into accountability by expanding the accessibility of civic participation. An army of citizens using their smartphones to check on their government can only bring health to a democracy. But the world is not made only of democratic states or indeed groups or individuals with democratic views. And digital tools are just tools- they can be used to every purpose. Is digital whistleblowing in every area an instrument of the public good and it should be encouraged? What are the opportunities and the pitfalls of digital whistleblowing?

With: Open Society Institute, Transparency International, Open Knowledge Foundation, Xnet and The Economist

Chair: Prof. Alina Mungiu-Pippidi, PhD, Professor of Democracy Studies

Report

Freedom from fear in diverse society?

Case-study of Hungary

19 November 2015, 10am-3pm, Central European University, Budapest, Hungary

10:00 - 10:15 Opening remarks: John SHATTUCK, CEU President and Rector

10:15 - 10:45 Keynote: Alexandria INNES, University of East Anglia

10:45 – 11:00 Coffee break

11:00 – 12:45 Panel 1: Fear-mongering /dehumanizing of migrants (and refugees in particular) in Hungary. The challenges of a diverse society (considering the situation of Roma)

Moderator: Boldizsár NAGY, Associate Professor International Relations, CEU

Panelists:

Prem Kumar RAJARAM (CEU, Department of Sociology): Immobilizing mobility: border ethnography, illiberal democracy and the politics of the "refugee crisis" in Hungary (based on a paper co-written with Daniel MONTERESCU and Annastiina KALLIUS)
Andres MOLES, CEU, POLSCI: Unjust Stereotypes for Just Minds
Endre SÍK (ELTE, TÁRKI) & Bori SIMONOVITS (TÁRKI): Scapegoating and xenophobia in contemporary Hungary
Kovácsné dr. Nagy Emese (Hejőkeresztúr, school director): Teaching in socially and academically heterogeneous classrooms

12:45 – 13:15 Coffee break + snacks

13:15 – 15:00 Panel 2: Civil society responses. Can civil society organizations and grass-root movements counter the hostile public discourse and legal environment?

Moderator: Violetta Zentai, Director Center for Policy Studies, CEU

Panelists: