Representatives of national youth councils from member States of the Council of Europe met in Strasbourg from 10 to 12 March to contribute to the New Democratic Pact for Europe consultation phase. The seminar was organised by the Youth Department of the Council of Europe and the European Youth Forum in the European Youth Centre Strasbourg.

 National youth councils are umbrella organisations of youth civil society at national level. They have long served as vital platforms for the democratic participation and representation of young people across Europe. By bringing together diverse youth organisations, they help ensure inclusive decision-making.

 Participants discussed the growing challenges facing youth civil society in a context of democratic backsliding, where the first to be attacked are youth organisations. Andreea Scrioşteanu, Vice-president of the European Youth Forum, further emphasised this in her closing remarks: “Over the last decade, the Youth Progress Index^[1] (YPI) records that the right to peaceful assembly dramatically declined in 21 member states of the Council of Europe. Student demonstrations for democracy in several countries have been met with disproportionate state crackdowns.”

 The Recommendation of the Committee of Ministers on the role of national youth councils in youth policy development (CM/REC(2006)1) has informed the discussions and the proposals made by the participants in the seminar. The Recommendation builds on the principle of co-management, underlining that youth policy “should be founded on the cooperation between public authorities and pluralist youth organisations and networks, and that the establishment of national youth councils constitutes the most appropriate to guarantee such pluralism”.

Participants made proposals for action for the next five years. They focus on European policy and its implementation, advocacy and campaigning, funding, capacity building, and the implementation of the Reference Framework on a Youth Perspective in member states.

 Addressing participants at the closing session, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Bjorn Berge, stressed that democracy is an evolving process:

“Democracy is far from perfect, and we need to find a way of strengthening and revitalising it – together with you. You have the knowledge, the experience and you have power.”

He also warned against complacency in the face of rising authoritarian tendencies.

“At this time when fear is sweeping across Europe, driven by disinformation, impunity and authoritarianism, we can only make a difference if we stand up for what we believe in. Indifference and complacency are in many ways our worst enemy. We must fight for our rights – our fundamental human rights – our values – and amend and develop it as we go along. Yes, democracy is far from perfect, but the alternatives are much worse!” the Deputy Secretary concluded.