Report of Activities 2007 - Club of Madrid

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007met with various groups of State delegates and civil society representatives, including the PrimeMinister, former members of parliament, representatives of human rights associations, themedia, trade unions, lawyers, activists and politicians. Meetings focused on freedom ofassociation and the electoral system, the media, future parliamentary elections and freedom ofassociation in the legislative framework. The subjects covered during this mission included theelectoral law and laws regarding political parties, public meetings and Non-GovernmentalOrganisations.Missions to BahrainSubsequent to the missions carried out by the Club of Madrid to Morocco in March and Jordanin April, the organisation sent a mission to the Kingdom of Bahrain in April focusing onfreedom of association. It was led by the Club of Madrid Members Sadig Al Mahdi (Sudan),Zlatko Lagumdzija (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Cassam Uteem (Republic of Mauritius).With the support of the Bahrain Centre for National Studies, the project associate, thedelegation met with members of the Bahrain government, parliament and civil society,including S.E. Sheikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, Minister of Foreign Affairs, members ofboth chambers in the parliament, representatives of ten political parties, eleven civil societyorganisations, including professional associations, human rights and women’s organisations andrepresentatives of several media.The Club of Madrid’s work in this project was carried out in collaboration with leadersinvolved in the processes of dialogue in Jordan, Bahrain and Morocco who, in a subsequentphase of the project, will share this experience with other countries in the region, such as Egypt,Saudi Arabia and Tunisia. This mission marked the start of a learning process on the progressachieved by the Bahrain people regarding democratic reform and the identification ofchallenges still remaining and how they can be met.At the end of October, the Club of Madrid carried out a second mission to the Kingdom ofBahrain, with the participation of the Members Sadig Al Mahdi (Sudan) and Valdis Birkavs(Latvia). The Club of Madrid took part in meetings with State and civil society representativeson the subject of freedom of association and participation in public affairs. Amongst thepartners with which the Club of Madrid worked in Bahrain were Mr Jamal Fakhro, First Vice-President, Shura Council; Dr Abdulaziz Abul, Member of Parliament; and Mr Adbulnay Alekryof the Bahrain Human Rights Society.Meeting on democratic values in the Arab World in Cordoba, SpainIn mid-May, the Club of Madrid organised a meeting in Cordoba, Spain, on democratic valuesand freedom of association in the Arab World, as part of the project receiving support from theEuropean Commission and the United Nations Fund for Democracy. The meeting leaders wereby the Club of Madrid Members Abdul-Kareem Al-Eryani (Yemen) and Sadig Al Mahdi(Sudan). The meeting, held with the support of Rosa Aguilar, Mayor of Cordoba, was openedby Miguel Ángel Moratinos, Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, and participants includedsenior officials from Bahrain, Jordan and Morocco.Members of the Club of Madrid and representatives of the government, parliament and civilsociety of these three countries centred their discussions on the subject of freedom ofassociation as a key element in democratic practice. The meeting, which received the support ofthe Casa Árabe - International Institute of Arab and Moslem World Studies, aimed to fosterdebate on strategies for building consensus amongst state and non-governmental agents in a6/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007region that is characterised by diversity and high levels of political controversy.SHARED SOCIETIES PROJECT, component: “Democratic Dialogue and Freedom ofAssociation in the Arab World: Study trip by Saudi Arabian municipal counsellors aspart of the activity “Sharing experience of democratic local government in Spain”Twenty elected municipal counsellors from Saudi Arabia took part in a study trip to Spain inthe month of July to learn about the democratic experience of Spain at municipal level. Thisinitiative by the Club of Madrid and the National Democratic Institute included a seminarproviding an overview of the Spanish political system and a strategic workshop on municipalmanagement. Both these activities were held in Madrid with the support of the SpanishFederation of Municipalities and Provinces.During their stay in the Spanish capital, the City Council of Madrid, thanks to the generalcoordinator of Madrid Globa , Mr Ignacio Niño, offered a meal for the whole delegation in itsClub de Campo headquarters.For one week, the Saudi counsellors travelled in two groups to the cities of Alcorcón,Barcelona, Córdoba (in collaboration with Casa Árabe), Granada and Zaragoza, where they metthe mayors and municipal counsellors and were able to analyse the exercise of democracy bythe municipal authorities, from both political and professional viewpoints. The trip ended inBarcelona, where the delegation had the opportunity to learn about municipal and provincialinternational cooperation in meetings with United Cities and Local Governments and the CityCouncil of Barcelona.Some of the subjects arousing most interest among the Saudi counsellors were strategicplanning, the setting of priorities for municipal policies, involvement of the community andcommunity activities.SHARED SOCIETIES PROJECT, component: “WOMEN’S POLITICALPARTICIPATION AND LEADERSHIP: Underpinning and Developing DemocraticElectoral Processes through the empowerment of women Parliamentarians and Leadersin Sub-Saharan Africa”In February 2007, the Club of Madrid set up the African Women Leaders Project (AWLP) withthe aim of providing high-level support for women leaders in Nigeria, Sierra Leone andUganda. This initiative, lasting 18 months and financed by the European Commission’sEuropean Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights and the Canadian government throughthe Canadian International Development Agency, will help strengthen women’s politicalleadership, and in the long term should promote public confidence in women leaders andincrease women’s political participation.The specific goals of this project are to provide political leaders with new resources tostrengthen their political leadership; to identify and share best practices at regional andinternational levels increasing women’s political participation, including gender quotas andpolicies for positive discrimination; to facilitate the exchange of experiences and dialogueamongst women parliamentarians in the three countries and other leaders from Africa and therest of the world, fostering the sharing of knowledge and resources; to promote greaterawareness of the obstacles to women’s political participation; to work towards egalitarianpolitical participation in order to ensure proper functioning of democracy; and to increasewomen’s political participation in these countries through relevant international strategies forsupport and through the identification and adoption of policies that work.7/17

Missions to Sierra LeoneCLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007The first mission by the Club of Madrid and its counterpart in Sierra Leone, Campaign forGood Governance within the African Women Leaders Project, took place in May in Freetownand Makeni. Lasting five days, it was led by the Club of Madrid Members Kim Campbell(Canada) and Ketumile Masire (Botswana) and included the participation of Dora Byamukama,a member of the Eastern Africa Legislative Assembly.The mission’s activities included meetings with over 250 people, including women ministers,electoral candidates, senior civil servants, women’s civil society groups, leaders of politicalparties, traditional leaders, local representatives and young leaders. The delegation focused onpromoting participation by women in the legislative and presidential elections held in July andAugust 2007 respectively, supporting the candidates, and on encouraging parliamentaryapproval of legislative initiatives to protect women’s rights.In the month of July, the Club of Madrid and Campaign for Good Governance carried out asecond mission to Sierra Leone, in response to the many requests received from the participantson the first mission. The former Minister for Ethics and Integrity of Uganda and former memberof parliament Miria Matembe led several training sessions.This mission took place at the same time as the official start of the electoral campaign in SierraLeone. Matembe explained the key strategies for a successful campaign to the participants,most of whom were electoral candidates for the three main political parties in the country.Practical training sessions were held on public speaking, how to answer questions from citizensand the media, and how to raise funds and manage electoral resources. The former Ministerexplained to the women leaders the importance of maintaining strong ties with civil societyorganisations and the need for centring their discourse on specific measures that are ofimportance for voters. Finally, Matembe gave some guidelines for the winners of the electionswho would become members of parliament.In December (11-15), the third Club of Madrid delegation visited the country. ChandrikaKumaratunga, former President of Sri Lanka and the senator and former general prosecutor ofLiberia, Gloria Musu Scott, led the delegation and met with the Sierra Leone President, ErnestBai Koroma, who expressed his support for the initiative and stressed the great value of theAWLP. Meetings were also held with government leaders including the governmentspokesperson, members of parliament, representatives of political parties, the mayor ofFreetown, civil society organisations and international organisations such as United Nations.During the visit, the new computer centre created for this project by Club of Madrid wasinaugurated. This should allow women parliamentarians to access new technologies through theprovision of computers with Internet connections. A brief training course was given on how touse them. This centre should also promote participation by women in the debate fora on theproject’s web site.The programme ended with two days of workshops offering training on leadership for membersof parliament, given by senator Scott and Dr. Bernadette Lahai, a veteran member of the SierraLeone parliament.Study mission to UgandaAfter the decision to not work in Somalia, which had initially been selected as the third countryfor AWLP, for safety considerations, in August the Club of Madrid carried out a mission to8/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007Uganda to study the potential for AWLP in that country. The delegation presented theorganisation and the project’s goals to the different people involved and future partners, that is,women parliamentarians, local authorities, women’s organisations and civil society in general,as well as members of the international community. The mission also served to analyse thecountry’s needs and its current political situation in order to fine-tune the project design and thegoals and activities in Uganda.The AWEPA organisation (European Parliamentarians for Africa) was confirmed as the mostsuitable counterpart for the project in this country. The Club of Madrid and its partner took theopportunity to determine the form to be taken by collaboration and to plan the first projectactivities in Uganda.Missions in NigeriaFrom 28 to 30 November, the Club of Madrid, together with its counterpart in NigeriaWomen’s Rights Advancement and Protection Alternative (WRAPA), organised a mission toNigeria (Abuja and the states of Bauchi and Jos) in which a contribution was made to strongerleadership by women politicians.The delegation, led by the former Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Wim Kok, and MiriaMatembe, former Minister of Ethics and Integrity and former member of the Ugandanparliament, met with authorities from the country, senators, members of parliament, religiousleaders and members of civil society organisations. During these meetings, the parliamentarianswere able to strengthen their ties in order to further their agenda which includes, for example,the introduction of a women’s quota. Discussions were held with religious leaders on theirimportance and influence for changing attitudes and promoting education for women; also withhigh-level politicians in Nigeria, such as the Parliament spokesperson, Dimeji Bankole. Theyassured the delegation that they would do everything possible to support womenparliamentarians, and expressed their thanks for the opening of a computer centre in theParliament. In the states of Bauchi and Jos, the delegation had the opportunity of talking tolocal women leaders about their problems and needs and encouraged them to continue theirpeaceful fight for a more representative democracy in Nigeria. The delegation reported on theinformation gathered during this first visit to Nigeria in a press conference and in interviews onthe radio and television.SHARED SOCIETIES PROJECT, component: “WOMEN’S POLITICALPARTICIPATION AND LEADERSHIP: Seminar with women leaders from Iran, theMiddle East and Africa”The Club of Madrid and the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI)organised a seminar in the month of March in which the Club of Madrid Members Kjell MagneBondevik (Norway), Kim Campbell (Canada), Lionel Jospin (France), Mary Robinson (Ireland)and Jennifer Mary Shipley (New Zealand) and 18 women leaders from Egypt, Iran, Iraq,Jordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Spain shared their leadership experiences onthe promotion of access for, and participation by, women in social and political spheres.The seminar, which received support from Casa Asia, was eminently practical and helpedenhance the leadership skills of those present, tightening links amongst the men and womenparticipants with a view to promoting access by women to decision-making in the mediumterm. NDI provided funding for the event in the form of a subsidy from the NationalEndowment for Democracy.9/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007SHARED SOCIETIES PROJECT, component: “Religion, Democratic Leadership andIntercultural Dialogue: Conference in Oslo on Religion, Politics and DemocraticDevelopment”In mid-May, a conference was held in Oslo on religion, politics and democratic development. Itwas co-organised by the Club of Madrid, the Oslo Centre for Peace and Human Rights and theFoundation for Dialogue amongst Civilisations. The conference “Religion, Democracy andExtremism” brought together over forty political and religious leaders, academics andgovernment representatives from Western and Moslem countries. The host was the President ofthe Oslo Centre, Kjell Magne Bondevik, a priest and former Prime Minister of Norway as wellas a Member of the Club of Madrid, and the session was led jointly by Ricardo Lagos, Presidentof the Club of Madrid and former President of Chile, and Mohammad Khatami, formerPresident of Iran and a cleric. The participants included other Members of the Club of Madridsuch as the imam Al Sadig Al-Mahdi, former Prime Minister of Sudan, Abdulkarim Al-Eryani,former President of Yemen, Vigdis Finnbogadóttir, former President of Iceland and CassamUteem, former Primer Minister of Mauritius.The subject of the conference was the interaction between religion and politics, with a specialfocus being placed on the cases of Iran and Norway, both of which are confessional States, withvarious religious minorities and experience in governments under clerics. Three main topicswere covered: the interaction between religion and politics, extremism and tolerance.Discussions were also held on the limits for religion in politics and for politics in religion; theway in which religion and democracy can mutually strengthen each other; the connectionsbetween violence and religion; and common ground between Christianity and Islam in terms offreedom, equality, human dignity, tolerance and peace. The meeting closed with the signatureof the Oslo Declaration, in which the participants agreed on the need to find internationalinitiatives to reduce conflicts based on difference and to provide platforms for peacefuldialogue.This conference formed part of a broader, two-year project of the Club of Madrid on leadershipfor managing diversity and dialogue for democratic development, which has the support of theEuropean Commission, the Norwegian government and other donors. In parallel and togetherwith the Club of Madrid, the Oslo Centre and the Foundation for Dialogue amongstCivilisations are organising a two-year project focusing on the construction of tolerance andunderstanding amongst religions through dialogue and the exploration of common ground forco-existence. In the framework of this project, the organisers intend to convene a secondconference in Teheran in autumn 2008.DEMOCRACY AND TERRORISM PROJECT: Participation by the Club of Madrid inthe Annual Conference of the EastWest Institute (EWI) on global security (20-23February 2007)The EastWest Institute’s Fourth International Security Conference on “Protection of People,Economies and Infrastructure against Terrorism and Organised Crime” took place at the end ofFebruary in the headquarters of the World Customs Organisation in Brussels. The conferenceconcluded with a meeting on Democracy and Terrorism, organised in conjunction with the Clubof Madrid. Participants reviewed the Madrid Agenda, the main legacy of the InternationalSummit on Democracy, Terrorism and Security, held in commemoration of the 11th Marchattacks in Madrid. The Madrid Agenda is based on contributions received from more than 200distinguished international experts and academics, Club of Madrid Members, Heads of Stateand Prime Ministers, and leaders of international organisations and NGOs, in a challenge to the10/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007international community to consider the causes behind the development of terrorism.The participants discussed the successes and failures of the last two years in the fight againstterrorism, refuted myths in the existing debate and provided new political choices forgovernments and international organisations for efficiently dealing with terrorism and violentextremists. They also reviewed the lessons learnt from recent attempts to build a democracy inAfghanistan, and analysed the delicate balance between security, freedom and civil freedoms.The participants included prestigious speakers and panel members, with former Heads of Stateand Prime Ministers, important academics and experts from all over the world, including theSecretary General of the Club of Madrid Fernando Perpiñá-Robert and Members Sadig Al-Mahdi, former Prime Minister of Sudan, Kjell Magne Bondevik, former Prime Minister ofNorway, Kim Campbell, former Prime Minister of Canada, Mary Robinson, former President ofIreland, and Petre Roman, former Prime Minister of Romania. Also present were Michel Danet,Secretary General of the World Customs Organisation, John Edwin Mroz, President and ChiefExecutive Officer of the EastWest Institute, Peter Neumann, Director of the Centre for DefenceStudies at King’s College, London, and Louise Richardson, Dean of the Radcliffe Institute forAdvanced Study and Professor at Harvard University.RAPID RESPONSE FOR EFFECTIVE DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP: “Leadership,consensus-building and support for national dialogue in East Timor”A delegation from the Club of Madrid, led by Valdis Birkavs (Latvia) Jennifer Mary Shipley(New Zealand), Fidel Ramos (Philippines) and Cassam Uteem (Mauritius) travelled to Dili inJuly on a 1-week mission with the objective of providing leadership support for democraticconsolidation in Timor-Leste.The delegation held working meetings with senior officials in the Timor government,representatives of civil society organisations such as the Church and young people’s andwomen’s groups, political party leaders, the United Nations Mission in Timor-Leste, membersof the diplomatic community in Dili and representatives of donor agencies such as the EuropeanCommission, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, to exchange impressions anddiscuss democratic, political and socio-economic challenges and opportunities in Timor-Leste.The Club of Madrid Members shared their own experiences of leadership and democratictransition and offered to talk with the Timor leaders about how to consolidate the Timordemocracy and future development.This was the fifth mission by the Club of Madrid to Timor-Leste within a project financed bythe European Commission. On previous occasions, help was provided for assessing thesituation and setting the project goals with the Timor leaders (November 2006), and diversityand peaceful coexistence in Timor were celebrated during the commemoration of the 10thanniversary of the granting of the Nobel Peace Award to the Timor leaders.RAPID RESPONSE FOR EFFECTIVE DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP: Support forDemocratic Leadership in KosovoAs part of its Support for Democratic Leadership Project in Kosovo, the Club of Madrid sent afact-finding mission to Pristina from 9 to 12 February with collaboration from the Project ofJustice in Times of Transition and the East-West Management Institute. The mission was led bythe international expert from Sri Lanka, Ram Mannikalingam.11/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007The delegation met with the most important Kosovan leaders and representatives of theinternational community in the region to jointly consider what support could be provided by theClub of Madrid to the Kosovan leaders once the territory’s international status has been defined.Statutory meetings, seminars and conferencesSPAIN:Madrid + 15The Club of Madrid and its President Ricardo Lagos collaborated with the International Centrein Toledo for Peace (CITPax) and Search for Common Ground in the organisation of thisconference, which commemorated the Summit held in Madrid in 1991.International conference on cities in MadridOn 29 and 30 March, the Club of Madrid, the Madrid City Council and the OECD held theinternational conference on “What policies for globalising cities?” in the Campo de NacionesMunicipal Congress Hall in Madrid.Ministers, mayors, former Heads of State and Prime Ministers and experts on urban policyanalysed the sustainability of modern urban policies for promoting an international politicalagenda that meets concerns for the future of cities. This great debate on urban policy coveredmatters that are vital for any large city such as social policies, social cohesion and the effect ofinfrastructure on development.Board of Directors, General Assembly and Annual ConferenceDuring 2007, the Club of Madrid held the 15th, 16th and 17th meetings of the Board ofDirectors on 28 March, 12 July (by teleconference) and 18 November respectively.On 20 and 21 November, the Club of Madrid held its General Assembly, as well as its AnnualConference on the subject of “Democratising Energy: Geopolitics and Power”.Under the chairmanship of Ricardo Lagos, former President of Chile, the General Assemblyconfirmed the admission of six new Members to the Club of Madrid: Vicente Fox, formerPresident of Mexico; Alejandro Toledo, former President of Peru; Percival Noel JamesPatterson, former Prime Minister of Jamaica; Vaira Freiberga, former President of Latvia;Chandrika B. Kumaratunga, former President of Sri Lanka, and Kofi Annan, former SecretaryGeneral of United Nations. The latter joined as an Honorary Member.The meetings took place in the Cervantes Institute in Madrid. The Members of the organisationpresent – with over forty former Heads of State and Prime Ministers – together with the Club ofMadrid Advisors met with high-level representatives of governments, Non-GovernmentalOrganisations, the private sector and civil society from over 20 countries to debate on thepolitical and geopolitical aspects of present-day concerns in the field of energy.Participants at the conference included the President of East Timor, José Ramos Horta, the Clubof Madrid Member and former US President, William J. Clinton, the Spanish Minister of theEnvironment, Cristina Narbona, the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Trade, Joan Clos, andthe Minister of Foreign Affairs, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, amongst others. In the final statement12/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007issued by the Club of Madrid, leaders were called on to look beyond short-term, nationalinterests in order to find solutions based on dialogue, cooperation, regional and internationalagreements and the integration of energy infrastructure.EUROPE:Participation in the 2nd European Development Days in LisbonIn early November, the Club of Madrid participated in the 2nd European Development Days inLisbon, a European Commission initiative. The debates focused on the implications of climatechange for cooperation between the European Union and developing partner countries.Government representatives from the EU and from African, Caribbean and Pacific countriesmet with representatives from United Nations and Non-Governmental Organisations to discusspossible common solutions for mitigating the effects of climate change on development.The high-level round table “Voices from Continents” held on 8 November brought togethermembers of the Club of Madrid and of the Global Leadership for Climate Action (GLCA)initiatives, as well as distinguished speakers from different continents, in a debate on theirrespective experiences as leaders in the management of climate change challenges and howthese interact with development cooperation.The European Development Days were set up with the aim of increasing public awareness onsubjects relating to development cooperation, such as the European Consensus for Developmentand how to enhance the efficiency of aid with a view to achieving the Millennium DevelopmentGoals. The first meeting for European Development was held in November 2006 in Brussels.About twenty Heads of State and Prime Ministers, plus over one thousand political leaders,members of civil society and renowned development experts participated in this meeting.Participation in the Community of Democracies Conference in MaliThe 4th Community of Democracies Ministerial Conference, from 14 to 17 November, inBamaki, Mali, brought together Ministers and governmental representatives from over 100governments and international organisations with about 75 representatives of Non-Governmental Organisations, political parties and think tanks from all over the world to debateon the importance of democracy for development.During the conference, the participants met in plenary sessions and in regional and thematicpanel sessions and drew up strategies for strengthening international cooperation in support ofdemocracy. The former Prime Minister of France, Lionel Jospin, participated in the workinggroups on behalf of the Club of Madrid and spoke in the final plenary session on theconference’s main theme – Democracy, Development and Poverty Reduction. He presented theorganisation’s contributions to the progress of democratic development and its work onexpanding access to energy as a poverty reduction strategy.The Community of Democracies was set up in June 2000, with a meeting of the Ministers ofForeign Affairs of over 100 countries held in Warsaw, Poland. The governments present at theConference adopted the Warsaw Declaration, whereby signatories undertook to respect anddefend a number of principles and democratic practices and to cooperate in promotingdemocratic government in their countries and elsewhere.At present, the Community of Democracies, which comprises 16 governments, meets regularlyto exchange information and coordinate its policies and activities. In November 2002, a second13/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007Ministerial Conference was held in Seoul, South Korea, at which 94 governments gave theirbacking to the Seoul Plan of Action which stressed priorities for cooperation. In April 2005 thethird Conference was held in Santiago de Chile with the presence of several Members of theClub of Madrid.14/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007B) ResultsOver the past year, the Club of Madrid has provided important support for democracywith projects in over twenty countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and America. In 2007,the organisation defined a strategy for offering its experience for solving some of themost critical problems and global challenges in the field of democracy, focusing itsaction and results in two main areas: 1) Democratic Leadership for Dialogue,Diversity and Social Cohesion: Shared Societies Project, and 2) Energy andDemocratic Leadership. It has continued its projects in 3) Democracy, Security andTerrorism, and 4) Political Leadership for Democratic Development (Rapid Responsefor Effective Democratic Leadership).Through these projects, the organisation continues to show the value of applying theexperience of its leaders and experts to the challenges of democracy in the world. Ourwork over the last year has created an increasing demand for our activities fromgovernments, international organisations, political parties and NGOs with the aim ofobtaining a flexible, fast response from well-known democratic leaders and expertson key topics for democratic development at global and national levels.Some of the most important results obtained over the last year are the following:1) Democratic Leadership for Dialogue, Diversity and Social Cohesion:Shared Societies ProjectDuring the missions and projects carried out in different countries of the world in theworld in the framework of this project, several political and social leaders havereceived advice based on the experience of the Club of Madrid Members and expertson critical subjects and at critical times for democracy in their countries, such as:• Reforms to expand freedom of association and political participation incountries in North Africa and the Middle East• Promotion of greater political participation and leadership by women inAfrica and Iran• Dialogue amongst political and religious leaders, with the aim of helpingpinpoint relevant experience and political and leadership solutions that willfacilitate co-existence amongst people of different cultures and religiousbeliefsThe Shared Societies Project, a global initiative of the Club of Madrid coveringseveral years and set up in 2007, is founded on the belief that societies are morepeaceful, democratic and prosperous when their leaders and citizens recognise thevalue of diversity and actively build a shared society. This project has started toprovide international leaders with a full understanding of the benefits of socialcohesion as well as a mode of acting to promote it.15/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 20072) Energy and Democratic LeadershipThe Global Leadership for Climate Action (GLCA) initiative adopted in conjunctionwith the United Nations Foundation (UNF) and co-chaired by the President of theClub of Madrid, Ricardo Lagos, and by the President of UNF, Timothy Wirth, hasbrought 25 leaders together in a high-level working group. They comprise formerHeads of State mad representatives of the business world, inter-governmental andcivil society organisations from more than 20 countries. The main result of theinitiative during 2007 has been its contribution to galvanising political will topromote international negotiations on climate change, through the drafting anddissemination of a “Framework for a post-2012 Climate Change Agreement”, as wellas other complementary reports on the four other working areas focused not only bythe Framework, but also by the “Bali Plan of Action” agreed during the meeting ofthe UNFCCC COP 13: mitigation, adaptation, technology and finance. The proposalslaid down in these documents were shared and discussed in several high-levelmeetings such as the Gleneagles Dialogue Ministerial Meeting in Berlin (September2007) and the United Nations Conference of the Parties in Bali (December 2007), atwhich they were included as reference documents for the debates and agreementsamongst the representatives of the states participating in the international negotiationprocess.Furthermore, in 2007 the Promoting Access to Energy for Poverty Reduction projectbegan its first activities in the field of strategy and coordination with otherinternational agents in the search for synergies amongst the different programmesbeing adopted with the aim of promoting and improving access to energy forvulnerable populations. This project is divided into several stages, and during 2008-2009 the main result expected is the drafting and dissemination of a frameworkproposal of public policies and recommendations that will not only improve intersector,public-private relations to promote sustainable energies and poverty reductionbut will also include the subject of energy in development strategies and national andregional planning frameworks.During 2007, the Club of Madrid confirmed its alliance with the United NationsDevelopment Programme – UNDP – and the Economic Commission for LatinAmerica and the Caribbean – ECLAC – for analysing the energy situation in theframework of poverty reduction strategies and possible public policyrecommendations to promote the inclusion of this factor in development frameworksin Latin America.3) Democracy, Security and TerrorismIn March 2005, the Club of Madrid, together with the Spanish government, convenedan International Summit to reformulate the debate on democratic responses toterrorism. The meeting had a great international impact with the work of over 200experts in 16 working groups and the participation of 23 working Heads of State andPrime Ministers, as well as the General Secretariats of the European Commission, theEuropean Council, NATO and United Nations, the President of the European16/17

CLUB DE MADRID: REPORT OF ACTIVITIES 2007Parliament, official delegations from 70 countries and 34 Members of the Club ofMadrid.The Club of Madrid continues to promote initiatives based on this InternationalSummit and the Madrid Agenda, the plan of action which resulted from it, whichcalls for the fight against terrorism within a democratic framework, respecting humanrights and international law. The Madrid Agenda was stressed by the Community ofDemocracies, the US Senate and the national political forum of the New AmericaFoundation. It was distributed as a working document in the United Nations GeneralAssembly and the Security Council, and was supported in the final communiqué ofthe Council of Europe in June 2005.In 2007, the Club of Madrid collaborated with the EastWest Institute in its 4thAnnual Conference (20-22 February, 2007, Brussels), during which the progress andchallenges remaining regarding the Madrid Agenda and the Summit on Democracy,Terrorism and Security were analysed by about one hundred international leaders andexperts.4) Political Leadership for Democratic DevelopmentIn 2007, the Club of Madrid received many requests for advice from leaders on thebuilding of efficient democracy. The most relevant projects in this field were those inEast Timor and Kosovo, in which support given in time in crisis situations led to keyadvice being given to governments and political parties on the consolidation ofdemocratic reform processes.17/17