Press release of the Inter-Parliamentary Union
Marseille, 31 March 2000
N° 3

The Third Inter-Parliamentary Conference on Security and Cooperation in the Mediterranean (CSCM) opened this Friday, 31 March, at the Hôtel de Région of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Marseilles in the presence of Mr. Michel Vauzelle, President of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regional Council and President of the Conference, Mr. Christian Poncelet, President of the French Senate, and Mr. Anders B. Johnsson, Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).

Organised by the IPU and the French Parliament, the Conference has brought together delegations from twenty Mediterranean countries or countries adjacent to the Mediterranean, whose purpose is to identify ways of enhancing dialogue between the shores of the Mediterranean.

It is an ambition shared by all the French and international authorities involved in the event. Mr. Michel Vauzelle, in his introductory address, delivered messages from Mr. Jacques Chirac and Mr. Lionel Jospin. According to the President of the French Republic, "the Euro-Mediterranean partnership constitutes, of itself, an innovation by virtue of the ambition it reflects. The aim is to address, in one fell swoop, the challenges of development, closer ties among peoples, and peace and security throughout the region through enhanced coordination and more intensive exchanges among the 27 partner countries. It is a long-term process that will move forward by stages. Each one of us has a duty to contribute towards action to eliminate persistent sources of tension. France intends to do its utmost to advance the cause".

The French Prime Minister said he is "personally convinced of the need for greater cooperation and increased coordination between the peoples and States of the Mediterranean in formulating a regional security policy in the interests of all (.). I am sure that the political impetus that the Marseilles Inter-Parliamentary Conference will certainly provide in that direction will be real and welcome".

According to Mr. Michel Vauzelle, "we must build an area founded on solidarity. I am thinking, of course, first and foremost of our action as parliamentarians but also of interregional relations. Decentralised cooperation must involve not only our Mediterranean regions but also civil society, giving priority to human relations and exchanges among peoples (.). To that end, the inter-parliamentary action that we have set in motion and that is indispensable must be further developed. As parliamentarians, we must be a proactive force (.). Allowing a gulf to open up between the north and the south would have extremely undesirable implications for our security. The Mediterranean is not a frontier. It is a link when solidarity prevails".

Mr. Anders B. Johnsson said that "in taking the initiative of holding the first CSCM in Malaga in June 1992, the IPU took a pioneering step. It was the first to establish a new form of cooperation in the Mediterranean, tailored to the distinctive characteristics of the region and involving all the Mediterranean partners without exception on equal terms (.). Ten years after the launching of the process of security and cooperation in the Mediterranean, the IPU has every reason to be proud of the strong impetus it has given to an idea that has resulted in the burgeoning of initiatives and in preliminary steps towards the establishment of cooperation machinery and structures (.). The time has now come to take stock of progress and to make recommendations on the measures to be taken by governments, by parliaments and by the IPU itself". Lastly, Mr. Christian Poncelet stressed the importance of the themes to be addressed by the Mediterranean parliamentarians: "Young people are the future. All countries must make an effort to provide for their education, preventing the development of racist prejudice and promoting exchanges among them (.). Decentralised cooperation plays a crucial role in ensuring lasting peace in the Mediterranean (.). Lastly, I wish to comment on the movement of persons, ideas and goods (.). Illegal immigration (.) must be opposed not only in the host countries but also in the originating countries. This can be done by promoting development and freedom of movement. We must also (.) encourage the movement of ideas (.). We have much to learn from the south in terms of family solidarity and spirituality. We can, for our part, disseminate technological expertise or consensual values concerning the rule of law and representative democracy (.). With regard to goods and services, there are plans to establish, by 2010, a free trade area between Europe and the other Mediterranean countries. This is a real challenge for the countries of the south. Europe must help them to rise to it successfully."

After the visit on Friday afternoon by Mr. Hubert Védrine, French Minister for Foreign Affairs, the parliamentarians attending the Third CSCM will continue working until Monday, 3 April, on the text of a declaration that may serve as guidance for the Conference of Heads of State and Government to be held in the context of the Barcelona process.

Contacts: in Marseilles, international press: Ms. Luisa Ballin, IPU press officer, tel. (41.79) 649.71.45 or (00 33 4) 91.57.53.82, fax (00 33 4) 91.57.53.81, e.mail lb@mail.ipu.org or cd@mail.ipu.org - local press: Mr. Jean Fleury, press officer for the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Region, tel. (00 33 4) 91.57.51.64, fax (00 33 4) 91.57.51.53, e-mail jfleury@hdr.cr-paca.fr