From March 3^rd until March 5^th Stefanie Schiffer and Adam Busuleanu from the European Exchange together with Ales Beliacki and Oleg Hulak, presidents of the Belarusian Human Rights Organisation Viasna and the Belarusian Helsinki Committee, visited Brussels in order to present the results of the domestic election monitoring during the parliamentary campaign 2008, which was supported by the European Commission.
In Brussels they met with representatives of the European Commission, the Consilium and the European Parliament, who are responsible for the relations with Belarus.
Moreover Stefanie Schiffer, Adam Busuleanu, Ales Beliacki an Oleg Hulak took part in the conference “EU and Belarus Six month After: Achievements and Challenges Ahead”, which was organized by the parliamentary groups of the Party of European Socialists and the European People’s Party in the European Parliament in cooperation with the Office for a democratic Belarus and the Pontis foundation.

To get more information about the Office for a democratic Belarus and to read more about the conference click here.

The photo exhibition "Belarus 09-28-2008" had its final opening on Tuesday Janurary 20th at the European-University Viadrina in Frankfurt (Oder). The photos of three photographers and journalists, Anne Ackermann, Stephan Pramme, Jan Zappner, record personal and inspiring impressions of the Belarusian life during the parliamentary elections 2008 in Minsk, Grodno and Witebsk. The exhibition is held in the librarian gallery of the University and will be open to visitors until February 27th 2009.

A public discussion round on “Belarus and the new policy of the EU – Chances and risks for the civic society” organized by the European Exchange in cooperation with the chair of Eastern Europe’s history, took place right before the opening of the exhibition. Two guests, Anna Kanius, a Belarusian democratic movement activist and coordinator of long-term monitoring in the area of Brest in the elections of 2008 as well as Peter Liesegang, board member of the German- Belarusian association and an international long-term observer exchanged their observation experiences during the parliamentary campaign and discussed current possibilities and effects on the civic society by the European Unions policies towards Belarus. Adam Busuleanu from the European Exchange has moderated the discussion round. About 25 guests have joined the discussion.

For the second time the photo exhibition „Belarus 28.09.08“ with photos by Anne Ackermann, Stephan Pramme and Jan Zappner, has been presented, this time in Warsaw in the gallery Zoya, from December 11th through December 19th 2008. The opening day of the exhibition was accompanied by a discussion with Siewiaryn Kviatkouski, an independent author and journalist from Minsk. He has recently published a short story collection documenting the life of a few known politicians, journalists, musicians, writers and ordinary individuals under the current Regime of Lukanshenka in an amusing but honest way. Adam Busuleanu from the European Exchange moderated the discussion.

More photos by Anne Ackermann  More photos by Jan Zappner  Gallery Zoya

During 2007 and 2008 European Exchange gGmbH together with the Belarusian Human Rights organisations Viasna and the Belarusian Helsinki Committee has cooperated in setting up a network of domestic election monitors in Belarusian regions and Minsk. Aimed at addressing the lack of free and fair elections in Belarus which is an indispensable precondition for democratization of the country, the project was an important step for providing the Belarusian and international public with authentic information on the conduction of the Parliamentary elections in Belarus in September 2008. Within the framework of the project a network of domestic election observers consisting of 300 local election observers, coordinators and local journalists has been established in Belarus. The participants have been prepared for observing the elections and have been sensitized for all relevant rules and regulations related to the election process in seminars in advance. The project was financially supported by the European Union and the German and Lithuanian Foreign Ministries. 

To learn more about the outcomes of the election monitoring process click here
To learn more about the Belarusian Helsinki Committee click here

On Invitation of European Exchange and the Human Rights Association in Belarus Olga Kozulina visited Berlin from June 25th to 27th to speak about the situation of the political prisoners in Belarus. The public lecture and film presentation took place on June 25th, at 6.30pm in the House of Democracy and Human Rights.

Olga Kozulina is a member of the Belarusian Social Democratic Party „Gramada“. Her father, the head of the homonymous Party Alexander Kozulin was arrested in March 2006 and sentenced to five and half years of imprisonment. Alexander Kozulin is a former presidential candidate. Olga Kozulina has been acting as the contact person of her father and the public since he was detained.

She also pleads for freedom of all political prisoners in Belarus. The Party “Gramada” has nominated Olga Kozulina for the parliamentary election, which will take place on September 28th.

For more information please contact: info@european-exchange.org.

On 25th of November, at the International Day for the elimination of violence against women, the European Exchange in partnership with the Belarusian Helsinki Committee have carried on a campaign in Minsk. In spite of bad weather participants distributed leaflets about women's rights and violence against women in the center of the Belarusian capital. Violence against women and girls is a problem of pandemic proportions. At least one out of every three women around the world has been beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime — with the abuser usually someone known to her. Perhaps the most pervasive human rights violation that we know today, it devastates lives, fractures communities, and stalls development.

Learn more about the Belarusian Helsinki Committee here

Learn more about the Elimination of violence Against Women

Workshop "Reconciliation in old age?"

From 16 to 18 November 2007, in collaboration with the foundation “Remembrance, Responsibility and Future”, the European Exchange ran a two-day workshop entitled "Reconciliation in old age?" and focused on the social situation of the World War II generation in the new EU member states. During the session, speakers and delegates shared their views on all issues concerning the elderly. The event was held at the VCH-Akademie-Hotel in Berlin.

Learn more about the workshop "Reconciliation in old age?" here

Learn more about the foundation “Remembrance, Responsibility and Future” here

Third Kiev Dialogue in Berlin

From 9 to 11 November 2007, the European Exchange, in partnership with the DGO and PAUCI, organised the third Kiev Dialogue in Berlin. The Kiev Dialogue is a unique annual forum where gather decision makers and opinion leaders from Germany and Ukraine in order to discuss on current issues in the matter of policy, economy, media and civil society. The aim of the conference is also to point out options for political and social action, promote the democratic development in Ukraine and the integration in the EU. This year, the Kiev Dialogue was focused on the relations between Ukraine and the EU. The participants discussed with speakers and delegates from Ukraine, Germany and other European countries. The conference was held in two venues, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (9 November) and the Red Town Hall (10 and 11 November). The event is generously supported by the Robert Bosch Foundation, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, the German Foreign Office, Deutsche Welle, the German-Ukrainian Forum and the Heinrich Böll Foundation.

Learn more about the Kiev Dialogue here

Experience sharing session for Belarusian students

From 20 to 26 August 2007, two members of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee had the opportunity to take part in a peer-learning session organised in Berlin by the European Exchange. The participants are all involved in a project led in Belarus in partnership with the European Exchange, called “Legal assistance for Belarusian students”. During their stay, the three law students met leaders of several NGOs dealing with Human Rights issues, as for example “Human Rights Watch”, but also opinion leaders in the matter of policy and civil society. Please get in touch if you would like to receive more information about this project.

Learn more about the Belarusian Helsinki Committee here
Learn more about Human Rights Watch here

“In each school, there is an island of democracy. It is essential to find it and support it.” Stephan Malerius, ex-project coordinator at the German-Russian Exchange, and Annegret Wulff, officer at the Theodor-Heuss-Kolleg, have carried out in 2006 a research in partnership with the Foundation “Remembrance, Responsibility and Future” on learning democracy at school in Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. The study, published in July 2007, is based on school visits, but also interviews of teachers, politicians and representatives of NGOs. Stephan and Annegret were both backed up by the European Exchange and the German-Russian Forum. Please contact us if you wish to receive a hard copy of the report.
Foundation "Remembrance, Responsibility and Future"
Democracy through education in Belarus (German, pdf, 828 Kb)
Democracy through education in Russia (German, pdf, 1.090 Kb)
Democracy through education in Ukraine (German, pdf, 824 Kb)

From 20 May to 24 May 2007, the European Exchange was very pleased to organise a peer-learning session in Berlin for seven Ukrainian teachers and school headmasters. The idea of the project consisted in analysing the growing relation between education and social involvement developed in Germany during the past five years. Therefore the Ukrainian group had the opportunity to visit three schools and two German non-profit organisations. They could discuss with German teachers and headmasters in order to exchange their views and compare the both educating systems, but also meet some German pupils and learn about their opinion and feelings. Finally, both Ukrainians and Germans were deeply impressed about the social projects led in both countries.

In partnership with Tri.net, a network of Ukrainian-Polish-German interests, PAUCI (the Polish-Ukrainian Cooperation Foundation) and the Polish Robert Schuman Foundation, the European Exchange organised a German-Polish-Ukrainian forum which took place in Warsaw from 10 to 12 May 2007. 52 participants, mainly NGOs representatives, attended the conference and had the opportunity to network and exchange their experiences. The forum was focused on the challenges of trilateral cooperation and consisted of panel debates and working groups. The aim of the event was also to strengthen civil society in these three countries.
Tri.net
PAUCI
Polish Robert Schuman Foundation

From 1 August to 10 August 2006 a group of thirty Belarusian law students attended a summer school on international human rights protection in Bad Liebenzell, Germany and Strasburg (Council of Europe). This is a common project of the Foundation for Legal Technologies, Minsk and the European Exchange, Berlin. The summer school is supported financially through the German Foreign Office and the OSCE. The Belarusian students got information on international mechanism of human rights protection as laid down through UN, OSCE and Council of Europe. From 10th to 13th August 2006 the leaders of the Foundation for Legal Technologies visited Berlin and met representatives from German NGOs, the Foreign Office and different foundations.
Summer Human Rights Camp 2006 (pdf, 2.8 Mb)

In cooperation with the Ukrainian based PAUCI foundation and with the financial support of the Robert Bosch foundation and the German Foreign Office the European Exchange held the second international conference "Kiev Dialogue" in October 2006 in Kiev. Topic of the conference was the reflection about influence and conditions of young people to contribute to social change and political awareness. Speakers and guests from Ukraine, Germany and other European countries discussed issues as access to and quality of education, civic and human rights education, European networking among young people and NGOs of the young generation.
List of participants (pdf,70 Kb)
Conference Report (German) (pdf, 36.99 Kb)
Conference programme (doc, 104.5 Kb)

The First conference "Kiev Dialogue" was held in November 2005 in Berlin. The Kiev Dialogue is a forum for regular exchange of stake holders and multipliers of politics and civil society both from Germany and Ukraine. The conference is an initiative of the Robert Bosch Foundation and the European Exchange and supported through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Osteuropakunde, the Deutsche Welle and the German Foreign Ministry. The 150 conference participants discussed the topic "Civic Society and politcal change" with lecturers from Ukraine, Germany, Russia, Poland and Belarus.
Conference programme in German
Conference programme in Ukrainian
List of participants (German)