Europe is facing increasingly violent conflicts, both within EU countries and on the EU periphery. After six years of recession and four years of austerity imposed by the “troika” bringing record levels of poverty and unemployment, there were street battles involving militants of the far-right Golden Dawn party in Greece last year. In Spain, police clashed with ‘the Marches for Dignity’ protesters in Madrid who yearn for a secure future instead of corruption, government cuts, unemployment and evictions. In several towns in Bosnia and Herzegovina, government and party buildings were burned while a popular revolt against the ruling political caste raised questions of social justice. Opposition conflicts also erupted in Bulgaria.
Considering this explosive context, we want to highlight the current social and democratic significance of the Unconditional Basic Income: it can become the basis for “Building Social Cohesion in Europe”. This is the motto of this year’s International Basic Income Week, which is scheduled to run from September 15–21, 2014.
From ECI UBI to UBIE
In January 2013, activists and initiatives in 14 countries started the European Citizens’ Initiative for an Unconditional Basic Income (ECI UBI). In the end, people in 25 EU member states were involved and managed to collect more than 300,000 signatures in the European Union. At the same time, in Switzerland a citizens’ initiative collected more than 120,000 signatures to get a national referendum on Unconditional Basic Income, which will occur in about 18 months time.
Consequently, representatives from all these European countries came together twice in 2014 to create a new European alliance called UBIE (Unconditional Basic Income Europe). In this new network we are pursuing our goal to get unconditional basic income implemented everywhere in Europe, and its recognition globally as a human right. On this basis, the 7th International Basic Income Week is likely to become a big success with more than 25 countries participating, more than ever before.
We want you to be a part of it!
Organize an event!
If you want to organize an event in your town or community, we will try to offer support:
We have a shared website and can help with finding speakers as well as with public relations work. Get in contact with activists in your region using the contact information below! (website will be ready soon)
For more information and dates for organizational meetings, visit your regional organization and/or website:
- http://basicincomeweek.org
- DE http://www.woche-des-grundeinkommens.eu/
- NL http://week-van-het-basisinkomen.nl/
Participate in the Europe-wide photo-puzzle!
Another Europe-wide initiative will create a photo-puzzle visualizing the motto of the 7th International Basic Income Week: “Building Social Cohesion in Europe!”
The idea is to invite people from all over Europe to make photographs of persons placed beside the town sign of their place, adding a short personal statement in favour of UBI to the text: “I support basic income because …“! All photographs and statements gathered together will constitute a huge puzzle, which will be printed. It will also be published online, where it will be possible to highlight single photographs and texts by clicking on them.. For more information, visit http://www.ikat.de. Register on this website and select your country to upload your photo!
Contacts
Margit Appel, margit.appel(at)ksoe.at, 0043 1 310515988
Netzwerk Grundeinkommen und sozialer Zusammenhalt – BIEN Austria
www.grundeinkommen.at
Mechthild Bock, bock(at)grundeinkommen.de, 0049 1577 3268160
Netzwerk Grundeinkommen Deutschland
www.grundeinkommen.de
Alex Hornung, info(at)grondakommes.at
Initiativ Bedingungslost Grondakommes Lëtzebuerg
www.grondakommes.lu
Sepp Kusstatscher, kusstatscher(at)gmx.net, 0039 339 8727007
Mitglied beim Netzwerk Grundeinkommen Italien
www.bin-italia.org
Otto Lüdemann, otto.luedemann(at)gmail.com, 0049 40 648 24 64
Internationale Erich-Fromm-Gesellschaft
www.fromm-gesellschaft.de
Adriaan Planken, voorzitter(at)basisinkomen.nl
Vereniging Basisinkomen
www.basisinkomen.nl
Werner Rätz, werner.raetz(at)t-online.de, 0049 163 2423541
Attac Deutschland, AG Genug für Alle
www.grundeinkommen-attac.de
Klaus Sambor, klaus.sambor(at)aon.at, 0043 66473 437308
Attac Österreich, Inhaltsgruppe Grundeinkommen
community.attac.at/grundeinkommen.html