Archive

27 years after the BSPC was launched on the initiative of the Speaker of the Finnish Parliament, Mr. Kalevi Sorsa, BSPC President Jörgen Pettersson pointed out with a view to the upcoming annual conference, that the 27 th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference in Åland on 26–28 August 2018 will offer dialogue, debate, solutions, friendship and a strong will to make the Baltic Sea more prosperous than ever before. He invited to participate in this process. In an article of Baltic RIM Economies he underlined that a fair solution to any challenge can only be achieved by dialogue and cooperation, particularly in times of crisis. He explained on the basis of the history of the Åland Islands how they developed from crisis to the ‘Islands of Peace’. He also emphasized, that the ‘Åland Example’ is living proof of a functional crisis management and the fact that discussions and agreements can be reached even when circumstances are challenging. He also pointed out the crucial foundation of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference as a political platform for cooperation, for commitment and for competence in the political dialogue of parliaments, governments and civil societies in the Baltic Sea region and explained the priority issues for the BSPC during the Åland Islands Presidency in 2018. The whole article can be found here (www.utu.fi/pei. Jörgen Pettersson . From crisis to success , how Åland . became the Islands of Peace . Expert article • 2259).

The new BSPC Working Group on Migration and Integration, which was established by the 26 th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference in Hamburg on 5 September 2017, held its first meeting on the premises of the Hamburg Parliament, the so-called Bürgerschaft, on 5 December. Delegations from the Baltic Assembly, Denmark, Estonia, Hamburg, Latvia, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Norway, Schleswig-Holstein and Sweden participated in the meeting. The President of the Hamburg Parliament, Carola Veit, who chaired this meeting as both Vice-President of the BSPC and Vice-Chair of the Working Group, underlined that migration and integration were among the great challenges and tasks of our time. “This applies equally to all members of the BSPC,” Carola Veit said. “It makes sense to work on the subject together, regardless of any differences.” Mandate, Scope of Work and Work Programme At the beginning of the meeting, a number of key issues for the next two years were discussed. The mandate of the Standing Committee was confirmed, and an extensive work programme was adopted. The first step in said programme is to develop an overview of the different approaches to migration policy and existing integration projects in the Baltic Sea countries. The scope of work covers primarily: a survey on the current situation of migration and integration in the Baltic Sea region, best practice examples and political recommendations. The Working Group plans to discuss the causes of flight and migration, migration policy goals, governance guidelines, demographic development and migration, status and trends in migration, challenges and prospects of migration and of integration. Speeches and presentations Ms Aydan Özoğuz , Minister of State at the Federal Chancellor’s Office and Federal Government Commissioner for Migration, Refugees and Integration, and Mr Ulrich Weinbrenner , Head of the Staff Unit for Social Cohesion and Integration in the Federal Ministry of the Interior, addressed the WG at the meeting in a round of presentations about integration work in Germany. They provided detailed information regarding the intensive efforts of Germany to integrate foreigners into society. Both provided important background information and answered the numerous questions by working group members about the experiences of the Federal Republic of Germany in the integration of refugees and migrants. Minister Özoğuz pointed out that the BSPC’s decision to focus on migration and integration had been a timely and well-chosen signal. These issues were exerting a significant influence on our politics, our economies and our societies, as well as our day-to-day lives. According to Minister Özoğuz, migration had always been the rule rather than the exception in Europe’s history. It had been the Baltic Sea region where one of the most influential migration processes in human history began. Migration had been normal in the history of all the societies of the BSPC. She underlined the necessity to shape societies in which all can live together peacefully and to develop societies into communities that offer a future to all their members. While she conceded that integrating the large number of refugees was a major challenge, she warned against populism in this context. The minister mentioned that we were facing an extremely emotional debate when it came to migration, making it a lot more difficult to talk about facts and find solutions. She stressed the necessity of both immigration laws making immigration more transparent and a European agreement on how to deal with such situations in the future. She was convinced that a fair distribution key could help all. She appealed to the Working Group not to stop searching for data and facts that help to make migration and integration explainable and understandable. In addition, Mr Weinbrenner gave an overview of integration measures in Germany, specifically the German Integration Act, the integrated management of refugees, language tuition programmes at the federal level as well as additional measures such as migrant advisory and integration projects. He mentioned that 18.6 million Germans had a migrant background (= 22.5 %) – 90.5 % of those living in the former West Germany, 5.5 % in Berlin and 4 % in the former East Germany. He noted the number of applications for asylum filed and decisions taken between 2012 and October 2017 (in 2016: 745,545 applications and 695,753 decisions). Funds for integration courses had increased in 2017 up to 850 million €. The total number of participants in integration courses as well as the percentage of refugees had risen enormously in 2016. This had caused tremendous challenges for integration policy and the integration course system. Mr Weinbrenner also informed the Working Group about migration-specific advisory services – provided by voluntary welfare organisations – complementing integration courses. Further procedure and next meeting The Working Group further discussed common questions to be sent by each delegation to their respective governments. This way, the Working Group wants to obtain a better survey and results regarding the situation in the whole region, learn from best practice examples and develop proposals to improve cooperation in the integration of migrants. The next meeting will take place on 19 March 2018 in Stockholm. Speech by Ms Aydan Özoğuz , Minister of State at the Federal Chancellor’s Office and Federal Government Commissioner for Migration, Refugees and Integration Presentation by Mr Ulrich Weinbrenner , Head of Directorate of social cohesion an integration at the Federal Ministry of the Interior Mandate and draft Scope of work of the BSPC Working Group on Migration and Integration

As one of the keynote speakers of the 5 th Northern Dimension Parliamentary Forum in Brussels, Jörgen Pettersson, President of the BSPC, underlined the fundamental importance of peace and open parliamentary dialogue, highlighted the cooperation and interrelation between the Northern Dimension and the BSPC and informed about the current results of the BSPC work as well as about the priority issues for the BSPC during the Åland Islands’ presidency in 2017 – 2018. In detail, he explained in his speech: ” Honourable First Vice President of the European Parliament, esteemed colleagues, excellences, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to address the 5 th Northern Dimension Parliamentary Forum here on the premises of the European Parliament – where the Standing Committee of the BSPC – and I’m very grateful for that – has had the opportunity to hold our annual spring meeting for several years. The BSPC, consisting of the parliaments around the Baltic Sea, was founded in 1991 with the primary goal of creating a platform for open parliamentary dialogue to overcome the cold war and to establish the Baltic Sea as a sea of freedom, prosperity and cooperation. My homeland, the Åland Islands, are particularly aware of the need for and committed to international parliamentary cooperation because of our history. Åland is a great and real example of crisis management. Thanks to international agreements nearly a hundred years ago, we today have guaranteed, neutralised and demilitarised autonomy in the Baltic Sea; Åland is known as ‘the islands of peace’. It is therefore a great honour for us to have the presidency of the BSPC. We hope to inspire others with our history of peacemaking in practice and I can only underline what the Estonian Prime Minister Jüri Ratas, representing the Estonian presidency of the Council of the European Union, pointed out 3 days earlier (in the German Bundestag): “We are living in fortunate times of peace… We must be aware and make others aware of this every day and safeguard what we have created together, which is something remarkable and unique. It seems (to me) we speak too rarely about peace. We take it for granted; however, it is the most important thing. Not just in Europe, but in the whole world.” Considering the current situation within Europe, it is important to remember that a fair solution to any challenge can only be achieved by dialogue and cooperation, particularly in times of crises. We want to live in a free, peaceful and prosperous Baltic Sea region – especially since we are once again, after more than 20 years, in a tense, perhaps an inflamed situation. It is more important than ever to follow our guidelines, to follow our principal basis which is dialogue to resolve critical and tense situations. We must engage proactively in dialogue and cooperation. We have a responsibility towards our societies and future generations to care for our region. Participation and cooperation, which were the sub-heading of our annual conference in Hamburg two months ago, are a common mandate for all of us. The crucial foundation of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference is: We want to be a political platform for cooperation, for commitment and for competence in the political dialogue of parliaments, governments and civil societies in the Baltic Sea region. We should not take for granted that we parliamentarians can always find satisfactory solutions. But we have an obligation to our citizens to contribute to solving conflicts. In order to achieve that, we must strengthen interparliamentary cooperation as well as the influence of parliaments. Their common will is of crucial importance in order to look for answers to international challenges such as the refugee crisis and the threats posed by terrorism. We parliamentarians as representatives of the citizens in our countries need to continuously work on deepening dialogue between countries. We also have to find compromises and cooperation related to the democratic values to face future international challenges and possibilities. We see the need for cooperation not only in the Baltic Sea area but also beyond. We have expressively underlined in our resolution that we want to intensify the cooperation in the Baltic Sea Region, including the Northern Dimension , the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region and the Strategy for the Socio-Economic Development of the North West Federal District of Russia in addition to other regional actors by identifying common priorities and developing respective regional strategies and action plans in fields of current interest and mutual benefits. One of the BSPC’s objectives in our work programme 2017-18 is also: to promote the further development of the Northern Dimension, including its parliamentary dimension and the European Neighbourhood Policy, for instance by actively taking part in the relevant activities and by exchanging views and positions with relevant bodies of the European Parliament as well as further developing contacts and interaction with the Northern dimension partnerships. This means that today, with this forum, you’re giving us the opportunity to reach our goals in a particularly efficient way. 2 years ago, the main topic of our conference was: Innovation in Social- and Healthcare. We had a very close and very successful cooperation at that conference with the Northern Dimension in Social- and Wellbeing which, in cooperation with the BSPC, had organised at the beginning of our annual conference a special event called “Health is wealth and wealth is health”, providing an overview of the very strong association between health on the one hand and the economy and other policy areas on the other. Last year, we focused on the topic of High Quality Education and Labour and discussed this with the Vice-President of the European Commission, Mr Valdis Dombrovskis, and several Ministers for Welfare, Labour and Social Security. In our Riga-resolution, we called on the governments in regard to the importance of this policy field inter alia to explore the need for a Northern Dimension Partnership for Labour Market and Education. I very much welcome that the Council of the Baltic Sea States has taken up the initiative – in cooperation with the Baltic Sea Labour Forum – to establish a CBSS Expert Group on Labour and Employment – including Russia – based on the declaration of a High-Level Meeting of the Representatives of the Labour Ministries of the CBSS under the Icelandic Presidency in June this year. Since the field of labour and employment has been seen as a crucial focus area and concerted efforts will be essential in meeting the challenges we are currently facing and in the future, it is necessary from our point of view to explore the need for a stronger and more established cooperation in the Northern Dimension, even if some governments are reluctant in this matter to avoid additional costs and staff. Ladies and Gentlemen, despite the significant progress that we have achieved over the past years, tremendous challenges remain. These are challenges which we can only tackle jointly, especially environmental protection, sustainability, the implementation of the 2030 goals, terrorism, migration and economic development. The priority issues for the BSPC during the Åland Islands’ presidency in 2017 – 2018 are therefore: • To contribute to the development of sustainable societies in the Baltic Sea region and beyond in the Northern Dimension region based on democratic values, human rights and equal opportunities for all. • To enhance cooperation and integration for a secure and prosperous Baltic Sea area. We want to further improve and develop means of democratic participation, e.g. through transparency, comprehensive information, government accountability and other instruments of citizen participation. • To find common solutions on the topics of migration and integration based on mutual information and best practices. The issues of migration and integration pose a tremendous challenge as well as a great opportunity for their further development. This calls for intensive dialogue as well as close cooperation and also coordinated policies. Therefore, the BSPC has established a new working group that will analyse and discuss migration and integration. Ladies and Gentlemen, we are confronted with tremendous challenges which we jointly can turn into a bright future by our common efforts. Let us – parliaments, governments and societies – continue working on a peaceful and prosperous common region, let us continue our successful and committed Nordic-Baltic cooperation in the whole Baltic-Nordic region. Let us continue living and achieving the – for me – key message in the conference statement of the 4 th Northern Dimension Parliamentary Forum on 12 May 2015 in Reykjavik: Encouraging all the partners to continue regional cooperation, as well as enhancing mutual understanding in the interests of the peaceful and sustainable development of the Northern Dimension Region. This event here and today is a further cornerstone on this path. Therefore, let us renew this message as a promise today, here in the European Parliament. The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference in Åland on 26-28 August 2018 will continue on this path, and also offer dialogue, debate, solutions, friendship and a strong will to increase cooperation and prosperity in the region. We are the Islands of Peace and we want the whole of the Baltic Sea (and the rest of the world) to follow our example; for the benefit of hope, love and the never ending search for a better life. You all are welcome to participate!” BSPC President Pettersson also had bilateral talks to members of the European Parliament and other member parliaments as well as high level representatives of the Northern Dimension and representatives of other Northern parliamentary institutions on the priorities of the Åland BSPC Presidency and the upcoming 27 th annual conference of the BSPC 26-28 August 2018 in Mariehamn.

The highest Executive Committee of the BSPC, led by the new President of the BSPC, Jörgen Pettersson, held its first meeting under the new Presidency in Mariehamn, the capital of Åland. Delegations from the Åland Islands, the Baltic Assembly, Denmark, Estonia, Hamburg, Latvia, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the Russian Federation participated in the meeting. Implementation of Resolutions One focus was placed on the follow-up to the resolution of the 26 th annual conference, which took place in Hamburg from 3 – 5 September 2017, and the reports by the national and regional governments about the implementation of the 25 th BSPC resolution on the basis of political analyses. Follow-up statements to the 25 th resolution have been received from 14 parliaments. They are more and more comprehensive and partially very detailed. The Standing Committee noted that this was a positive development but also pointed out that the statements should focus more on common international projects. All statements are published on the BSPC website. Migration and Integration With regard to one of the priorities in the current BSPC work programme under the Åland presidency and to a new BSPC Working Group on Migration and Integration, Ms Johanna Fogelström, Integration Coordinator of the Government of Åland (Ålands Landskapsregering), and Ms Siv Ekström, Director of the Educational Centre for Adult Learning on Åland (Medborgarinstitutet), addressed the SC members at the beginning of the Standing Committee Meeting in a round of presentations about integration work on Åland. They provided detailed information regarding the intensive efforts of Åland to integrate foreigners into their society. Ms Fogelström pointed out that more than one third of the population has been born outside Åland. 12% of the population – more than 20% of the persons aged 30 to 39 – have another mother tongue than Swedish. 11% are foreign citizens. 64 languages are registered. Focus areas of the integration policy from 2016 to 2019 are i.a. the Swedish language, education, employment, health and access to healthcare, promoting participation as well as good relations to prevent and pre-empt racism and discrimination. All relevant actors – the Åland government, the municipalities, the job centre, Åland healthcare, secondary school and vocational training, the Education Centre as well as civil society – are included. The future direction of the Åland migration policy is to continue and develop language training, assist in getting onto the job market, support entrepreneurs, especially start-ups, support by the civil society, more coordination and cooperation across municipalities as well as strengthening the knowledge in the health sector and access to healthcare services. Ms Ekström gave a detailed survey about the intensive courses in Swedish for immigrants and the funding of the courses with a special view to courses for students with different alphabets or without reading skills, courses for employees and for refugees from the UNHCR’s resettlement programme. A series of questions, which were answered by the experts, and a lively discussion underlined that the topic of migration is of the highest interest for the BSPC members. Culture The new BSPC rapporteur on culture, Karin Gaardsted, Denmark, informed about e-sports in the Baltic Sea region, because e-sports allow online and intercultural communication and meet-ups. Concerning both the topics of culture and youth, this is the world’s fastest-growing sport with an expected revenue in 2017 of $ 696 million. E-sports include a global audience of 385 million people, half of which is aged 21 to 35. 73% of the players and viewers are male. E-sports are still not recognized or accepted on the same level as more ‘traditional’ sports like soccer or tennis, but are instead associated with lazy teenagers in dark basements – a view that is far off from reality. The sport promotes concentration, teamwork, the ability to react fast, a strategic mindset and much more. The Standing Committee underlined the importance of this topic and also had an energetic discussion on that issue, which is important for culture and youth. 27 th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference in Mariehamn BSPC President Jörgen Pettersson informed the Standing Committee about his talks with the former President of Finland and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Martti Ahtisaari, the Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipilä as well as the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia, H.E. Mr. Edgars Rinkēvičs, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, H.E. Mr. Linas Linkevičius, on the upcoming 27 th annual conference of the BSPC from 26 – 28 August 2018 in Mariehamn. Further topics of the Standing Committee meeting were i.a. a Memorandum of Understanding between the BSPC and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economical Cooperation, which has been signed by the presidents and secretaries general of both institutions, as well as administrative issues. Åland Islands and Lagting As part of a visit to Kastelholm castle and to Bomarsund Fortress, the BSPC Standing Committee was given a deep insight into the history and current situation of Åland. During the visit of the Parliament of Åland, BSPC President Pettersson shared details of the parliamentary practice in Ålands Lagting with the Standing Committee members. Presentation Migration, integration Åland by Siv Ekström Presentation Migration and Integration Åland by Johanna Fogelström Presentation of rapporteurship on cultural affairs

At the 36 th Baltic Assembly, Jörgen Pettersson, President of the BSPC, pointed out the longstanding close cooperation between the Baltic Assembly and the BSPC as, the detailed feedback of the governments of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania on the implementation of the BSPC resolutions as well as common themes of both parliamentary institutions. Furthermore, he emphasised: ”The Baltic Assembly and the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference have had a very close, very intensive and very efficient cooperation for many years. Our cooperation is based on mutual trust, on reliability and on friendship. Many colleagues of the Baltic Assembly are very involved in the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference work. President Aadu Must as well as Vice Presidents Valerius Simulik and Prof. Jānis Vucāns are very committed members of our Standing Committee. And last year, when both of us were celebrating the 25 th anniversary of our respective institutions, we had the closest possible cooperation: In the same year, Prof. Jānis Vucāns was President of the Baltic Assembly and President of the BSPC. Your governments provide us with very detailed feedback on the implementation of our recommendations and resolutions. Thank you very much for that. We are proud to be able to formulate ideas that can change the future. But it is also very important to have a common dialogue between parliamentarians and governments in the whole Baltic Sea Region, such as the best practice examples in the Baltic Assembly and in the Nordic Council. Therefore, I wholeheartedly invite the Latvian Minister for Foreign Affairs, H.E. Mr. Edgars Rinkēvičs, here and now to come to Mariehamn on 27 August 2018 and underline the close cooperation between all parliaments and governments in the whole Baltic Sea region. From my point of view, it is of crucial importance that the Latvian Minister for Foreign Affairs will at that time have the chairmanship in the CBSS. At that point, a new vision for the Baltic Sea region will be available for us to discuss. That vision will be developed under the Swedish Presidency based on the decision of the CBSS Foreign Ministers on 20 June in Reykjavik. Ladies and Gentlemen, the Baltic Assembly and BSPC have common goals, we have similar priorities. One common focus in our assemblies this year was finding solutions in the areas of education, innovation and research. At this year’s BSPC Conference in Hamburg, a number of different topics were discussed: The issues of Migration and Integration pose a tremendous challenge to all countries in the Baltic Sea region as well as a great opportunity for their further development. This calls for intensive dialogue as well as close cooperation and also coordinated policies between the Baltic Sea States. Therefore, we have established a new working group that will analyze and discuss Migration and Integration. We also discussed Democratic Participation and the Digital Age as well as Sustainable Tourism. We want to further improve and develop means of democratic participation, e.g. through transparency, comprehensive information, government accountability and other instruments of citizen participation. Regarding Innovative Science and Research, the BSPC sees the necessity to intensify scientific cooperation in the Baltic Sea region in regard with both quality and quantity and to further improve the conditions of the Baltic Sea region in global scientific competition through joint strengthened efforts by increased investments in innovative science and research. Ladies and Gentlemen, my homeland, the Åland Islands, are particularly aware of the need for and committed to international parliamentary cooperation because of our history. Åland is a great and real example of crisis management. Thanks to international agreements nearly a hundred years ago, we today have an internationally guaranteed autonomy in the Baltic Sea; Åland is therefore known as ‘the islands of peace’. The priority issues for the BSPC during the Åland Islands’ presidency in 2017 – 2018 are: Sustainable societies in the Baltic Sea region based on democratic values, human rights and equal opportunities for all Cooperation and integration for a secure and prosperous Baltic Sea area and Migration and integration, finding solutions based on mutual information and best practices. Ladies and Gentlemen, apart from common priorities: The Baltic Assembly and BSPC have had a common vision for more than 25 years. We want to live in a free, peaceful and prosperous Baltic Sea region. This was our main vision in 1991, it is our challenge today and our mutual wish for tomorrow. And especially since we are once again, after more than 20 years, in a tense – perhaps an inflamed – situation: It is more important than ever to follow our principal basis. To never forget the true meaning of life: peace, love and prosperity. We want to be an international platform for cooperation, for commitment and for competence in the political dialogue of parliaments, governments and civil society in the Baltic Sea region. Parliamentarians are responsible for the well-being of the countries, for the well-being of the population, for the well-being of the citizens around the Baltic Sea Area. We want to have freedom, we want to have peace, we want to have peaceful cooperation on a democratic foundation. We want to inspire our fellow citizens to achieve more in their search for a better life. Let’s continue working on making this come true over the coming years, in very close cooperation, with all our energy, with all our commitment, with all our competence. The Baltic Sea is life, love, hope and home. Welcome all to Åland and the Baltic Sea Conference next August! We promise inspiring, wise and doable ideas that will make the Baltic Sea a safer, healthier, happier and more prosperous – and all in all – a better place for us all.” BSPC President Pettersson also had bilateral talks to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia, H.E. Mr. Edgars Rinkēvičs, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, H.E. Mr. Linas Linkevičius, on the upcoming 27 th annual conference of the BSPC 26-28 August 2018 in Mariehamn.

Jörgen Pettersson, President of the BSPC, reminded that Helsinki was the place, where the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference started 1991 from an initiative by the speaker of the Finnish parliament, Mr. Kalevi Sorsa. Furthermore, he emphasised: ”Presently, both the President of the Nordic Council, Britt Lundberg and I, come from Åland. There is a reason to that – the parliamentarians from the Åland Islands are particularly aware of the need for and committed to international parliamentary cooperation because of our history. Our homeland, the Åland Islands, is a great and real example of Crisis Management. Thanks to international agreements nearly a hundred years ago, we today have a neutralised and demilitarised and internationally guaranteed autonomy in the Baltic Sea; Åland is “the islands of peace”. At this year’s BSPC-Conference in Hamburg a number of different topics were discussed: The issues of Migration and Integration pose a tremendous challenge to all countries in the Baltic Sea Region as well as a great chance for their further development. This call for intensive dialogue as well as close cooperation and also coordinated policies between the Baltic Sea States. Therefore, we have established a new working group that will analyse and discuss Migration and Integration under the leadership of speaker Carola Veit from Hamburg and our Nordic friend Hans Wallmark, Sweden. We also call for action in the field of Sustainable Tourism which is a priority topic of the Nordic Council. Especially in the year 2017, as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, it is important to foster the awareness of sustainable tourism in the whole region. The priority issues for the BSPC during the Åland Islands’ presidency in 2017 – 2018 are: Sustainable societies in the Baltic Sea region based on democratic values, human rights and equal opportunities for all Cooperation and integration for a secure and prosperous Baltic Sea area and Migration and integration, finding solutions based on mutual information and best practices. Welcome all to Åland and the conference next August! We promise inspiring, wise and doable ideas that will do the Baltic Sea a safer, healthier and more prosperous place for us all.” BSPC President Pettersson also had bilateral talks to the former President of Finland and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Martti Ahtisaari and the Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipilä on the upcoming 27 th annual conference of the BSPC 26-28 August 2018 in Mariehamn.