COUNCIL for PARITY DEMOCRACY
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19 Mulready House Herrick Street Westminster London England SW1P 4JL
Tel & Fax + 44 20 7834 1309 Mobile + 44 7932 79 44 32 Email
Honorary Secretary
Raymond Lloyd
A Fifth 100 QUESTIONS on DEMOCRACY
asked at Head-of-Government & Other Meetings 1999-2001
25 April 2001 @ Raymond Lloyd
INDEX (continued on last page)
Date Place Occasion Person Addressed, Office & Country *FR/PD #Followup
25. 4.01 London European Bank Göran Persson Prime Minister Sweden FR/PD EB2001
24. 4.01 " " " (2) Jean Lemierre President European Bank FR/PD EB2001 & WG59
23. 4.01 " " " Ion Iliescu President Romania FR/PD EB2001 & WG59
" " " " Pedro Solbes Monetary Affairs Commissioner EC FR/PD EB2001
22. 4.01 " " " Pedrag Max Vranic Vice Pres Agrokor Croatia FR/PD
" " " " Malay Mukherjee ISPAT International Kazakstan FR/PD
" " " " Willem Buiter Chief Economist European Bank FR/PD EB2001
20. 4.01 London Sport Business 2001 Frederick Kempe Editor Wall Street Journal Europe PD/FR
28. 3.01 Westminster Parlt Press Briefing (2) Sir Edward Jones Black Rod UK Parliament PD
23. 3.01 Stockholm European Council Anna Lindh Foreign Minister Sweden PD EC15-01
" " " " Göran Persson Prime Minister Sweden PD EC15-01
" " " " (3) Vladimir Putin President Russia FR/PD EC15-01
" " " " Constantine Simitis Prime Minister Greece PD EC15-01
" " " " Nicole Fontaine President European Parliament PD EC15-01
QUESTIONS
25. 4.01 London European Bank Göran Persson Prime Minister Sweden FR/PD EB2001
by email - With the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development having reached its 10th anniversary on 15 April 2001, do you plan to invite to the Goteborg summit on 15-16 June the EBRD president Jean Lemierre to address the European Council (and we poets and scribblers) not only on the Bank's achievements since 1991, but on the Northern Dimension and social emphasis which both the Swedish government and the new EBRD president have brought to the European Union, an invitation analogous to that in which, say, President Chirac (still a member of the Presidency troika) invited the IMF Managing Director to the G7 summit in Lyon in 1996?
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* FR/PD denotes the writer's press accreditation as honorary correspondent of the New York-based, 1941-founded, Freedom (House) Review (ISSN 1054-3090), or the Westminster-based, 1997-founded, Parity Democrat (ISSN 1367-6946). Most questions were asked live, but where I was not recognized or allowed only one question, others were emailed, handed in or sent on.
# Denotes an 8- 14-page paper on women's advancement and democracy prepared before the meeting, and sent with a postscript of questions asked at the meeting. OP denotes number and date of letter in 1981-2001 series "Letters to Citizens and Leaders in Open Polities", anticipating or following up the question. The above list is complemented by seven others, four earlier "100 Questions on Democracy", and three "100 Questions on Women's Advancement".
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Date Place Occasion Person Addressed, Office & Country *FR/PD #Followup
24. 4.01 London European Bank Jean Lemierre President European Bank FR/PD EB2001 & WG59
Last June in Warsaw I attended the first World Conference of the Democracies, where the democracy of Taiwan was relegated to the parallel NGO meeting. The EBRD may be unique among international financial institutions in receiving project funding from Taiwan: could you not put your head above the parapet of sovereignty in the UN, which is not as constitutionally committed to democracy as the EBRD, by giving Taiwan at least associate member status?
Last year Mongolia became a member of EBRD and, just now, there has been a seminar on "Investment Opportunities in Mongolia": given that Mongolia was once a soviet puppet state and in the last year its economy has suffered enormously from the weather, do you have any plans to make Mongolia a country of EBRD operations, something which has long been done under the European TACIS programme?
23. 4.01 London European Bank Ion Iliescu President Romania FR/PD EB2001 & WG59
Twenty years ago Indira Gandhi became the first world statesperson to speak out openly in favour of the rights of Roma or Gypsies, who originated in India. Four years ago [at the Nato summit in Madrid on 9 July 1997] Iasked, without response, whether President Constantinescu would take on Indira Gandhi's mantle. Today, with a major meeting in Stockholm of European Roma, may I ask whether you, President Iliescu, will become a world spokesperson for the economic, social and political rights of the Roma(ny), who [many assume] have taken their name from your country?
23. 4.01 London European Bank Pedro Solbes Monetary Affairs Commissioner EC FR/PD EB2001
With three Latin American countries - Ecuador, El Salvador and Argentina - having dollarized their currencies in the past year, and Panama never having given up dollar banknotes, do you expect others to euro-ize their currency in 2002 or soon after, and here I am not referring to the EU applicant countries which have agreed to do this only after entry into the Union, nor to countries like Gibraltar and the Isle of Man which issue coins at the drop of a hat, but to countries in the southern Mediterranean, the Near East and west and central Africa, which may want to remain close to the European economy or European democracy?
22. 4.01 London European Bank Pedrag Max Vranic Vice Pres Agrokor Croatia FR/PD
How far has Agrokor benefited from the transition to greater democracy in Croatia in the past year?
22. 4.01 London European Bank Malay Mukherjee ISPAT International Kazakstan FR/PD
And how far has ISPAT suffered from Kazakstan's slower transition to democracy than in, say, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia or, for that matter, India?
22. 4.01 London European Bank Willem Buiter Chief Economist European Bank FR/PD EB2001
With Hungary having become a net contributor to the World Bank, do you expect the fast-track applicant countries - Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia - to become net contributors to the EBRD by the time they join the European Union in 2003/2004?
20. 4.01 London Sport Business 2001 Frederick Kempe Editor Wall Street Journal Europe PD/FR
May I express to your panel my hope that the current sports boom will last at least till September 2010, the 2500th anniversary of the first Marathon and, because that marathon brought news to the new democracy of Athens of the first victory in history of the forces of freedom, that many of the marathons run in 2010 will celebrate and consolidate the advances in political rights and civil liberties made over the past two decades, in other words, that the four freedoms of capitalism will, in sport, celebrate the four freedoms of democracy round the world?
28. 3.01 Westminster Parlt Press Briefing (2) Sir Edward Jones Black Rod UK Parliament PD
Do you plan any analysis of visitors during your second summer opening so as to target marketing at under-represented groups, in the expectation that such persons may in future play a greater part in voting and the democratic process? And are your tours taking place within a wider historical context, for example, in connexion with such exhibitions as you may be planning for the 400th anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot in November 1605?
23. 3.01 Stockholm European Council Anna Lindh Foreign Minister Sweden PD EC15-01
Looking a little beyond the Swedish Presidency, on 18 September 2001 we shall commemorate the 40th anniversary of the death of Sweden's Dag Hammarskjold, the greatest leader in United Nations history: given that this year is his first major anniversary since Sweden joined the European Union, will you use this occasion to highlight the role which Dag Hammarskjold played in postwar European reconstruction and its significance in creating a climate of international idealism?
23. 3.01 Stockholm European Council Göran Persson Prime Minister Sweden PD EC15-01
You have already anticipated half of my first question, on Europe's celebration of the 300th anniversary of St Petersburg in 2003: the other half was whether, in 2002, Russia and Europe will celebrate the 750th anniversary of Stockholm!
23. 3.01 Stockholm European Council Constantine Simitis Prime Minister Greece PD EC15-01
For the next four years Greece will be preoccupied with the 2004 Athens Olympics, but are you also looking further ahead, to September 2010, for worldwide celebrations of the 2500th anniversary of the Marathon, the first victory of the forces of freedom subsequent to the institution of democracy by Cleisthenes in 608 BC?
23. 3.01 Stockholm European Council Nicole Fontaine President European Parliament PD EC15-01
The next elections to the European Parliament will take place on or around Sunday 6 December 2004, which is also the 60th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy, when Polish and Czech soldiers gave their lives to liberate France and Europe: what measures are you and the parliament taking to make sure that at least Polish and Czech citizens take part in the next European elections?
23. 3.01 Stockholm European Council (3) Vladimir Putin President Russia FR/PD EC15-01
With the European Union now having decided to join in Russia's celebration in 2003 of the 300th anniversary of St Petersburg, Peter the Great's window on Europe, will Russia repay the compliment by renaming another European city, that of Kaliningrad, no longer after a supporter of Stalin's terror, but (Immanuel) Kantgrad, after the great European philosopher who lived out his life there, and this in 2004, the 200th anniversary of Kant's death?
In South Africa Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela and other human rights workers were imprisoned, has now become a national monument and a Unesco World Heritage site, as indeed has Auschwitz: as a former KGB leader, do you plan to turn the Lubyanka prison in Moscow into a national monument, in honour of the many thousands who were imprisoned, tortured or executed there, victims of totalitarianism?
In Rostov-on-Don, in the hospital treating the most severely wounded from Chechnya, the Mothers of Soldiers of Russia have seen conscripts with Downs syndrome, and say that, in order to fill regional quotas for conscripts, other persons with intellectual disabilities are being drafted: will you stop this practice?
6. 3.01 Internet BBC News Online Vladimir Putin President Russia
In South Africa Robben Island, where President Nelson Mandela and many other anti-apartheid and human rights activists were imprisoned, has now become a national monument and a Unesco World Heritage site: as a former KGB leader, do you plan to do something similar with the Lubyanka prison in Moscow, where many Russians and other opponents of Stalin and soviet totalitarianism were imprisoned, tortured and put to death?
21. 2.01 Rome IFAD Governing Council Fawzi Al-Sultan President of IFAD Kuwait FR/PD
In a few days' time, on 26 February, we will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Liberation of Kuwait, in which some 30 countries participated, including Egypt and (I think) Bangladesh, countries still suffering from rural poverty: given that IFAD may be the only major UN body headed by a Kuwaiti, does the Government of Kuwait plan to make a special contribution to IFAD to help reduce rural poverty in those poor countries which took part in your Liberation?
21. 2.01 Rome Genova G8 Launch Giuseppe Pericu Mayor Genova Italy FR/PD
(in Italian) As someone who has attended nine G7/8 summits, from Toronto to Cologne, may I mention that these are not only meetings of the rich, but summits of the democracies, and so may I ask whether a visit is planned to Genova Quarto, from where Garibaldi sailed to unify Italy, and indeed whether there is any plan to create a replica of the boat, if not for the G8 summit, then for the 150th anniversary of the sailing of the Thousand, on 5 May 2010?
19. 1.01 Washington Washington Hilton (2) H Brent Coles President US Conference of Mayors PD
The United Nations has at least six city-states among its 189 members - Andorra, Brunei, Kuwait, Monaco, San Marino and Singapore - while Germany has 3 among its 16 members - Berlin, Bremen and Hamburg: given the ever-growing importance of cities worldwide, is there any US initiative to form an association of world cities and city-states?
I recently drew up a list of city centennials over the next five years in eastern Europe, in that case for possible investment by the European Bank: with Detroit's tricentennial in 2001, does a similar list exist for American cities?
16. 1.01 Washington Assessing the Transition Norman Ornstein American Enterprise Institute PD
On the closeness of the election, while the President-Elect may have been half a million behind on the popular vote, I think this hardly compares with the several million accruing to Vice-President Gore thanks to his high public incumbency for eight years: none of the panel mentioned electoral reform as a task for the new Administration, so may I ask whether consideration has been given in the US to a handicap on incumbency, that is, incumbent candidates should have a plurality plus some to be re-elected, a rule which one applied to Conservative party leaders in Britain?
8.12.00 Nice European Council Poul Nyrup Rasmussen Prime Minister Denmark FR/PD EC14-00
May 2002 marks the bicentennial of Denmark becoming the first country in the world to abolish the slave trade, in 1802: at its annual meeting in London yesterday, Anti-Slavery International calculated that 27 million individuals live in modern forms of slavery: given that the 2002 bicentennial falls in a year when Denmark holds the Union Presidency, and that it was a Danish woman, Inge Genefke, who in 1985 set up the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT), will Denmark give another European and world lead in coming to the relief of modern slaves?
8.12.00 Nice European Council Pierre Moscovici Minister European Affairs France PD EC14-00
Following the violence at the World Bank meetings in Prague in September, the Bank and Conference Presidents paid a visit to the hospital where the Czech police officers were recovering from injuries inflicted, not by civil society demonstrators, but by hooligans: I assume that President Chirac and Madame Fontaine will similarly visit the St Roch hospital where some 20 French police officers have been treated for injuries received yesterday. In Prague the journalists learned of the Presidents' visits only after they had taken place: can you now provide us with the opportunity to make a discreet visit to St Roch hospital to thank the police officers for providing the security in which journalists from free and democratic societies can work in peace and safety, and to wish a speedy return to good health for the injured officers in time for Christmas and the New Year?
7.12.00 Nice European Council Hubert Vedrine Foreign Minister France FR/PD EC14-00
Malgré mon accent anglosaxophone je vais poser ma question en français: Les prochaines élections européennes auront lieu autour du dimanche 6 juin 2004, le 60eme anniversaire du débarquement à Normandie, lorsque des troupes polonaises et tchèques participèrent à la libération de la France et de l'Europe: ferez-vous de votre mieux pour que au moins les ressortissants polonais et tchèques prennent part aux prochaines élections du parlement européen?
7.12.00 Nice European Council Alastair Campbell Government Spokesperson Britain PD EC14-00
The next European elections will take place on or around Sunday 6 June 2004, the 60th anniversary of D-Day, when Polish and Czech troops helped liberate France and Europe: do you expect that citizens from at least those two countries of Central Europe will be able to take part in the next elections to the European Parliament?
8.12.00 Nice European Council (2) Viktor Orban Prime Minister Hungary FR/PD EC14-00
This 25 December, as you know, is both the 1000th anniversary of the foundation of Hungary and the 2000th Christmas: does Hungary have any plans to combine both anniversaries, for example, with a programme for helping deprived children in the poorer regions of Europe? I ask this as someone who in 1956/1957 worked with the International Red Cross to help resettle abroad some 200 000 Hungarian refugee adults and children.
October 2001 marks the 45th anniversary of the Hungarian revolution against soviet totalitarianism, perhaps your last major anniversary before enlargement of the European Union: will you use this occasion to welcome to Hungary to the representatives of the European democracies, no longer to fail you as they did in 1956, but to accelerate Hungary's entry into the Union?
26.10.00 London BSE Inquiry Report Lord Phillips Chair 1998-2000 BSE Inquiry FR/PD
In your report [887-1 Annex 2] you list the individuals who might have acted more wisely: why did you not list the whistle-blowers and other persons who spoke out, beginning with the woman doctor [neuropathologist Helen Grant] in March 1989, and this as an encouragement to civil servants and others who might want to speak out in future?
14.10.00 Biarritz European Council Tony Blair Prime Minister United Kingdom PD EC13-00
On Serbia: after World War II Britain and the Labour government helped run a denazification programme which set Germany firmly on the road to democracy: do you plan to offer similar political and technical assistance to President Kostunica so that, after a like twelve-year period of dictatorship, Yugoslavia too may put down firm democratic roots?
13.10.00 Biarritz European Council Hubert Vedrine Foreign Minister France PD EC13-00
At the Cardiff Summit in June 1998, the final declaration was officially translated into Welsh, even though it is not an official language of the European Union: the French Presidency has already shown its courage and enlightenment in holding this summit in the Basque country, home to one of the oldest peoples in Europe: will you also have any Biarritz declaration translated in Basque, both as a sign of appreciation for the hospitality of the local Basque people, and as a gesture of French and European goodwill to the many Basque communities in the Americas and elsewhere round the world?
27. 7.00 Farnborough International Airshow Geoff Hoon Defence Secretary United Kingdom PD
Eight countries - Belgium, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain and Turkey - will now buy the A400M military airlifter which has important relief, humanitarian and peace-building potential: will you similarly create an eight-nation rapid deployment force to intervene in humanitarian emergencies?
25. 7.00 Farnborough International Airshow Mauricio Botelho CEO Embraer Aircraft Brazil FR/PD
With the 500th anniversary of the discovery of Brazil this year, have you named any Embraer planes after this historic occasion? Have you been able to sell your planes in other Portuguese-speaking countries, not only Portugal, but Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Sao Tome, and now East Timor?