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SOLIDAR Annual General Assembly 2010

The Annual General Assembly of SOLIDAR , which took place on Wednesday 12 May in Brussels, focused on the need for solidarity in times of crisis to combat poverty and social exclusion both in Europe and worldwide. To support this statement, the Assembly adopted a Declaration on ‘The European Year 2010: combating Poverty and Social Exclusion’.  SOLIDAR also welcomed one new member, ABF, Sweden’s largest adult education association.

The Assembly was hosted by Marita Ulvskog MEP who opened the event by stating that “nearly 50% of the world’s population live on less than US$3 per day and about 7 million workers in the European Union have lost their jobs.  We can’t let this happen, a real change based on solidarity and dialogue is needed here.” Philip Cordery, the Secretary General of the PES, went on to talk about how to bring about this change: “We now find ourselves at a crossroads concerning what kind of society we want. I strongly believe that only progressive policies can make this change, for which there is need for the magic triangle: politics, civil society and trade unions.” Jutta Steinruck MEP expressed the importance of the SOLIDAR Decent work campaign in the fight against poverty and is looking forward to further cooperation with SOLIDAR.

SOLIDAR welcomed the support and unity shown by the General Assembly. The Secretary General of SOLIDAR, Conny Reuter, ended the conference by saying: “Other people see financial consolidation as a solution, but what we really need is social consolidation. Let’s finally put people first!”