July 4, 2017

THE ELEVENTH ASIA-EUROPE PEOPLE’S FORUM
Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia
4-6 July, 2016

The Asia-Europe People’s Forum (AEPF) is a biennial people’s forum parallel to the Asia-Europe Summit (ASEM) which persistently pushes for the integration of the social dimension – such as human rights, equitable development, democratization, social justice, ecological sustainability – into the ASEM processes and in the policies and practices being promoted by its member-countries at the national and inter-regional levels.

AEPF11 was organized in Ulaan Baatar, the Capital City of Mongolia’s from 4-6 July 2016 under the theme: “Building New Solidarities: Working for Inclusive, Just and Equal Alternatives for Asia and Europe”.

GENERAL OBJECTIVES

• Strengthen network building at national and regional levels in order to undertake cross-regional initiatives and campaigns;
• Analyse issues of common interest such as security, development and neo-liberal globalisation and their impact on peoples in each region in order to come up with visions and strategies for alternative futures;
• Provide people’s organisations/civil society organisations and networks with a channel for critical engagement with the institutions and policies of ASEM-member countries.

PARTICIPANTS

AEPF brought together as many as 750 scholars and activists, representing social movements, people’s organisations/ civil society organisations and citizens from 42 countries across Asia and Europe, representatives of the European Union, the European Economic and Social Committee and Mongolian government. President of Mongolia, His Excellency Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj also attended the Opening session and delivered his welcome remarks.

CONTENT OF THE AEPF

• Opening
• Five plenaries, focused on:
• AEPF at 20 – Reflections and Moving Forward
• Building solidarities for inclusive, Just, and Equal Alternatives in Asia
• and Europe;
• Briefing on structure, events, activities for AEPF11 and on logistics;
• Reflections and Recommendations from Thematic Groups
• Final Declaration presentation, debate and approval

21 workshops within the framework of seven thematic clusters, each of which had three phases:

(i) Context analysis;
(ii) Lesson learned: Successes and Failure;
(iii) Strategies for People’s Visions and Future

Perspectives:

• Resource Justice, Land Rights, Equal Access to Water, and Participation
• Going beyond Extractivisms;
• Food Sovereignty/Food Security – Beyond Zero Hunger;
• Climate Justice and Transformation of Energy Systems;
• Socially Just Trade, Production and Investment;
• Social Justice – Alternatives to Debt and Austerity, Social protection,
• Decent Work, and Sustainable Livelihoods;
• Peace Building and Human Security – Responses to Migration,
• Fundamentalism and Terrorism;
• Participatory Democracy, Gender Equality and Minority Rights
• 17 Open Space sessions, during which people have in-depth discussion on specific issues.
• Ulaan Baatar night, which discussed Brexit and its impacts on people in the two continents.
• Closing

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