MGERB has become part of the big European family of YEPP

05/12/09

MGERB has officially gained the status of an observer member in the Youth of the European People’s Party – YEPP! MGERB was also officially recognised by the right-wing centralist youth organisations from all over Europe as a full righted partner. This happened during the international seminar of YEPP in Tirana, Albania. The seminar took hold from the 3rd of December to the 6th of December 2009. MGERB was supported with consent by over 30 youth organisations from all over Europe during the vote, which occurred during the board meeting of YEPP. Having an observer member status is the last step before achieving a full member status in the YEPP. After the achieved success MGERB can take an active part in determining the policies on European level, through it’s participation in the largest international youth organisation. When MGERB is accepted as a full member the representatives of MGERB will have the right to elect the YEPP Board, as well as be elected to be in the YEPP Board.

Hristo Gadzhev – MGERB’s International Secretary took part in the seminar in Tirana. He presented MGERB before the participants and introduced the qualities of the largest right-wing centralist youth organisation in Bulgaria. “At the base of MGERB lay main values, such as supremacy of the law, freedom of personal initiative and the traditional values of the EPP. We have proven our willingness to work for forming policies, regarding people not only on national, but on European level, so we can achieve prosperity for all European citizens. That is why I am certain that MGERB will be a worthy member of the family of YEPP”.

The participants to the conference were welcomed by the Prime Minister of Albania – Sali Berisha. He thanked them for their visit to Albania and introduced the situation in the country. He requested help for the removal of visas from 2010. The ministers of European Integration, Interior, Defence, Infrastructure and Transport and Telecommunications were also present during the meeting. Antonio Tajani the Vice President of the European Commission for Transport was also a special guest to the seminar.

Monika Panayotova the Chairwoman of MGERB will specially meet with the Board of YEPP during the forthcoming congress of the EPP in Bonn to thank personally for the vote of confidence and the acceptance of MGERB in the big youth European family.

The next seminar of the Youth of the European People’s Party will take place in Sofia and Plovdiv – Bulgaria. It will start on the 18th of February and end on the 21st of February. The host of the seminar will be MGERB.

Monika Panayotova: The European Union is turning into a factor with the Lisbon Treaty

02/12/09

Interview made by Miglena Slavova – Novinar

Kuneva can give to Bulgaria as an expert, thinks the MP from GERB

Monika Panayotova was born on the 19th of August 1983 in Sofia. She has a MA in International Economic Relations in the University of National and World Economy with a specialization in “International Project Management”. She is the Chairwoman of MGERB. She was the director of “Projects connected with Society”, in the Economical Policy Institute until 2008. She can wield English, French and Spanish.

Miss Panayotova do you think that the International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response Commission is important enough for the Bulgarian representative to the European Commission and what do you think about the opinions that the Foreign Minister would become the Emel Etem of Europe?

Every commission of the European Union is important if it has been opened. The President of the European Commission forms his team of European Commissioners, so every commissioner is important for his work. It is important that every European Commissioner is vital and everyone can vote. Our European Commissioner needs to keep the balance between the best interests of the whole European Union and of Bulgaria. Keeping the balance is very important and every commissioner can influence his fellow commissioners.

What do you think of the statement of Miglena Kuneva that she intends to transfer her work efforts towards the Prime Minister Boyko Borissov and the President Georgi Parvanov?

I think that Meglena Kuneva has a lot to give to Bulgaria as an expert. The fact that she spent a lot of time in Brussels proves that. I think that everyone who wants to help the Bulgarian Government constructively is welcome to do so. This has always been stated by our Prime Minister. Everyone can help despite his political orientation if he works for the best interest of the country. After we leave the border of Bulgaria we defend Bulgaria’s position and not the position of GERB, BSP or MRF. We go out there with the Bulgarian position. I don’t see any difficulties for anyone who wants to work for this cause.

The Lisbon Treaty takes effect from the 1st of December. What does this mean for Bulgaria?

I have personally been pro-federally orientated from many years and I have been hoping that this becomes reality one day. I am really happy that the Lisbon Treaty will take effect. This is a sign that Europe is moving forward. From now on Europe will become a legal personality in other words - it will become a key figure in the international field. The changes that effect Bulgaria will have effect on the whole European Union. Now we are talking for wider identification – the European identification. We think of ourselves as Bulgarians, but now we would think of ourselves also as Europeans, because the European Union will have an independent foreign policy and a president. The role of the institutions and the new legislation is becoming really important concerning decisions. In order for a certain decision to take effect it would need 55% approval of the member countries and 65% approval of the population of the European Union. There will be double legitimacy regarding the decisions. Every country will have the right to leave the European Union if it considers this to be the right decision. The citizens of the European Union will have the right for initiatives. If one million citizens think that a particular problem is of great importance for the whole Union, they could have it reviewed. There will be greater perspective for the citizens regarding the decision making process. Another important moment is that the national governments will have a greater impact on the European Parliament. In reality before any decision can take effect it first needs to be reviewed by all the national governments. This will be a challenge in front of our government, because we would need greater expertise – the MP’s as well as the experts working for the National Assembly.


Won’t we lose our national identity with the Lisbon Treaty?

No not at all. The motto of Europe – “United in diversity”, will truly take effect. Everyone is contributing to what the European Union looks like and this leads to a wider European identification. Culturally everyone has their own identity. Everyone is equal before the law.

How would you comment on the increasing civil claims before the Court in Strasbourg by the people with disabilities and the pensioners?

Maybe they know that when a civil suit starts there at one moment there will be a result. This is something that we can’t always see here.

How can we change this?

This can happen with a reform in the justice system, but as you know this takes a really long time. The important thing is that the new government has expressed will for reforms and is starting to achieve them. But everything is happening gradually and by stages, because every fast decision might not be the right one. Every step is well tough by our government. I believe there will be reforms but there is now way that they could happen in the first one hundred days of the new cabinet. It is a question of time before we can see the positive results.

What do you think of the results of the referendum in Switzerland about minarets?

One of the international theories is that of the conflict of the civilizations in other words between Christianity and Islam. I believe it is very important for politicians to be able to keep the balance and to put an accent that religion needs to remain in the frames of personal space. If we start dividing ourselves on religious, sexual or ethnical bases we would never be able to achieve anything good. Normally the more radical parties succeed in doing more negative campaigns. The ones who opposed European integration had a more successful campaign.

One of the last events that drew public attention was also on a religious basis. The Yuzeirovi Brothers attempted to build a second monument of the Unknown Turkish Warrior, but this time in their patio. Don’t you think that the law for registration of new religions or new parties needs to be changed?

As far as I am informed about the case of the second monument it was never discussed with the local authorities and no one asked for a legal approval i.e. it wasn’t done in the necessary manner. No division leads to anything good. Bulgaria has always been a good example for ethnical tolerance. Let’s keep this image - this is my appeal to everyone. We are not a big country. If we start dividing ourselves this won’t be good for anyone. The individual success of everyone will contribute to the success of the country. Let’s have a positive and creative thinking, rather then destructive. 

MGERB was part of a conference which gathered young leaders from the Balkans

23/11/09

The Youth of the Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity hosted a conference which gathered right orientated young leaders from the Balkans. The conference took place in Mavrovo, Macedonia and started on the 20th of November and ended on the 22nd of November lasting a total of three days. The conference was dedicated to the last 20 years which can be summarized as a time of change. Everyone agreed that the main headline of the conference was European Cooperation and that the Balkan countries need to work so that the whole region can become part of the European Union.
The conference was financed by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. MGERB was represented by Kalin Zahariev – Deputy International Secretary and Member of the National Executive Council of MGERB.

Friday the 20th of November
The three day program began in Skopje, Macedonia with astounding media coverage. The conference was assessed as a step forward regarding the cooperation in the Balkan region. The participants were greeted and welcomed by the official representative of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation for Macedonia – Henri Bohnet. After a short non formal meeting between the participants and the organisers everyone traveled to the mountain village of Mavrovo. During their introductory lunch the participants were greeted by Gordana Jankuloska – Minister of Interior of Macedonia. She revealed that she had been part of the Youth of the Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity.

Saturday the 21st of November
The first panel of the conference focused on the reasons behind the choice of a young person to get involved with politics. This later led to a discussion about the role of the young in politics. The second panel introduced all of the youth political organisations taking part in the conference and focused on the role of the young in the modern political atmosphere, particularly in the Balkan region. The Youth of GERB was specially congratulated for the convincing win in the past political elections. As well as there contribute. MGERB received a very high mark for the fact that many members of MGERB became part of the executive and legislative government. MGERB received special praise for being one of the few youth right wing political organisations contributing for achieving greater cooperation in the region. The vision of what should be the role of the young when they are part of the government was introduced by Kalin Zahariev, as well as the fact that the Balkan region needs to become part of the EU. The region can be the most united in the EU, because of its similar cultures, traditions and history.

Sunday the 22nd of November
The third panel of the conference concentrated on the cooperation between the countries located in the Balkan region. This later led to the conclusion of all of the discussed topics. The participants produced a vision for an EU and NATO Balkans which put a successful end to the conference!

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23/11/09

The Member of European Parliament – Vladimir Urutchev met with MGERB

23/11/09

“Every country is seeking a variety of energy sources. For countries such as France and Italy this means a pipeline with Russia and that’s why they rely on the “South Stream” project.” Russia is the biggest exporter of natural gas to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. We need to seek a different source – in the Caucasus region, Iran and the Middle East.”, this was stated by Vladimir Urutchev during his meeting with the Youth of GERB in Plovdiv, while they were taking part in a seminar entitled: “Strategic Public Management”. According to the expert - Bulgaria needs to differentiate its energy policy. A permanent solution to the problem is the “Nabucco” pipeline project, which is a priority. The project “South Stream” is very interesting for Bulgaria from an economical point of view, from which the country would have an economical effect of hundreds of millions of euro from the taxes. But in order for those takes to exist we need to uphold property, stated the MEP Vladimir Urutchev answering the youth’s questions. The “Nabucco” project would cost 15 milliard euros, whereas the “South Stream” project would cost 26 milliard euros. According to recent publications of western analyzers the “Nabucco” project might turn out to be a bluff, because there might not be enough gas for it. The opinion of the experts is that both of the projects rely on the Caspian region.

The boys and girls from MGERB also expressed interest about the future of the Belene Nuclear Power Plant. If the project was based on the right economical base there would have been no room for debate. The fatal mistake is that everything is predetermined and we need to find an investor, who would invest in a technology he does not know. The things are predetermined with the choice of equipment and technology. We need investors who would assess the risk of the project, choose the technology and determine the deadlines, said Vladimir Urutchev. The participants in the meeting discussed the future of the “Burgas – Alexandropolis” pipeline project, the use of rechargeable energy sources, the Lisbon Treaty and the election of the President of the European Council for over one hour with Vladimir Urutchev.

Another very important guest to MGERB’s Third Political Academy, other then Vladimir Urutchev was the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Simeon Djankov. He came under the invitation of the Chairwoman of MGERB and Member of Parliament in the 41st National Assembly – Monika Panayotova.

MGERB held a training course on the subject of “Strategic Public Management”

23/11/09

With the help of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation MGERB held a three day training seminar on the subject of strategic public management. The training course was part of MGERB’s Third Political Academy, which took hold between the 19th to the 22nd of November. The training course was attended by over thirty alumni of MGERB’s past political academies, who have all shown excellent results.
   
There were eleven sessions during the three days of the training. They were divided into three groups according to their thematic. The target of the training was to familiarise the participants with the good European practices of public relations, the development of policies and the management of projects. To learn about Bulgaria’s administration and the problems connected with it, as well as the necessity of change. The need to assess the influence of policies and the legislature was also discussed, as well as the need to generate ideas on how to improve public administration.
   
The lecturers during the training were Snejana Dimitrova – a consultant in the sphere of state administration and Pavel Ivanov – an expert in the Council of Minister’s administration. Snejana Dimitrova introduced the good European practices concerning management to the participants. There was a short historic analysis of the development of administration in Bulgaria, as well as its current state. The participants were familiarised in detail with the relations of political and administrative level governance. Pavel Ivanov explained how to develop a political strategy, which was later practiced with practical games. The alumni divided into groups and set their political targets, which were later developed. After that the contestants understood why it is very important to assess the work of the legislature and the policies. They were divided into groups and were given a unique task, which they needed to solve. When the groups had solved their tasks Snejana Dimitrova introduced the importance of leadership when analysing results. The lecture began with a practical exercise, which determined, which of the alumni, were the most willing for radical change. The most important changes in the assessment of the state administration were also discussed. After all the lections the participants formed their own suggestions concerning the upcoming reform in the administration. The alumni had the unique chance to introduce their ideas directly to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Simeon Djankov. Snejana Dimitrova and Pavel Ivanov familiarised MGERB with how to manage projects in the state administration. The discussion passed as a dialogue due to the fact that most of the participants already had experience managing projects.
   
In the end of the training the participants received educational material on public management and management of projects, as well as digital copies of the discussed lectures.  The link was strengthened with excellent marks expressed towards the lecturers and organizers, which was an expression of readiness for further learning in this field by the alumni of MGERB’s political academies.

MGERB learned about “Political Culture and how to communicate with the media” during the second module of the Third Political Academy

23/11/09

The second module of MGERB’s Third Political Academy took place in the Imperial Park Hotel in Plovdiv from the 19th to the 22nd of November 2009. The module was titled: “Political Culture and how to communicate with the media” and was officially opened by Mr. Ivan Totev – Regional Governor of Plovdiv and Regional Coordinator of GERB – Plovdiv and the National Executive Council of MGERB.

During the four day training there were over 50 participants - representatives of MGERB from the whole country. The main topics during the module were: “Media Presence, theory and practice”, “Political Rhetoric, theory and practice” and “Political Culture”.

The target of the training dedicated to “Media Presence, theory and practice” was to teach the participants the difference between the different media, the way they need to behave in front of a camera, microphone, as well as to practically prepare the participants to communicate with the media. The participants learned the different dress codes that are appropriate for the different media’s.  That they should dress appropriately to the decors in the television studios, the light and the cameras. The participants also learned the difference between formal and informal meetings with the media. They learned how to form a press message and headline during several exercises. The participants had the chance to show what they had learned during a simulated press conference and a debate. The simulation included cameras and microphones, so the participants, practiced their speech, as well as behavior. Lecturers of the panel were Sevdelina Arnaudova -PR, Press centre of the political party of GERB in the National Assembly and Nikola Nikolov, journalist Balkan Bulgarian Television (BBT).

The second panel of the training dealt with “Political Rhetoric, theory and practice”. The target of the panel was to prepare the participants to lead a political debate in the reality of today’s Bulgaria. The participants in MGERB’s Third Political Academy had the ability to familiarise themselves with the political ideologies and how to use them in election campaigns. There was a unique exercise, which determined where the participant placed in the political scale, ranging from ultra left, left, liberal, right and ultra right. The participants answered questions, which determined where they place on the scale. After every question there was a debate in which the participants defended their answers and discussed the general answers. The participants learned to determine the left and the right policies. The participants learned about which parties are consider left and which are considered right in Europe and the United States. The lecturer of this panel was Radoslav Tochev – Councillor to the Prime Minister, regarding foreign policy questions.

One day before the end of the academy the participants had the chance to meet with the MEP – Vladimir Urutchev, Member of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy and substitute in the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety. The participants had the unique chance to learn about the function of the European Parliament and the recent election for President of the European Union, as well as the newly appointed European Union Foreign Minister. They also asked and received answers about Bulgaria’s energy policy. The participants also met with Simeon Djankov Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance. During the meeting the participants engaged in an open dialogue and asked political questions about the governance of Bulgaria, as well as the role of the young people.

The second module of MGERB’s Third Political Academy was closed by Monika Panayotova – Chairwoman of MGERB and Member of Parliament in the 41st National Assembly and by the members of MGERB’s National Executive Council.

The third and final module of MGERB’s Third Political Academy will take place in January 2010. The third and final module will be dedicated to rhetoric and public speech.