The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
The Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus
April 26-27, 2014
The Parliament of Georgia, Kutaisi
Session Reporters: Anahit Shirinyan, Salome Mukhuradze, Emin Aslanov, Irakli Kobalia
The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Table of Contents:
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Executive Summary .............................................................................................................................................. 3
Opening Remarks and Key Notes ................................................................................................................... 4
Opening Session: The perspective of Unity in the South Caucasus.................................................. 8
Working Group Session I: Political Systems in the South Caucasus...................................................15
Working Group Session II: Economic and Business Development in the South Caucasus... 16
Working Group Session III: Minorities in the South Caucasus: The issue of tolerance........... 17
Working Group Session I: Foreign Policy Priorities of the South Caucasus States..................... 18
Working Group Session II: States of Human Rights in the South Caucasus..................................... 19
Working Group Session III: Education and Innovation............................................................................. 20
Closing Session: The Role of Youth in Politics............................................................................................... 20
Appendix A: List of Media Outlets Covering the Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South
Caucasus: ...................................................................................................................................................................... 26
The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Executive Summary
On April 26-27, 2014 The Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy (NIMD) with
support of the Dutch Embassy to Georgia and Armenia and in partnership with the
Parliament of Georgia has organized the Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus
in Kutaisi, Georgia.
The two-day conference featured two plenary sessions and six working groups, where
forty-five young politicians, representing both the ruling and the opposition parties of the
three South Caucasus states took part. The young politicians of the South Caucasus were
joined by the representatives of Dutch youth political parties: Mr. Elmar Smid;
Vice-president of the Young Socialists in the PvdA (Labour Party of the Netehrlands);
Mr. Alphons Elbersen; Vice-president of DWARS (Dutch Young Greens) and
Ms. Mariska van Delft; Trainings officer at the “The Youth Organization Freedom and
Democracy” who participated in the discussions and roundtables. H.E. Hans Horbach,
Ambassador of the Kingdom of Netherlands to Georgia and Armenia also attended the
opening session.
The Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus aimed to explore and address
common interests and common values, shared among the peoples of the South Caucasus.
The forum featured keynote addresses and follow up discussions to explore economic
cooperation, foreign policy priorities and political systems of the South Caucasus countries,
state of human rights and minorities in the region, developments in the education sector
and the role of youth in political processes of the three countries.
During the Forum, participants outlined specific areas of future cooperation and raised
concrete initiatives for future collaborative work on range of issues: in the areas of the
protection of the rights of minorities; on business cooperation, on the issues of education
and innovation and in the field of youth policies of their parties and states.
Participants discussed the possibilities for a joint work to identify and address the
problems which minorities (religious, national, sexual) might be encountering in the three
countries of the region. In the area of business cooperation participants suggested to think
of ways to create business cooperation platforms and involve those businessmen from the
three countries who would be interested to cooperate; the possibilities of joint innovative
workshops aimed at enhancing educational opportunities and the creation of online
cooperation platforms in this field for young people was explored as well; the opportunity
to align efforts in furthering intra-party democracies in the respective parties of the
participants were actively discussed. 1
1
Discussion topics not relevant to the Forum Agenda are not included in the Introduction section
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Day I
Opening Session
Opening Remarks:
The opening remarks were delivered by Mr. Levan Tsutskiridze, NIMD Representative in
the South Caucasus, who after extending words of gratitude to His Excellency Ambassador
Mr. Hans Horbach, NIMD representatives from the Headquarter, delegation members and
Dutch Youth Party Representatives expressed his happiness to participate in and support
the continuity of the Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus. It is truly, he said, “a
very unique opportunity for peer-to-peer exchange and learning.”
Mr. Tsutskiridze also expressed his appreciation
with the delegations’ choice of subjects for this
year’s forum. Pertinent and relevant themes
such as education and innovation, political
systems, minorities, foreign policy, human
rights, the role of youth in politics and
enhancing people-to-people diplomacy, the
topic of the first session.
Mr. Tsutskiridze went on to highlight what the
forum is and is not about. He underlined the
importance of using the forum as a foundation on which to exchange ideas in a respectful
and mutually beneficent manner. It is an opportunity for the delegates to cooperate, find
common ground and strive towards improving the conditions in the South Caucasus. At the
heart of this is improving the lives of citizens and the peoples of this region.
Encouraging the young political leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia to make the
most use out of the opportunities provided to them by the forum; Mr. Tsutskiridze
emphasized the continued support of NIMD and their partners towards building on the
achievement of this year’s forum.
As an honorable guest of the Forum, His Excellency, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands to Georgia and Armenia, Mr. Hans Horbach addressed the audience. Mr.
Ambassador expressed the Embassy’s willingness to provide financial support for such an
important event which brings together young politicians from the three countries of the
South Caucasus. He underscored that the significance of the event is not only salient for the
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
countries of the South Caucasus, but as a European country, enhancing peace and stability
of the region’s Eastern border is an integral outcome.
One of the key questions that His
Excellency brought to the forefront is
whether “there is anything beyond
geographical proximity, shared Soviet
history, or frozen conflicts that turn the
three countries of the South Caucasus into a
common concept requiring common policies
on behalf of their international partners”.
While noting that the fate of each country
under the European Union Eastern
Partnership Instrument differed, and
recognizing that each of the three countries are not moving parallel-like politically; the fact
remains that all three countries are undergoing processes of democratic transitions with
considerable challenges. As such, Ambassador Horbach indicated the importance of
addressing some of these challenges in the forum’s working groups and highlighted two
areas worthy of such attention; business and economic development and respect for
human rights.
Finally, Ambassador Horbach put emphasis on the notion that while one may not always
agree with an opponent’s views “political tolerance is the basis for any mature political
democracy.” He pointed out to the delegates that the forum is an excellent avenue for
networking, and enabling the policy makers of tomorrow to develop mutualunderstanding, tolerance, and cross-border cooperation.
The Next speaker, Mr. Pepijn Gerrits, Director of Programs for NIMD expressed his
gratification and encouragement towards the fact that the participating parties highly value
the intentions and goals of the forum. He commented that at NIMD “we are extremely
grateful for the trust you have vested in us to facilitate this regional gathering.”
Acknowledging the situation in Ukraine and the recent dramatic events in the country’s
political sphere, Mr. Gerrits underscored the important efforts of this Forum in bringing
together individuals from differing political denominations. While each individual present
may have his/her preferences and ideas on the Ukrainian situation, Mr. Gerrits stressed
how crucial it is for Ukraine’s process of deciding on a common future to take place in an
open and transparent dialogue, “giving room to all views and backgrounds to come to a
consensus.”
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Putting forth Ukraine’s ongoing situation as
a salient example where negotiation and
consensus building is imperative, Mr.
Gerrits pointed out to the delegates the four
core factors that are a “must-have” when
aiming for consensus-building in polarized
settings. These include: (1) Trust; (2) A
neutral or safe space facilitating common
ground. A space where participants can
discuss ideas/thoughts freely and where
agreement
and/or
disagreement
is
permissible; (3) An impartial and trusted
facilitator and (4) Ensuring that people around the table are open to different views, are
willing to seek common ground and dedicated towards investing in relationships.
Recognizing South Africa’s formidable advances in bridging political divides under Nelson
Mandela, Mr. Gerrits highlighted that at NIMD, facilitating dialogues between political
adversaries is a central principal along with supporting political leaders. As such, providing
opportunities for youth to strengthen their individual capacities as leaders via leadership
courses, youth branches, and programming is another core element at NIMD. In line with
this, Mr. Gerrits shared NIMD’s success in Bolivia where youth exchanges proved so
powerful that they “laid the foundation for mutual recognition, understanding different
realities and the growth of personal relationships across political, ethnic and socio-economic
boundaries.”
In closing, Mr. Gerrits outlined for the delegates that dialogue processes are not just about
discussion or sharing ideas. Rather, they are about creating understanding and exploring
common ground and while overcoming differences is an important outcome, it is more
important still to try and identify the root causes of these differences. Echoing the
sentiments of Ambassador Horbach, Mr. Gerrits extended his ongoing support via NIMD
and the Netherlands Embassy to facilitate any joint-ideas or projects that merit further
development. As such, Mr. Gerrits encouraged practical proposals for working group
discussions.
Participants were also welcomed by Mr. Jan Marinus Wiersma, the NIMD Senior Political
Advisor, Senior Visiting Fellow at Clingendael Institute and former member of the
European Parliament. Emphasizing his keen interest in the outcome of the conference, Mr.
Wiersma reiterated the comments of Mr. Gerrits that a meeting of different nationalities
can have a fruitful exchange of views and dialogue. Forums such as this one, emphasized
Mr. Wiersma, enable people to come together to identify problems, explore solutions and
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
discuss future directions by using People-to-People diplomacy as a tool. As a mechanism,
this enables individuals to link their thoughts to official societal debates, and provide a
means to enhance links with civil society.
Recognizing the importance of official negotiations, Mr. Wiersma warned delegates that
politics will often portray divisions and differences over commonalities and that the
purpose of this forum is to discover what each participant has in common with one
another, what common problems there are in the region and the potential for common
solutions.
In light of this, Mr. Wiersma put forth the model
of the European Union (EU) and ever-growing
European Community that was initiated on the
basic idea to overcome historical divisions.
Striving for common approaches in the spheres
of security and the economy, the EU, now 28
members strong is a fine example of countries
working together and overcoming century long
animosities in the name of cooperation. While
acknowledging
that
even
within
the
Netherlands, citizens do not always approve of
everything carried out by the EU institutions in Brussels, the EU is nonetheless a model for
the South Caucasus; not to be copied, but drawn-from.
Keeping this in mind, Mr. Wiersma noted that drawing on the example of the EU includes
embracing some of its key themes, one of which is appreciation and promotion of diversity.
When trying to collaborate on a regional level, respect is integral to the relationshipbuilding process. It is wiser, as Mr. Wiersma illustrated to focus on what unites Armenia,
Azerbaijan, and Georgia rather than what divides them. It is better to develop scenarios
that will aid in promoting and strengthening the societies of the South Caucasus region. At
the heart of this, Mr. Wiersma claimed, are the younger generations who should be very
much involved in the region’s democratic and economic transitions. As Mr. Wiersma
emphasizes, “trying to understand one another is the first step of any process; to create a
lasting foundation on which you can build future cooperation.”
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Day I
Opening Session
The Perspective of Unity of the South Caucasus: People to People Diplomacy
The South Caucasus states share the common historical past and values, having a rich
tradition of people to people contacts and cooperation. Historically, many ideas have been
developed on how best to foster partnerships between the three countries and people to
people contacts in the region. These have demonstrated that there has always been a will to
overcome obstacles together. The new generations in the South Caucasus states should
embrace the modern trends of the globalized world and accept the power of collaboration.
Due to the inherent dangers in the region and unresolved conflicts, the South Caucasus
states should encourage pluralism and active involvement of the civil society in the
decision making processes. The first session reflected upon the key factors of forming the
common vision of cooperation among young politicians in the respective region.
Jamila Ibrahimova from the Democratic
Reforms Party of Azerbaijan stressed in her
opening remarks that People-to-People
diplomacy has a very important role to play in
ensuring the security of the people in the
South Caucasus region. In addition, Ms.
Ibrahimova underscored the appropriateness
of holding joint-meetings in Georgia as
political challenges in Armenia and
Azerbaijan regarding occupation/violations
of territorial integrity and refugees/displaced
person concerns may impede nation-building
processes. Ms. Ibrahimova in her opening remarks mentioned that a major obstacle to
unity in the South Caucasus region is neighbouring Russia and Russian foreign-policy
interest. Later, she warned of the dangers of provocation and negative propaganda both
from within their three countries and from outside neighbours such as Russia.
Regarding Armenian and Azerbaijani tensions, Ms. Ibrahimova highlighted that finding
common interest and striving towards unity in the South Caucasus region lies with each
country’s civil society. This is a crucial platform providing the necessary institutions on
which to build cooperation and relationships on both sides.
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
In closing, Ms. Ibrahimova expressed that cooperation between each of the three South
Caucasus countries is possible and facilitated by small-scale events such as the Youth
Forum. Starting at the civil society level and escalating efforts upwards is central to the
region’s cooperative development. She stated that “civil society is the most important force,”
and has the potential to sway officials in all three South Caucasus countries.
In his opening remarks, Mr. Tornike Meshveliani from the Christian Democratic Movement
of Georgia expressed his delight towards NIMD for all their efforts in organizing the Youth
Forum which is providing the young people of the South Caucasus the opportunity to
collaborate and seek cooperation in multiple fields regarding People-to-People diplomacy
in each of their three respective countries.
He pointed out that when acknowledging the
development of the modern world it is important to
not only consider the state level but the individual’s
personal level. Focusing on personal relations is the
best kind of communication when resolving existing
conflicts.
He highlighted the 1919 election/referendum in
Akhaltsikhe and Akhalkalaki as an example where
both Azeri and Armenian populations living in
Georgia wholeheartedly supported the territorial integrity of Georgia. He stressed that
Georgia is and continues to be a model of harmonious co-existence of the South Caucasus
people.
While each of the three countries and the region itself has many challenges to overcome,
focusing on areas concerning the deepening of education, cultural, and trade relations are
all key factors towards developing and enhancing a peaceful Caucasus. The Erasmus
Mundus Education Program for instance, he illustrated, is providing a platform for building
peaceful relations for the students of the South Caucasus in this regard. In keeping with the
education line, Mr. Meshveliani also proposed that South Caucasus Universities, such as
those in Georgia, include more non-ethnic Georgian students.
In closing, Mr. Meshveliani stated his belief that it will be very beneficial to hold similar
events that “do not only involve young politicians, but also involve other groups.” He also
supported the readiness of Georgia’s citizens to lead in cooperation efforts in the areas of
politics, economics, and education in order to “enhance the better integration of Caucasian
people.”
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Mr. Aren Manukyan from the Armenian National Congress in his opening statement made it
clear that when speaking about the unity of the South Caucasus and the opportunity to
spread this unity is in fact very difficult as it “does not exist.” His sentiments is that the
‘picture of unity’ does not apply in reality; although there are opportunities for enhancing
dialogue, exploring common feelings, and the possibility of putting differences aside among
the three South Caucasus countries. However in order to accomplish these things it is
imperative that each country let go of the rhetoric around condemning one another in
order to make some progress or headway. He reminded delegates of the period before the
1920’s where platforms established to find common ground soon turned into platforms for
creating new difficulties for the region. He pointed out that even presently, while military
processes are at ‘cease,’ all three countries remain in very tense situations, hindering
potential to establish proper relations in the region.
Other matters of hindrance that Mr. Manukyan
demonstrated were closed borders, lack of
diplomatic relations, and lack of business and
economic cooperation. Unhealthy competition,
aggressive attitudes towards one another and
the proliferation of propaganda in the mass
media are all exacerbating regional issues as
well. There is as he claimed a need to observe
matters on all three sides in order to find
common solutions.
Mr. Manukyan also expressed that unity of the region is being stagnated due to lack of unity
in all three countries’ security zones. Each of the three countries continue to pursue
different vectors in international relations and are striving for different security systems
which may only result in the creation of more significant problems. The mass media is also
being used by all three countries for negative outcomes such as the idea of ‘eliminating the
enemy;’ a common statement that is circulated all around. Due to the existence of
authoritarian regimes in the region, Mr. Manukyan called to reconsider the matter of the
reproduction of the political power. He illustrated how this situation may be used by
political leadership in order to suppress attitudes towards positive solutions. It is of no
surprise that “whenever change in a political regime is expected…immediately some tensions
at the border appear.” As such, civil society has an important role to play and organized
areas of society such as NGO’s and Youth Organizations must capitalize on reinforcing and
building the democracy process.
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Finally, Mr. Manukyan emphasized the importance of dialogue at the civil society level and
cited the Declaration at Potsdam as a positive affirmation of democracy in each of the three
South Caucasus countries. Mr. Manukyan noted that trust is lacking on the part of the
population in their political leaders and that several phases of cooperation are necessary
for viable change. Starting at the youth level in non-formal environments such as hosting
sports, culture and health related events is central towards building trust and enhancing
greater tolerance and understanding between all three countries. Once tolerance and trust
can be established and maintained at local levels, enhancing understanding in areas such as
trade and economic relations will be more feasible for the region.
Discussion Panel:
Georgian delegation members expressed the importance of focusing on similarities rather
than differences in the region despite regional challenges such as those posed by Russia.
Mr. Givi Chikovani from the Georgian United National Movement emphasized the
importance of the South Caucuses sharing a “common geopolitical area, sharing common
values, sharing common interests and sharing a common mentality.” Overcoming difficulties
such as those posed by closed borders and lack of private sector is possible via diplomacy.
Mr. Vladimer Gorozia from the Free Democrats of Georgia pointed out that the forum
should help the delegates to “analyze mistakes and then design realistic, promising steps,” in
order to enhance unity, support and take a mutual approach to the problems faced by the
countries of the South Caucasus.
It was also underlined that the theme of the session is “People-to-People Diplomacy.”As
such, it is imperative that each individual presents themselves as a person and not just in
terms of their political party. In terms of the future, the emphasis should be placed on what
the delegates share with each other on an individual level not simply on a party level. In
line with this, Mr. Illia Glonti from the United National Movement of Georgia stated that as
young people are the future, building democracy and dialogue amongst themselves is
something that the participants could achieve without interference from ‘above.’ He
stressed that the delegates should discuss and think about activities that could take place
between Armenian, Azerbaijani and Georgian students, to think “beyond the world of the
politicians,” and make sure that current relations are stronger than those of older
generations.
A couple of key ideas that were put forth were the fact that one to two meetings a year
were not enough. As such, more integration between the youth should take place. Mr. Givi
Chikovani from the United National Movement of Georgia recommended a Youth Union of
the South Caucasus.
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Mr. Vladimer Gorozia from the Free Democrats of Georgia supported these sentiments and
called for more intellectual and educational programming with an aim to integrate, develop
and enhance integrity of the three countries.
Young politicians from the Armenian delegation voiced the importance of cooperation,
particularly between Azerbaijan and Armenia. One of the Armenian delegates emphasized
the importance of the Youth Forum as a means to develop amicable relations, opportunity
to get to know one-another in a positive environment and find points of cooperation. One
of the concerns raised by Armenian delegates was the attempt by participants to generalize
conflicts in Ukraine, Georgia, and Nagorno-Karabakh and using the forum as a ground to
observe them in a general context which was deemed as inappropriate.
It was recommended by Mr. Hayk Mamijanyan of the Republican Party of Armenia that the
focus of the forum should be on the value systems of the individuals present and that more
platforms to communicate face-to-face for Armenian, Azerbaijani and Georgian Youth
should be established so that youth can discuss their “transnational values.”
Azerbaijani
participants
expressed
concerns around Russian aggression and
interference in the region. Emphasis on
friendship and developing amicability
between the three South Caucasus
countries was expressed despite Russian
and Western vested interests in the
region. It was recommended to have
more youth forums that not only include
active youth in the political sphere, but
mainstream youth and community
members. This would ensure a bigger
and clearer picture of civil society. It was also advised that while people to people
cooperation might be failing in terms of resolving frozen conflicts, it could be applied in
other areas of mutual interest where positive outcomes could prevail.
One of the concerns that were raised was in reference to approaches of political parties
when attracting younger members. An Azeri delegate and representative of the Musavat
Party highlighted that when attracting young politicians the expectation should not be
solely of absorbing those with similar or identical views as the political party.
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Mr. Alphons Elbersen representing the Dutch Young Greens of the Netherlands expressed
heartfelt concern over the actions of past generations. Citing Europe and the European
Union he pointed out how even countries such as Germany and France with centuries long
animosity have been able to overcome their differences and “not hold each other
responsible for the crimes committed by their Fathers.” He underlined that while one can
label Russia as a regional “monster” the reality of the situation is that Russia cannot
geographically leave the region. As such it is important to strive for coexistence by finding
consensus amongst one another. One of the ways in which the South Caucasus can do this is
by striving for systems based on democracy and cooperation at the individual level.
The Discussion panel was followed by comments and observations by the key speakers and
moderators:
Mr. Horbach expressed his observation
that even young politicians can sound
and/or behave like older politicians at
times. He noted how the beginning of
the discussion focused primarily on
differences, but within the delegates
present there is a will to strive towards
unity and towards common interests. He
highlighted his surprise at not hearing
more on areas where cooperation could
take place, such as the area of trade and
media.
He addressed the delegates on where they could make strides in this regard, and offered
the use of international organizations as a way to share and/or develop common positions.
Believing that these are things the delegates should be focusing on, Mr. Horbach again
stressed how the cooperation of Europe started on basic common interests. He reminded
the delegates that as young politicians, focusing on the future and not on the past is a key
priority as well as building trust; citing South Africa once again as a model. He closed his
remarks by encouraging the working groups to identify concrete ideas and areas for
building cooperation.
Mr. Gerrits recalled the experiences of the first Forum where the first session was used for
“letting off steam” and highlighting differences. Nevertheless he emphasized that now the
delegates should look to the future, what they each have in common, and what they can
achieve together. He advised that the delegates should focus on developing a platform
where they can act together and develop initiatives, and work towards future ideas for
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developing this forum further. He underlined that now is the time to concentrate on “what
you do have in common, what you can develop in common”, and how to enhance dialogue
amongst the delegates present.
He further advised not to concentrate on things one cannot solve, rather it is more
important to concentrate on areas where young people can come into direct contact with
one another and can create solutions and forms of cooperation that are original and new.
He asked the delegates about what kind of world they would want to live in, and what they
would want the South Caucasus region to look like in 10 years-time.
Further he underscored that while the sovereignty of each country is its first priority, from
a foreign policy perspective, each country of the South Caucasus has the right to decide
whether they would like to work more closely with Russia or the EU. Nevertheless, each
country of the South Caucasus needs to concentrate on developing their own mandate of
independence and sovereignty. This includes making democratic decisions on what the
orientation of the country should be. Lastly, Mr. Gerrits suggested that while discussing
endeavours that can be accomplished, (such as debating the benefits of presidential versus
parliamentary systems), rather than taking one side or the other, delegates should try to
assess the pros/cons of each and determine which system would work better in a
particular context.
Mr. Tsutskiridze in his final remarks summarized the importance of trilateral cooperation
and consensus building. While acknowledging that there are many differences present at
the Youth Forum, he offered five key ideas for the delegates to focus on concerning the
outcomes of Session 1. These include: (1) How to develop more networks among young
people of the South Caucasus; (2) How to expand on the idea of creating joint-training
sessions amongst the delegates present; (3) The possibility and opportunity for joint media
projects; and finally, (4) Creation of more online communication platforms. In closing, Mr.
Tsutskiridze reiterated that the delegates have the firm support of NIMD to
develop/execute ideas that will bring about improvements in relations.
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Day I
Working Group Sessions
Working Group I: Political Systems in the South Caucasus
During the working group on Political Systems in the South Caucasus group participants
assessed the constitutional evolution of all respective countries of the South Caucasus.
Evolution of political systems has taken divergent paths in the region. While Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Georgia kicked off as presidential states in the 1990s, Georgia is now closer
to parliamentary system, Armenia is closer to semi-presidential and Azerbaijan remains
presidential.
Since 1990s, Georgia has been debating on the constitutional design of the country, mostly
centered on the arguments between presidential VS parliamentary. Constitutional changes
in 2010 introduced a mixed political system, although criticisms were high on too many
powers been given to the presidency. Currently, Georgia has a multiparty parliament and as
of the most recent constitutional changes president is no longer the head of government.
The model of bi-cameral national parliament remains an idea in Georgia and is preserved
as a proposition for the reunification of its territories.
Armenia after starting as a presidential state, then adopted French model and transformed
into semi-presidential system. Democratic elements are in place in Armenia however they
may not be synchronized due to the transitional state of the country. Desirably, Armenia
will crystallize into semi-presidential or semi-parliamentary system.
One speaker touched upon the differences between monarchy and democracy, followed up
by drawing comparison between presidential and parliamentary systems. Parliamentary
systems carry an inherent risk of government crisis while presidential systems may move
towards excessive control. The objective of either of the systems should be to foster
democracy, strengthen civil society and ensure friendly relations with the neighbors, it was
noted.
Introductory presentations were followed by open discussion. Most speakers indicated
their sympathy for the parliamentary system as opposed to presidential. As parliamentary
system has more capacity to overcome crisis than presidential. Changes to institutions
should be made in participatory, consensus-based way. All countries have to avoid high
dependence on individual leaders and achieve progress otherwise regional progress will be
hampered and that affects regional stability, it was emphasized.
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It was widely agreed that constitutions should be sustainable so that there is no need to
change them frequently. High degree of involvement in the governance on the part of small
parties is very important.
During the discussion it was suggested that the political system must achieve two core
parameters: separation of powers and effective governance. Variation between the systems
usually alters the balance between the two. Crucially, system change should not be allowed
to be used as a political instrument. Ultimately, democratic formula will feature political
system, political will and civil society in it.
Working Group II: Economic and Business Development in the South Caucasus
During the working group, the potential of economic and business development and
cooperation in the South Caucasus region was discussed.
The underlying understanding across the board was that the South Caucasus as a region
has huge untapped potential for economic and business development. By adopting new
strategies, this potential could actually start being realized, and leave everyone better off. If
there is political will and commitment, the South Caucasus countries can well become the
new Baltic States in terms of the level of economic development and cooperation.
In light of this, two sets of challenges were explored:
First, at domestic level, a lot of work has to be done to improve economic and business
environments in the three South Caucasus countries. These would be: embracing high
technologies, creating new employment opportunities, improving export potential,
combating monopolies, opting for more flexible tax systems and easing the tax burden for
especially Small and Medium Enterprises, creating healthier and more competitive
investment environments so as to attract FDI - important for the development of the South
Caucasus states.
Second, while trilateral cooperation examples are missing at the regional level, there are
successful economic cooperation projects at bilateral level - between Armenia and Georgia
on the one hand and Azerbaijan and Georgia on the other. More cooperation opportunities
should be identified, and more projects should be initiated.
The issue of energy security for the countries of the region also figured high at the
discussion. The South Caucasus states need not only to look for alternative sources of
conventional energy, but also develop their renewable energy potential, thereby ensuring a
longer-term, sustainable energy security and independence.
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Because the main hindrances en route to economic cooperation in the region remain the
conflicts, there were heated debates over whether economic cooperation could come first
before the conflicts are resolved. In this regard, the example of France and Germany was
brought up: while the two countries had fought many wars throughout history, ten years
after their latest conflict, they set up economic cooperation on coal and steel that then
became the European Union of today. Economy was the key in helping them overcome
their differences. Having this positive example in sight, it was mentioned that, indeed,
resolving conflicts in the South Caucasus could be much easier once the countries start
creating more things in common.
Stemming from this realization was the suggestion to think of ways to create business
cooperation platforms and involve those businessmen from the three countries who would
be interested to cooperate. More specific suggestions could then be thought over within the
platforms.
Working Group III: Minorities in the South Caucasus: The Issue of Tolerance
The participants of the working group on Minorities in the South Caucasus focused on two
core issues such as the Legal bases regulating the rights of ethnics, religious, sexual and
other minorities and the main challenges that the region is facing in this regard.
In their respective speeches political party representatives highlighted the multicultural
history of their countries. They stressed on the importance of legal defence mechanism of
ethnic minorities rights in the region. The forum participants admitted that there is no
systematic violation of the rights of ethnic minorities in their countries, however the states
must give immediate attention to any type of incidents that can arise. The group underlined
the need to respect different religious and cultural traditions of their societies and
emphasized tolerance of their countries towards different religious groups.
As for the rights of sexual minorities, the young politicians acknowledged the fact that
there are significant problems existing in all three countries. The main reason to this
problem was named the culturally conservative societies in the South Caucasus.
Another issue discussed by the delegation members was rights of people with disabilities.
Participants agreed that all three countries of the South Caucasus face serious problems in
this regard, such as wrong perception and attitude in the society, lack of infrastructure etc.
At the end, almost all members agreed that the state and civil societies must play crucial
role in raising awareness and educating society on tolerance towards different minorities.
Participants discussed the possibilities for a joint work to identify and address the
problems which minorities might be encountering in the three countries of the region
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Day II
Working Group Sessions
Working Group I: Foreign Policy Priorities of the South Caucasus States
In this group session, the foreign policy priorities of the South Caucasus states were
discussed. Conversations evolved around the different interests and priorities of the South
Caucasus countries, but also around external actors having impact on the regional
developments.
Azerbaijan is one country in the region that has tried to perform a delicate balancing act
between Russia and the West, by not getting too deep into any of the integration projects
on the ground. Even so, it was mentioned that European integration is a priority for
Azerbaijan.
Georgia’s priorities, for long now laying in the Euro-Atlantic integration course, have of late
been strengthened by the initialling of its Association Agreement with the EU at the 2013
Eastern Partnership Summit in Vilnius. At the same time, Georgia’s deep cooperation with
NATO with the aim of eventual membership well serve the country’s national interests and
security needs. Importantly, the Euro-Atlantic vector enjoys consensus among the
country’s main political parties.
Of late, Armenia opted for a Customs Union (CU) membership perspective. While there are
some economic challenges on the way of Armenia’s eventual CU membership, the political
deliberations of the move should not be underestimated, it was mentioned. Given the
geopolitical challenges Armenia faces today, the CU membership is based on realpolitik
calculations meant to serve the country’s interests, it was emphasized. At the same time
European integration remains Armenia’s priority for the longer-run. It is in Armenia’s
ultimate interests to find ways of accommodating the two vectors.
As the three countries have been pursuing different foreign policy lines, there were heated
debates over how to find common grounds for regional cooperation with the current state
of play in the region. Importantly, it was noted that blaming geopolitical interests of
external actors doesn’t relieve the South Caucasus states of the responsibility to find
solutions to the existing differences. Further initiatives within the Forum of Young
Politicians of the South Caucasus could serve as a platform for more targeted discussions
on how exactly young politicians could cooperate on issues of foreign policy.
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Working Group II: State of Human Rights in the South Caucasus
From the discussions in the group on human rights it was clear that in the recent past and
currently all three countries faced challenges in terms of both political and civic rights. It
was emphasized that political parties and civic groups should work hard to defend media
freedoms, freedom of expression and the full range of human rights. The role of young
people in this process is very clear and important.
All three country speakers briefly outlined the state of human rights it their countries, by
highlighting main achievements and challenges in this regard.
Participants underscored the undeniable progress that Georgia has made in terms of
ensuring freedom of expression, freedom of choice, equality before the law and defending
human rights in the penitentiary system since 2012 Parliamentary Elections.
Some speakers noted, that Armenia experiences downturn in regard to general human
rights and political freedoms, caused by the widespread corruption at the elections.
Some participants assessed that Azerbaijan faces massive human rights violations on a
consistent basis. Numerous political prisoners exist and political activists and NGO leaders
face pressure on a daily basis. Also political party crackdowns and property rights
violations are an unfortunate norm in Azerbaijan, it was emphasized.
Young politicians unanimously agreed that civil society has to play a bigger role in
protecting human rights. Citing the prison abuse scandal in Georgia, the crucial role of the
society in protecting human rights, influencing people’s attitudes and in the end changing
the power was underscored.
Members of the working group expressed their interest in that the forum will continue to
work in different formats to work out more specific issues and cooperation mechanisms to
address human rights challenges in the region. It was also indicated that the forum has
made important progress in building foundations for exchange and political dialogue
between the three states of the South Caucasus.
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Working Group III: Education and Innovation
Participants of the working group highlighted developments in the education systems of
their respective countries. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, all three states of the
South Caucasus started to reform their education systems based on the Western style.
Participants emphasized necessity to reform the education system in all three countries
and reflected upon the existing problems, such as lack of specialized and qualified teachers,
weak social defence system of employers in education sector, low salaries, lack of
textbooks in native language etc. Due to low quality of education, young people tend to
study abroad and prefer foreign universities rather than local ones, it was noted.
Delegation members shared information on different study programs, scholarships, tuition
fees and other study opportunities that their countries offer.
Young politicians discussed possible areas of cooperation and developed
recommendations:
 To create an e-mail network for sharing information on different programs, training etc.
 To create short and long-term educational programs in which each respective country
member can participate. (Programs can be adapted to Azerbaijan and Armenia on the
initial stage).
Day II
Closing Session
The Role of Youth in Politics
At the Closing Session Mr. Jan Marinus Wiersma, the NIMD Senior Political Advisor, Senior
Visiting Fellow at Clingendael Institute and former member of the European Parliament,
addressed the Forum participants. He emphasized the important role of young people in
political life of their countries and fundamental position in developing the multiparty
democracy and enhancing functioning of the parties.
Further on, he assessed the positive changes that young people can bring to the political
parties, by being more flexible and open, able to develop networks more easily and create
links between the party and the civil society. Citing revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia, Mr.
Wiersma underlined the crucial role of social media in modern life and its enormous
potential to organize online debates, bringing people together and influencing the change
directly.
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Mr. Wiersma indicated three basic functions of party politics, were young people play the
significant role: Importance of selection requirements, as recruiting young members and
educating them is fundamental for a party to develop into a democratic institution
“Investing in young people is investing in quality of politics and future leaders” he stated.
Another important factor was involvement of youth in developing and modernizing party
programs and also participation of youth in organization of the electoral campaigns. “Being
actively engaged in politics is not only responsibility of young people, but also responsibility of
political system…Political parties will die, when there are no young people engaging” he
concluded.
In his speech, Armenian speaker, Hayk Mamijanyan from the Republican Party of Armenia
touched upon the level of involvement of youth in party politics in his country, by being
represented in administrative positions on a central and regional level. “The National
Assembly of Armenia is represented by 11 young members, including the Vice-Speaker of the
Parliament, youth is significantly active on a local government level, including the Mayor of
Yerevan” it was stated.
He also reflected upon the active involvement of the youth wing of the Republican Party in
the party politics, such as substantial contribution to the Presidential Election Campaign in
2008.
The Armenian speaker went on to highlight general procedures and normative rules
established in Armenia in regard to youth participation in politics, where implementation
of the youth policy is strictly institutionalized. The youth policy is managed by the Ministry
of Sports and Youth; National Council on Youth Policy, while the youth parliament is
operated under the auspices of the National Assembly of Armenia. The beneficiaries of the
youth program implemented under the auspices of the President of Armenia includes
mortgage subsidization to young families, simplified procedures for provision of bank
loans, co-funding of education etc.
In the conclusion representative of the
Republican Party of Armenia, stressed
significant role and influence of the youth
organizations on policy decision making in his
country, such as peaceful environmental
movements and protests against the
mandatory pension reform which was
terminated because of the activism of youth
organizations.
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Mr. Samir Asadli, from the Civil Solidarity Party of Azerbaijan commenced his speech with a
historical overview of the South Caucasus countries, for the last two decades. After the
collapse of the Soviet Union, the region has become a place of regional clashes and subject
of interest of superpowers, triggered by strategic location, economic and political
importance of the region.
The Azerbaijani speaker pointed out that the
South Caucasus has always been a region
representing various interests and values,
for bringing these values to a common
security, number of initiatives were
developed, nevertheless none of them were
successful and the problems remain in the
region. “In order to meet the security needs of
the region, the endeavours are continued in
Azerbaijan and Georgia in terms of political
economic relation. While Armenia is building
its relations with Russia, Georgia is expanding its relations with the EU and the NATO, while
Azerbaijan is practicing policy of balance” he noted.
In terms of cooperation and partnership and the actual representation of the youth in the
government, three main issues were identified: to build reliable, secure systems and
develop cooperation in the region; appreciate the value of partnership and cooperation for
common benefits and to align the interest in terms of regional and local benefits.
In the conclusion, Mr. Asadli encouraged his colleges from Armenia and Georgia to sign the
petition to release his Azerbaijani friends, imprisoned for being politically active in the
country.
The Georgian speaker, Ms. Ketevan Mamulashvili
from the Conservative Party of Georgia touched
upon the main challenges that Georgian political
parties face today in regard to the youth politics.
As the main problem she named the lack of intra
party democracy and mechanisms encouraging
active involvement of youth in the political life of
Georgia. She stressed upon the import role of
youth in the decision making of the party and
active involvement in developing the concept and
the program of the party.
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
When it comes to the intraparty democracy, one can not mention the importance of the
youth organizations. Youth wings should be involved not only in cultural and educational
issues, their involvement in decision making within political party should also be active,
she noted.
Ms. Mamulashvili raised number of concrete initiatives for bringing together political
forces and developing platform for multiparty dialogue, such as: Organizing discussions
and debates between the young politicians of the South Caucasus as well as internet
conferences between different political parties; Publishing annual report on development
of youth politics in each of the South Caucasus state; Developing the document, with
concrete mechanisms to involve young politicians in the decision making and work of the
political party.
Discussion Panel:
Presentations were followed by inclusive discussions between the forum participants.
Young politicians from Georgia, representing the United National Movement (UNM) once
again raised their initiatives to create business cooperation platform of the South Caucasus
and encouraged others to participate in the upcoming project.
Mr. Givi Chikovani, from the UNM opened the discussion panel by sharing his experience as
a youth wing member on his active involvement in decision making of the Party and asked
the Forum participants on their experience in this regard.
Participants from Azerbaijan emphasized active involvement of youth in political life of
Azerbaijan, by being engaged in governing bodies, supreme council and regional branches
of the parties, nevertheless they acknowledged the high competition between the
generations within the parties.
Armenian delegation members also underlined active participation of youth in political life
of Armenia and absence of competition of generations within the parties. Opposition party
members stressed the leading role of youth wings of the ruling party in governmental
structures, but also noted the importance of opposition parties in policy developments “the
more active opposition is, the more constructive is the work of the ruling party” they noted.
It was also suggested to create a website, in which participants could present information
on economic, cultural and political developments in their countries and also create a
memorandum of understanding for cooperation – “Union of Youth of the South Caucasus”,
which could be signed by all participants later.
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Mr. Valdimer Gorozia, representing the Free Democrats Party of Georgia, by assessing
historical facts of Georgia, underlined the crucial role of young people in political decisions
of the country, such as events on 9th of April, 1989 during Georgia’s struggle to gain its
independence. He called all the Forum participants to become the example for the rest of
the society on how young people can protect national values.
Mr. Hayk Mamijanyan, from Armenian delegation once again stressed the active
participation of youth in policy implementation processes of Armenia and suggested
specific goals to pursue this type of policy: Establishment of the specific resolution on
cooperation on different ongoing problems common for all three countries of the region. As
the key element for this cooperation Mr. Mamijanyan named relations on an individual
level, “what will lead to establishing interparty and maybe one day interstate fundaments of
cooperation”.
Ms. Ketevan Mamulashvili, from Conservative Party of Georgia, raised her initiative to
create a recommendation document for the political parties, with concrete mechanisms
within the party, on how to develop intra party democracy, such as party regulations,
development stages of the party, career growth steps etc.
All three delegation members agreed on the importance of protecting the rights of political
prisoners and number of participants expressed their solidarity to Azerbaijani colleges and
agreed to sign the petition to help young political prisoners.
Discussions were followed by concluding
remarks by Mr. Jan Marinus Wiersma where
he assessed the overall achievements of the
Forum and highlighted two main points from
the debates.
First, the intraparty democracy and
importance of transparency in the party
where young people despite their nationality
or gender are actively involved in party
processes and able to participate in decision
making.
Second, Young people should be engaged in Youth Policy, focusing on creating jobs,
reducing unemployment in the youth, but also be actively involved in Youth Politics, aiming
at other different aspects of party policy.
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
The discussion panel was concluded by short summaries by the Forum reporters,(Mr. Irakli
Kobalia, Ms. Anahit Shirinyan and Mr. Emin Aslanov) covering the Working Group Sessions.
In his final speech Mr. Levan Tsutskiridze, NIMD Representative in the South Caucasus,
expressed his special gratitude to the Parliament of Georgia and the Chairmen of the
Parliament for hosting the NIMD, also to the invited guests, participants and organizers of
the Forum. He positively evaluated productive discussions on a range of issues, active
participation in the debates and concrete initiatives raised by the participants on
collaboration in the youth policy, developing business cooperation in the region, creating
online platform for communication etc.
Mr. Tsutskiridze briefly outlined the future activities and initiatives of the NIMD planned
for the upcoming 2015 Youth Forum, such as organizing number of thematic trainings and
preparatory meetings, aimed at confidence building and deepening cooperation between
the forum participants and arranging the presentations of the Forum in Brussels for
interested members of the European Parliament.
By highlighting his observations from the Forum discussions, NIMD representative called
the Forum participants to channel this frustration into a positive realm. “As the Forum is a
journey, problems will not be solved easily, cooperation is hard and a long process, but
cooperation will make the journey effective” he emphasized. He called the forum
participants to cooperate while there are clear opportunities and remain bold when facing
challenges.
Media Coverage
The Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus was widely covered by different TV
Channels and internet media. Information on the event was also published on the NIMD
South Caucasus website and Facebook page.
Appendix A: The list of the media outlets covering the Event
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The Second Forum of Young Politicians of the South Caucasus - Forum Report; April 26-27, 2014
Appendix A: List of Media Outlets Covering the Second Forum of Young Politicians of
the South Caucasus:
1. Parliament of Georgia
http://www.parliament.ge/en/media/axali-ambebi/parlamenti-samxret-kavkasiisaxalgazrda-politikosta-forums-maspindzlobs.page
2. Official Website of the New Rights Party
http://www.parliament.ge/en/media/axali-ambebi/parlamenti-samxret-kavkasiisaxalgazrda-politikosta-forums-maspindzlobs.page
3. The newspaper “Hayern Aysor” (Armenia)
http://en.hayernaysor.am/%D5%B0%D5%A1%D6%80%D5%A1%D5%BE%D5%A1
%D5%B5%D5%AB%D5%B6%D5%AF%D5%B8%D5%BE%D5%AF%D5%A1%D5%BD%D5%AB%D5%A5%D6%80%D5%AB%D5%BF%D5%A1%D5%BD%D5%A1%D6%80%D5%A
4-%D6%84%D5%A1%D5%B2%D5%A1%D6%84%D5%A1%D5%AF/
4. NIMD Website
http://nimd.ge/index.php?page=11&news_id=135&lang=eng
5. Calendar.ge
http://calendar.ge/ge/parlamenti/2014/apr/26/samkhret-kavkasiis-politikostaforumi/
6. Info 9
https://www.facebook.com/i9info/posts/470738016350842
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