Syria in Transition Jana Hybášková MEP (EPP-ED, (Czech Republic) is co-organising a conference 'Syria in Transition' in the European Parliament. The conference will consider the current situation in Syria, the National Council of the Damascus Declaration and the Implications for EU Policy - whether to engage or confront Syria. The conference will take place in room A5E2 of the ASP building on 13 May at 10.00-16.30 hours. A Press conference will take place at 12.30 in the Press Room of the European Parliament. Invitation

Chad Film Screening Colm Burke MEP (EPP-ED, Ireland) will present a report and a film on his recent visit to Chad (24-30 March) and the EUFOR forces based there, in the European Parliament on Wednesday 7 May 2008 at 19.00 hrs. The presentation will take place in room PHS 7C050 of the European Parliament. Poster Chad Mission Analysis

Press Release:

06/05/2008

MEP Burke to show film of Chad visit. Colm Burke MEP

Inaugural Regional ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly A European Parliament delegation is going to Windhoek, Namibia, to participate in the Windhoek regional ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly (28-30 April) and meet their counterparts in the SADC (Southern Africa) region. Michael Gahler MEP, Vice-Chairman of the Assembly, and four other members of the EPP-ED Group will subsequently hold the Group's own Windhoek Dialogue on 1-4 May. The Dialogue is the EPP-ED Group's African policy initiative, launched in March 1996. The idea behind it is to develop a network for co-operation and exchange ideas and experiences on democratic development and co-operation, not only between the EPP-ED Group and its African partners, but also among the African political parties themselves.

Carlos Coelho explains the Lisbon Treaty Carlos Coelho MEP, Head of the EPP-ED Group's Portuguese delegation in the European Parliament, has launched a question and answer section on his website, outlining the key points of the Lisbon Treaty, in response to the most-frequently asked queries by citizens on the subject.

Biological diversity Miroslav Ouzký MEP (Czech Republic), Chairman of the Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, leads the debate with the Council and the Commission on Wednesday, 23rd April following the committee's question regarding the Commission and Council strategy for the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity. The committee, in a resolution on the same subject, has expressed deep concern at the continued loss of biodiversity and at the European Union’s ever increasing ecological footprint, and is calling on the Commission and the Member States to agree to and facilitate concrete measures to protext biodiversity. Convention on biological diversity website

European Parliament election observation in Nepal Filip Kaczmarek MEP (Poland) and Csaba Őry (Hungary) will participate in Parliament's delegation travelling to Nepal to observe the elections for a constituent assembly on 10 April. They are the first elections to be held in the country for 9 years. The assembly is to draft a new constitution for the country, and formally confirm it as a republic after centuries of monarchy.

Conference on Torture in the context of the 'War on terror' Carlos Coelho MEP (Portugal) will host a conference organised by the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims and the Fédération Internationale des Ligues des Droits de l'Homme on Friday 4 April in the European Parliament in Brussels. The conference will discuss the use of torture in the context of the war on terrorism. The debate will centre on the changing nature of torture in democratic societies and the challenges facing journalists reporting on torture and other human rights violations in this difficult and often dangerous setting: What are the key problems, and what can be done to address them? The event is part of the project Preventing Torture within the Fight against Terrorism, which aims to promote respect for the absolute prohibition against torture and ill-treatment. Programme

Press Release:

01/04/2008

Conference on Torture in the context of the 'War on terror'. Carlos Coelho MEP

Breast cancer and chemicals Avril Doyle MEP (Ireland) hosts a presentation on breast cancer: 'Preventing the preventable' on Wednesday 2 April in the European Parliament in Brussels. Prof Andreas Kortenkamp, author of a new report on 'Breast cancer and exposure to hormonally active chemicals: An appraisal of the scientific evidence', presents new findings showing links between breast cancer and exposure to certain chemicals. The discussion focusses on how EU legislation, such as REACH, can promote effective prevention measures for breast cancer linked to chemical exposure and the role MEPs can play in ensuring policy keeps up to speed with the latest scientific findings.

Press Release:

02/04/2008

Reduce chemical exposure to reduce breast cancer. Avril Doyle MEP

Iran's Nuclear File Jana Hybáškova MEP (EPP-ED, Czech Republic) is organising together with the Transatlantic Institute a briefing entitled "Iran´s Nuclear File: What can the EU do?" on Wednesday 5 March from 3.15pm to 5.00pm. The briefing will be off the record. It will be given by Dr. Emanuele Ottolenghi, Director of the Transatlantic Institute. It will take place in the room ASP 5E3 of the European Parliament in Brussels.

Protection of vulnerable ecosystems in high seas Duarte Freitas MEP (EPP-ED, Portugal), Member of the Fisheries Committee, will participate in a hearing attended by expert Ricardo Serrão Santos, Director of the Oceanography and Fisheries Department, University of Azores, Portugal, who will speak on vulnerable ecosystems in high seas. The hearing will take place during the Fisheries Committee meeting on Thursday 28th February, 9.00am-12.30pm, in room ASP A1 E2 of the European Parliament in Brussels. For further information, please click here: www.duarte-freitas.org.

		Road Transport and Freight Logistics on the Roads of Europe The SME Union of the EPP and other organisations prepare a working breakfast on Road Transport and Freight Logistics on the Roads of Europe. Markus Ferber MEP (EPP-ED, Germany) will moderate the discussion.

The meeting will take place in the European Parliament Member´s Saloon on Wednesday 27 February from 8.00-9.30am.

The conclusions will be made by Corien Woortmann-Kool MEP (EPP-ED, The Netherlands). Among other speakers will be Kerstin Jorna, EU Commission, Deputy Head of Cabinet of Commission Vice-President and EU Transport Commissioner Jacques Barrot, Anne Mette Koch Bangsgaard, Senior Consultant, Confederation of Danish Commercial Transportation and Service Industries (HTS) and Jaana Heikkinen, Counselor of Transports of the Permanent Representation of Finland.

Programme

Observation mission delegation to Pakistan Michael Gahler MEP (EPP-ED, Germany), Ivo Belet MEP (EPP-ED, Belgium), and Nickolay Mladenov (EPP-ED, Bulgaria) are participating in the European Parliament's electoral observation mission to Pakistan to monitor the parliamentary elections on 18 February.

Observation mission delegation to Armenia Gabriele Stauner MEP (EPP-ED, Germany) will participate in a European Parliament election observation mission to monitor the Presidential elections on 19 February in Armenia. The delegation is to hold a press conference on 20 February in Yerevan to announce its initial evaluation of the elections.

67th Meeting of the Intergroup on Tibet Thomas Mann MEP (EPP-ED, Germany), President of the European Parliament´s Intergroup for Tibet invites on meeting in Strasbourg on 20 February.

The meeting will be attended also by Kate Saunders, Communications Director of the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT). The meeting will be focused on how China's economic policies and the railroad are transforming Tibet and the Olympic Games in Beijing 2008.

Situation in Kosovo Ingo Friedrich MEP (EPP-ED, Germany), President of the Paneuropean Working Group of the EPP-ED invites on a meeting addressed by HE Bishop Dodë Gjergji, Bishop in Kosovo, who will speak on the current situation Kosovo from the viewpoint of the Catholic Church.

The meeting will take place in room LOW N3.3 of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, on Tuesday, 19th of February 2008 at 3.00pm.

Europe@Home The EPP Group in the Committee of Regions of the European Union has just launched a photography competition called Europe@Home in order to encourage young Europeans to have a closer look to Europe's achievements and to encourage young people to consider the impact of Europe on their region.

Information and Rules of the competition

	“What Competition Has Done for Europe” Gunnar Hökmark MEP (Sweden) will introduce a presentation of a policy paper on the competition policies in the European Union: “What Competition Has Done for Europe” by its author, Johnny Munkhammar in Brussels on 31 January.

The conference is organised by the European Enterprise Institute. The event takes place in the European Parliament, Salon des Membres, from 08.00 to 09.00.

Meeting programme

Naming of new Parliament wing in memory of József Antall Hungarian MEPs József Szájer, László Surján and Péter Olajos are hosting a commemorative meeting on Tuesday 22 January at 14.00 hrs, marking the occasion of naming a new Parliament wing after the late Hungarian Prime Minister, József Antall.

Antall was an emblematic figure of the reunification of Europe and the struggle for democracy and human rights. He became the first democratically-elected Prime Minister in the former Soviet Bloc after winning the elections in early 1990. He was a dedicated European under whose premiership Hungary made the first, decisive steps towards integration of the European Union and of NATO. It was Prime Minister Antall who first called for the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact in 1990, and then made several further steps to bring the Soviet-dominated military organisation to an end the following year.

The meeting will take place in room D4 - 4M 004 of the new wing of the European Parliament.

	SME Union - Towards Indirect Taxation to Boost EU Entrepreneurship Paul Rübig MEP (EPP-ED, Austria), will moderate the SME Working Breakfast in Brussels on 22 January.

The event will take place at 08.00 hrs in the Members' Salon.

The keynote speech will be given by Götz M. Werner, Professor at the Institute for Entrepreneurship at the University of Karlsruhe. The conclusions of the meeting will be presented by Christian Weinberger, Adviser for the Entrepreneurship and SME Policy, DG Enterprise and Industry, European Commission.

Programme

	Presentation of the ChooseESC! campaign On Tuesday, 15th January in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, the ChooseESC! campaign will be presented. The campaign seeks to promote the life-saving technology Electronic Stability Control (ESC).

International accident studies demonstrate that at least 40% of all fatal traffic accidents are caused by skidding. Around 80% of all skidding accidents could be prevented with ESC. Last year, a socio-economic study by the University of Cologne showed that 4,000 traffic deaths and 100,000 injuries could be prevented each year in Europe alone if ESC were installed in all vehicles.

The event will take place at 1pm in room C4.1 and will be hosted by Malcolm Harbour MEP.

An ESC simulator will be available the whole day for those who want to get more familiar with the benefits of ESC. The simulator will be situated in the Gallery Sud (1st floor LOW) of the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

Campaign website

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