Challenges of European Democracy Promotion in Armenia and Georgia: Stability or Permanent Crisis?
03. November 2022 | 09:30 - 18:00 Uhr | Universitätsclub Konviktstraße 9, 53113 Bonn
The development of participatory democracy as well as strengthening the role of civil society actors in political decision-making processes are important objectives of the European democracy promotion strategy in the eastern neighbourhood. However, European political dialogue with post-Soviet countries has not been easy. European engagement has been made difficult by Russian conduct, as Moscow perceives the EU’s policies in its near abroad as a threat to its sphere of influence. The current peak of this ideological collision is the war in Ukraine with which Russia intends to block democratic movements in the neighbourhood. Despite of Russia’s aggressive policy and growing security threats some eastern partner countries remain true to the western liberal policy course.
Armenia and Georgia belong to these countries, where the emergence of pluralistic forces and the consolidation of active civil society became possible in recent years. However, there are still various institutional and organizational barriers that do not allow different civil society actors in Armenia and Georgia to become key factors in the promotion of democracy.
The aim of the workshop is to promote an exchange of views and experiences between civil society stakeholders from Armenia and Georgia as well as some experts from Poland and Germany. In the light of defective constitutional practice and restricted inclusion of the civil society in political processes in both countries, we intend to create a space for a dialogue between scientists, NGO representatives and the media in order to discuss current challenges of demoratic transformation in both countries and to find new mechanisms for better and succesfull cooperation with the EU.
If you are interested in participating in the international workshop, please send a short email to sekretariat.hilz@uni-bonn.de by 26 October.
Ablauf
Session I: Current Challenges of European Democracy Promotion in Armenia and Georgia (09:30 - 11:00 Uhr)
Discussion:
Dr. hab. Rafal Ulatowski
University Warsaw
Dr. Tevan Poghosyan
Executive Director of International Center for Human Development, Former Member of the Parliament of the Republic of Armenia
Prof. Dr. Kornely Kakachia
Director of Georgian Institute of Politics
Chair:
Prof. Dr. Wolfram Hilz – University of Bonn
Session II : Political Transition and the Dilemma of Civil Society (11:15 - 12.30 Uhr)
Discussion:
Dr. Galina Selivanova
FIW, University of Bonn
Gayane Abrahamyan
President of For Equal Rights NGO, former deputy of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia
Prof. Dr. Archil Abashidze
Ilia State University
Chair:
Christopher Wingens, M.A.
German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS)
Session III : The Deliberative Potential of Political Discussion. The Role of Media (14:00 - 15:15 Uhr)
Discussion:
Dr. Alicje Waszkiewicz-Raviv
Faculty of Journalism, Information and Book Studies University of Warsaw, Department of social communiation and PR
Sara Khojoyan
Journalist, Bloomberg Armenien, Factor TV
Nino Gelashvili
Senior Editor of Tbilisi Bureau, RFE/RL Georgian Service
Chair:
Jacqueline Götze, M.A.
German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS)
Session IV : The Way of Armenian and Georgian Democracy in the Context of the Regional Conflicts (15:45 - 17:00 Uhr)
Discussion:
Dr. Shushanik Minasyan
University of Bonn
Tamar Gvaramadze
First Deputy Public Defender of Georgia
Arsen Kharatyan
Former advisor to Prime Minister Pashinyan on Foreign Affairs, Voice of America's Armenian service in Washington DC
Chair:
Prof. Dr. Andreas Heinemann-Grüder
BICC/University of Bonn
Concluding Discussion: The Future of Democratic Transition in Armenia and Georgia in the Regional Context (Black Sea Region) (17:00 - 18:00 Uhr)
Discussion:
Dr. Hans-Joachim Spanger
Peace Research Institute Frankfurt
Prof. Davit Hovhannisyan
Executive Director of the Center for Culture and Civilization Studies Foundation Professor, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador
Prof. Dr. Ghia Nodia
Ilia State University, Former Minister of Education und Science of Georgia
Chair:
Dr. Shushanik Minasyan
University of Bonn
Weitere Informationen
Die Veranstaltung wird vom Deutschen Akademischen Austauschdienst (DAAD) im Auftrag des Auswärtigen Amtes, Berlin, gefördert.
Bitte senden Sie bei Interesse an einer Teilnahme bis zum 26. Oktober eine Mail an sekretariat.hilz@uni-bonn.de