LI President addresses ELDR Congress in Palermo - Hoofdinhoud
LI President Hans van Baalen MEP, addresses the Congress of the European Liberal Democrats in Palermo:
People say there is a divide between the south and the north. In LI we have proven a long time ago that there is no such divide. It is in Italy that we should remember our long term President Giovanni Malagodi and the involvement of all the Italian liberals.
It is not true that liberalism in ...a northern European concept. When implemented in the south it gives results. Look at Catalonia, for example.
We must not allow the emergence of new 'Iron Curtain' in Europe. Liberals won their freedom all over Eastern Europe. They deserve our support and they belong to Europe.
The recipe for the solution of the European crisis is not printing money. No! It is about reform, reform and reform.
As President of Liberal International I'm proud that liberalism is growing in the world. Some say that 'the future belongs to Asia'. And exactly there the liberals are leading the way: in the Philippines where the last LI Congress was, in Indonesia, in Taiwan, in Japan.
We have to continue working together to help our friends who are still struggling for democracy throughout the Arab world; to those who were and still are on Tahrir Square in Cairo.
The recipe for addressing problems, wherever we are in the world, is more liberal policies and stronger liberal parties and ELDR, ALDE and Liberal International will continue to work together to this end.