Brussels declaration of the European Water Movement
Brussels, 23 March 2015.
Water organisations and movements from Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece, Germany, Ireland, France and several European organisations gathered in Brussels to reclaim the recognition of the Human Rights to Water in Europe. We call on all other water organisations in Europe to join this solidarity statement with the Korean civil society that will organise the Alternative Water Forum in April.
The European water movement continues its struggle to get Water and sanitation as a Human Right in Europe. The almost 2 millions signatures of the first European Citizens Initiative show how far the European water movement has grown in strength and size. After the Italian referendum, the withdrawal of water in the list of issues to be privatised in Greece and the mass movement against water privatization in Ireland in these days we are looking forward further reinforcing this network of water movements around Europe.
The European Water Movement is part of a bigger worldwide struggle against commodification and privatisation of water promoted by governments, some local authorities and multinationals.
Since 2003, in Japan, voices against water policies and social models promoted by the World Water Forum, have been raised. Alternative water forums have been organised since then in Mexico in 2006, in Istanbul in 2009 and Marseille 2012. Water movements from all over the world demonstrated that alternatives exist and can be implemented.
For one week, from April 12, 2015 the 7th Water Forum will take place in Daegu in Korea. They will present again their idea of water, a model that does not protect the human right to water, that is anything but participatory and consider citizens as users and not actors.
The European Water movement welcomes the decision to organise an Alternative Water Forum to the World Water Forum in line with the efforts that have been done since 2003. We want to express our solidarity and support to the fellow activists and trade unions in Korea who give voice to social movements, citizens, grassroots and labour organisations who want water to be recognised as a common good and access to water as a human right, who know that water supply must publicly owned and management of the integrated water cycle should be public, democratic and participatory at a community level, and fight against commodification and privatisation of such a fundamental resources for the life of people and the planet.
European water movement