The European Greens, a political group of which Livre is a member, are coming together this weekend at the Lisbon International Fair (FIL) to hold their congress. Until Sunday, leaders in this political area will discuss solutions to problems such as “housing, war and peace” and to “denounce on a European scale the attack being carried out on workers in Portugal”. The goal? Make “people feel like progressives can win again”says Rui Tavares, spokesman for Livre.
To DN, the deputy and party leader explains that, more than national, the issues already mentioned are, above all, European, regardless of geography. “We all want there to be European Union-wide solutions to the problems that affect all Member States”, guarantees Rui Tavares.
With this meeting taking place for the first time in Portugal, Livre’s intention is also to “learn from the Greens’ experiences of governance and political representation throughout Europe”. All because, says Rui Tavares, “a left of solutions is needed, which is not merely of protest but of proposals and which is even of power, when the Portuguese decide to start a new political cycle“.
As examples to follow, the Livre spokesperson sees the cities of Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam and Copenhagen. In the latter case, the Greens became the second political force after the left-wing alliance that won the elections. “The action of European Greens in the local context is very important. There is no city they have visited where there are no good examples of urban planning, housing policies, well-functioning local institutions, daycare centers, libraries, cycle paths”, considers Rui Tavares, adding that Livre’s local elected representatives will participate in a meeting with foreign counterparts.
The candidacy of Livre (which, along with the Ecologist Party Os Verdes, is a full member of this political group) to host the congress is due to the party’s desire to bring “more south and more left” to the European Greens.
From this perspective, the Ministers of Labor and Culture of Spain (Yolanda Díaz and Ernest Urtasun, from the Sumar platform) will be present at the meeting. And then, Rui Tavares understands, “Livre played a decisive role in mobilizing Spanish neighbors to get closer to the European Greens” (the Sumar coalition includes some parties belonging to the Left group in the European Parliament, where BE and PCP are included). “I hope this can result in a future, closer collaboration, giving a signal that it is necessary to add forces, that we can precisely join together to change”, says the Livre spokesperson.
Of the entire meeting, Saturday is the only day open to the public, starting with a press conference at 8:45 am, where, in addition to Rui Tavares, Vula Tsetsi (Greece) and Ciarán Cuffe (Ireland), all co-presidents of the European Greens, will be present. The day ends with a political session in the evening, at Casa do Alentejo, where Livre’s co-spokesperson, Isabel Mendes Lopes, will be alongside Yolanda Díaz and the Deputy Prime Minister of Slovenia, Luka Mesec.liv