A EUROPEAN AND INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL IN NANTES, FRANCE : 26TH-29TH OF MARCH, 2009.

05/02/2009: On Sky News : Johnson's dad, the old block of whom Boris is a chip off, believes that Boris's success will be down to a classical upbringing. "If you can really master ancient Greek, you can do anything! Pericles' view of Athenian democracy is a very good model if you're going to be mayor of London".

Associated Press : "Johnson is focusing his campaign on London's outer boroughs [...] Mindful perhaps that London conservatives are stereotyped as rich white English males, he has spoken mangled ancient Greek to Greek voters (he learned it in school).»

Every year, other countries participate with representative groups, authors, films, professors and teachers. The following year, we bring events to their country. In some cases, we can give distance to the passions of a modern event. For example, it is easier to speak of Persia (Iran) from the perspective of Thucydides and Aeschylus. Egypt could be better understood by reading Herodotus. Cicero helps with concepts of the law. All the modern issues: human rights, women’s liberation, technology, advertising, ecology and even citizenship have their roots in classical times as well.

Festum Europaeum Latinum et Graecum quartum tractabit argumentum c.t."Barbari, Alteri, Limes". Patroni hujus festi erunt duo administri galli, Domina Valérie Pécresse ab Institutione Superiore et Dominus Xavier Darcos ab Institutione Nationali, et patrona perennis festi erit Domina Jacqueline de Romilly, Academiae Gallorum. Constabit e tribus diebus et duobus vesperibus congressuum et disceptationum minorum. Allicient quoque cantica linguâ latinâ, excerpta e comoediis antiquis hodiernisque, expositiones de Carthagine, conventûs de Pace Romana, 'Babylonia et Graecia', 'Hierosolyma, Athenae et Roma', itinera humanistarum, concentûs de Pythagoro, afflatûs antiqui super opera Debussy.
Fient apparatûs vestituum antiquorum, cena graeca, et legentur opera latina scripta a Joachim du Bellay, Karl Marx et Arthur Rimbaud.
Mense Marte anni 2005-i aperto, huic evento prodest favor non solum virorum feminarumque politicorum (François Fillon, qui illo tempore Administer ab Institutione Nationali primus eo favit, quem secutus est R. Donnedieu de Vabres, Administer a Cultu Civili); litteratorum (Jacques Lacarrière, qui eum inauguravit, Karl-Heinz de Rothenburg et Olivier Germain-Thomas, qui quoque adfuerunt, et Vassilis Alexakis; sed etiam diurnariorum, quorum P.P.D.A., hospes et sidus televisificum, qui consentit edicere titulo magnis litteris scripto Acta Diurna anni 429-i a.Chr.n. Athenis; necnon sodales Academiae Scientiarum (sicut ei, de quibus tractavit emissio «Rayon Gamma Facteur Epsilon» in Canal Académie [Catena televisifica Academiae]; et scholae, quarum specializatio 'Periegesis et Patrimonium', ubi horno 'Point Métier' [Angulus ad vitae cursum eligendum] ad juniores dicatus inaugurabitur.
In hoc festo aliquantum insolito ordinabitur certamen europaeum ludorum et inventorum pertinentium ad Antiquitatem, ut oblectamentis, musicâ, artibus elegantioribus, colloquiis de aspectibus historicis, et illo Angulo ad vitae cursum eligendum, emolumenta eruditionis conditae in memoria communi et patrimonio universali humanitatum (bene vocatarum) probet. Hoc patrimonium semper vivet pro eis, qui subsidiis latine in Interret pansis et Graeciae linguae mythisque, annorum plus quam duo millia et multas vicissitudines superantibus, student. Nam, nisi homo suum proprium cultum civilem et ejus virtutes noscit, quo modo ingenia alienigena explorare et ad ea se accommodare potest?
Ecce tres dies festivi et jucundi. (translated by Brennus Legranus)

http://www.festival-latin-grec.eu/en

26 SEPTEMBER - EUROPEAN DAY OF LANGUAGES - PRESERVATION OF MOTHER TONGUE FOR EU WORKERS

26/09/2007: "The European Union respects and promotes linguistic diversity. By overcoming economic and technical difficulties, the EU has put into practice the use of 23 official European languages in almost all Community documents", said Marie Panayotopoulos-Cassiotou MEP.

EU citizens should have the same respect of their language whilst they are established in another European country.

The Community financial mechanisms, the new programmes for lifelong learning (2007-2013) and support of educational infrastructure as well as the future prospects which were highlighted during the European Year of Workers' Mobility and Equal Opportunities, provide many opportunities - to the extent that there are appropriate political initiatives - for maintaining the mother tongue and teaching official European languages in any EU country.

Mrs Panayotopoulos-Cassiotou concluded that the knowledge of a European language, including the less spoken ones, is both a qualification and an asset for any European citizen. Therefore, it shall be maintained and enforced while moving across the EU by giving opportunities of written and oral expression and supportive teaching.

For further information:
Tel: +32-2-2847447, Fax: +32-2-2849447
E-mail: marie.panayotopoulos-cassiotou@europarl.europa.eu

UNE STRATÉGIE EUROPÉENNE POUR LUTTER CONTRE LES "DYS-CRIMINATIONS" VIS-À-VIS DES ENFANTS ET ADULTES DYSLEXIQUES, DYSPRAXIQUES ET DYSPHASIQUES

20/09/2007: Anna Záborská, Présidente de la commission des droits de la femme du Parlement européen, Amalia Sartori, coordinatrice du Groupe du PPE-DE dans cette commission, et Marie Panayotopoulos, Présidente de l'Intergroupe "Famille" du Parlement européen, ont déposé une question orale à la Commission européenne plaidant en faveur d'une Stratégie européenne contre:

les "dys-criminations" dont souffrent les enfants atteints de difficultés d'apprentissage;

l'exclusion du monde du travail des adultes atteints des mêmes handicaps.

La question orale, qui sera débattue en session plénière mercredi à Strasbourg, souligne que plus de 10 pc des enfants sont atteints (*) de troubles "dys" (dyslexie, dyspraxie(**), dysphasie, dyscalculie, troubles de l'attention avec ou sans hyperactivité - TDAH. D'autres troubles ont des manifestations très voisines (enfants dits "surdoués", crampe de l'écrivain etc).

Ces troubles, même lorsqu'ils sont minimes, sont très invalidants car ils touchent dès le plus jeune âge les domaines de la communication (lire, écrire, compter, (parfois même parler) et d'autres domaines de la vie quotidienne (manipuler des objets, faire du vélo ou jouer au foot, etc).

S'ils ne sont pas repérés très tôt, si les rééducations adaptées ne sont pas entreprises, si certains aménagements scolaires ne sont pas mis en place (autorisation d'utiliser les technologies de l'information dans ce cadre notamment), ces enfants sont promis à l'exclusion scolaire, puis professionnelle et sociale. Non seulement leur vie, mais également celle de leur famille, notamment celle de leurs frères et soeurs, risque d'être ruinée.

Or ces troubles ne sont pas encore bien repérés et traités dans tous les Etats membres de l'Union européenne.

La question orale demande à la Commission si elle pourrait fournir des statistiques détaillées sur les problèmes "dys" et si elle pourrait contribuer à de meilleurs diagnostics et prises en charge de ces troubles trop souvent encore méconnus, en améliorant notamment l'information à leur sujet.

Alors que la Commission a déjà lancé l'an dernier un grand programme de recherche pluriannuel "Neurodys" pour mieux identifier les raisons de la dyslexie et de la dysphasie, la question demande si elle compte étendre cette recherche à d'autres troubles "dys".

Le texte interroge également la Commission sur:

la place accordée aux "dys" dans les programmes européens éducatifs, notamment en ce qui concerne les technologies de l'information et l'apprentissage tout au long de la vie;

les aspects concernant la réconciliation de la vie professionnelle et familiale pour les parents responsables de l'éducation de ces enfants;

l'application de la Directive 2000/78 établissant un cadre concernant l'égalité de traitement en matière d'emploi et de travail en ce qui concerne les "dys";

l'opportunité de créer un réseau européen afin de promouvoir l'échange des meilleures pratiques entre les Etats membres et de rédiger une "Charte" des enfants "dys";

l'utilité de mettre sur pied un réseau scientifique européen multidisciplinaire afin de rassembler et étudier les informations disponibles et de promouvoir la coordination d'actions transnationales.

Par ailleurs Anna Záborská, Marie Panayotopoulos, Richard Howitt, Président de l'Intergroupe "Handicapés" du Parlement européen, Roberta Angelilli, Rapporteur du Parlement européen sur la communication de la Commission consacrée aux droits de l'enfant ainsi que Kathy Sinnott, Vice-présidente de l'intergroupe "Famille", ont déposé en juin dernier une déclaration écrite (numéro 64) demandant notamment de promouvoir les meilleures pratiques ayant cours dans les Etats membres en ce qui concerne le dépistage et la prise en charge des enfants "dys".
Cette déclaration, qui sera clôturée le 25 octobre prochain, a recueilli jusqu'à présent 273 signatures de députés européens.

(*) à des degrés divers et parfois simultanément ;
(**) également désignée sous les termes de "troubles de la coordination" ou "syndrôme de l'enfant maladroit" ('developmental coordination disorder' ou 'clumsy child syndrom' en anglais).

Pour toute information:
Anna Záborska, MdPE, Tél.: +32-2-2845923
Amalia Sartori, MdPE, Tél.: +32-2-2845556
Marie Panayotopoulos, MdPE, Tél.: +32-2-2845447
Anne Vahl, Service de Presse du Groupe du PPE-DE, Tél.: +32-475-493354

BETTER CONCILIATION OF FAMILY LIFE WITH A PERIOD OF STUDIES OR TRAINING

19/06/2007: The plenary session of the European Parliament approved by a large majority the report of Marie Panayotopoulos-Cassiotou MEP entitled "Towards a regulatory framework for measures to reconcile family life and a period of studies for young women in the EU".

The report, which was unanimously adopted on the 5th of June by the Women's Rights Committee, contains several recommendations which aim to enable young people to reconcile their period of studies or training with family responsibilities, maternity or paternity leave, or in situations of care for dependent persons such as disabled or elderly people.

The report underlines that the later achievement of the different stages of life (studies, work, family) is responsible, amongst others, for Europe's demographic decline.

It encourages the Commission and the Member States to promote policies for the conciliation of a period of studies or training and family life and to provide interested young people with the resources that correspond to their needs.

It invites Member States to propose low-cost social security schemes for students and trainees which could be extended to their dependents as well as to facilitate the provision of bank loans for students and to reduce or suppress the taxation of young people who take up family responsibilities in parallel with their studies, training or professional activity.

The report regrets that all the Member States have not yet complied with the Barcelona objectives on childcare facilities and encourages the creation of such structures within universities or professional institutes. As far as older children are concerned, the report encourages Member States to provide students with good quality and low-cost care facilities.

It recommends the establishment of a national certification system which would enable the identification of Higher Education Institutions which offer possibilities for the conciliation of studies and family life.

The report also invites the Member States and social partners to facilitate lifelong learning and its conciliation with family and professional life. It calls for the suppression of all restrictions to complementary paid work activities for students as long as the amounts received do not exceed the threshold set by each Member State.

Finally it calls on Member States to examine whether family responsibilities are a factor of abandonment of studies, especially for young women.

For further information: Tel: +32-2-2847447 Fax: +32-2-2849447
E-mail: marie.panayotopoulos@europarl.europa.eu

BETTER CONCILIATION OF FAMILY LIFE AND A PERIOD OF STUDIES OR TRAINING

06/06/2007: By Theo Georgitsopoulos

A large majority of the European Parliament approved the report of Marie Panayotopoulos-Cassiotou MEP (GR) entitled "Towards a regulatory framework for measures to reconcile family life and a period of studies for young women in the EU".

The report contains several recommendations which aim to enable young people to conciliate their period of studies or training with family responsibilities, either maternity or paternity leave or in situations of care for dependent persons such as disabled or elderly people. It also stresses the fact that the later achievement of the different stages of life (studies, work and family) is responsible, amongst others, for Europe's demographic decline.

Mrs Panayotopoulos' report encourages the Commission and the Member States to promote policies for the conciliation of a period of studies or training and family life and to provide interested young people with the resources that correspond to their needs. It invites Member States to propose low cost social security schemes for students and trainees which could be extended to their dependents as well as to facilitate the provision of bank loans for students and to reduce or suppress the taxation of young people who take up family responsibilities in parallel with their studies, training or professional activity.

The report also invites Member States and social partners to facilitate lifelong learning and its conciliation with family and professional life. It calls for the suppression of all restrictions to complementary paid work activities for students as long as the amounts received do not exceed the threshold set by each Member State. Finally, it calls on Member States to examine whether family responsibilities are a factor of abandonment of studies, especially for young women.

COMMITTEE ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS AND GENDER EQUALITY PUBLIC HEARING ON THE DRAFT REPORT OF MARIE PANAYOTOPOULOS-CASSIOTOU MEP

27/02/2007: Measures to reconcile family life and studies

Experts from a variety of different fields discussed on Tuesday in Brussels measures to facilitate improved reconciliation of family life and studies at a public hearing, which was organised by the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality regarding the own-initiative report prepared by Marie Panayotopoulos-Cassiotou MEP (EPP-ED, Greece).

The experts participating at the hearing were Vegard Skirbekk, Demographer at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Laxenburg (Austria), Claudia Menne, Head of the Department for Gender Equality at the DGB (German trade union umbrella organisation), Claudette Abela Baldacchino, Member of the Culture and Education Committee and the Economic and Social Committee of the Committee of the Regions, and Grace Attard, member of the Section for Employment, Social Affairs and Citizenship of the Economic and Social Committee and member of the National Council of Women in Malta.

Mr Skirbekk noted that students with children receive state funding in Norway. He presented statistics that compare motherhood rates of young female students across Europe, revealing that 41 percent of Swedish students give birth to a child before finishing their studies, compared to 31 percent in Finland, 30 percent in Norway, 13 percent in Italy, 12 percent in Greece, Austria and Germany, 9 percent in France and 4 percent in Belgium.

According to Mr Skirbekk, the average age of women giving birth to their first child has been rising continuously since 1975, which is due to the fact that studies last much longer nowadays. For example in Sweden, women have their first child at the average age of 23, if they have a primary school education, compared to women with a university education who have their first child only at the average age of 27.

Mr Skirbekk also compared the fertility rates of women in Eastern and Western Europe according to their level of education between 1995 and 2000: these rates reached between 2,24 percent (women without education) and 1,54 percent (women with an university degree) in Western Europe and between 1,62 percent and 1,15 percent in Eastern Europe.

Mrs Attard emphasized the objectives of the Lisbon Strategy regarding employment rates of women. She noticed that the increased age of women who give birth to their first child is due to a longer period of studies and economic problems.

Mrs Menne stressed that the European economy needs highly-qualified workers and that it is also necessary to support families. The Member States must coordinate their policies and evaluate the results of the measures taken. Mrs Menne stated that female and male students do not have the same aspirations concerning the wish to have a child: a study in Germany found that two female students out of four wish to have a child compared to only one male student out of four. According to her, young male students were less willing to take the risk of starting a family.

A representative of the European Commission has highlighted that she has recently published her report about the application of the Lisbon Strategy and she noted that progress has been made concerning the employment of women and child care facilities. She has also announced that Commissioner Špidla will issue a declaration concerning child care facilities at the Parliamentary Session in March. The regulatory activity of the European Social Fund has been modified so that it can fully contribute to the setting up of child care facilities.

At the end of the debate, Mrs Panayotopoulos-Cassiotou remarked that the legal competence to undertake measures related to family issues falls under the Member States. The objective of her report is not to privilege a certain group of people, for example students, but to examine measures that can be taken to allow young people to start a family and have as many children as they desire.