The World Forum for Democracy | The Council of Europe, Strasbourg 6-8 November 2023

In an era when there is much backsliding and questioning of democratic ideals across the world, with the rise of populist and authoritarian governments and fair access to voting being undermined in many countries – the WFD is an important international space. It brings together politicians, activists, experts, civil society actors, researchers, authors and others in dialogue across wide ranging fields of activity – and celebrates the best examples of bravery and ingenuity in promoting democracy in contemporary context. 

More information about the Forum, including recordings of sessions, is available here. The Forum is free to attend (usually in November - pre-booking necessary).

This year BASW CEO Ruth Allen and BASW Council member Omar Mohamed attended on behalf of the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) and for the Conference of International Non-Governmental Organisations (CINGO) in the Council of Europe.

The theme of WFD 2023 was ‘Democracy = Peace?’ . This stark question led to exploration of profound concerns about peace building given the extent and viciousness of new and enduring wars and conflicts across the world -  including Ukraine, Palestine/Israel, Ngorno-Karabakh, Yemen, South Sudan, Myanmar and many others.  

The theme this year raised questions about building peace between and within countries, societies and communities. This was timely, necessary and deeply thought provoking, bringing home the fragility of peace and freedoms. The sessions looked at how democratic processes need to develop towards more participative and inclusive forms with more devolution of decision making. Within this is the need for more engagement of young advocates for democracy to create the leaders of the future. 

Omar attended in the capacity of a youth delegate from CINGO and IFSW. Theresa Hoffman from the German Association of Social Workers also attended online as a second youth delegate. 

Omar has provided this reflection on the event overall – where the presence of the next generation of activists, politicians – social workers – was a key part of ensuring the dialogue was fresh, relevant and hopeful for the future.

Report and reflections from Omar Mohamed, Youth delegate to the World Forum for Democracy 2023 

The World Forum for Democracy 2023 focused on the theme of “Democracy = Peace?”. As a youth delegate, I immediately reflected on the fact that there are many forgotten conflicts which are directly oppositional to the aim of peace. It was clear through the Forum that many lives are being lost across conflicts in places such as Israel and Palestine, Ukraine, Sudan, Congo, Afghanistan, Armenia and Azerbaijan. 

The Forum provided a place to bring together people from around the world to share experiences to enrich discourses. The hope is that the Council of Europe will take these discussions into meaningful actions. 

It was clear that democracies may experience peace but transitions to democracy do not guarantee peace, and often economic inequalities are the source of conflict.

Themes discussed included the protection of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law, which are integral to the values and purpose of the Council of Europe. Further values were discussed such as social justice which linked into discussions around access to healthcare and basic necessities such as water, as well as the protection needed linked in with the climate crisis, racism, homo and transphobia, hate crimes, the experiences of missing people, and gender inequality. Strategies to combat these threats to peace included activism through storytelling, utilising digital platforms, informing citizens about their rights, combatting disinformation, and protecting human rights defenders. 

New forms of democracy are needed to tackle today’s challenges and meet expectations for the societies of tomorrow.

One of the key ‘Lab’ (seminar) talks for me was around the theme of global protest, where discussions were had around collective activism from Gen Z for Change which utilises TikTok to disrupt policies and harmful practices which are against human rights. This promotes civic participation by youth, led by the youth. 

Story telling was discussed around the need to critique who is holding the power to tell our stories, and I was privileged to hear stories from Indonesia and Sri Lanka around finding agency and connection. 

There was a presentation around African migrants and their experiences of migration between African countries which were often faced with difficulty, However support was also explored around promoting leadership in the migrant community in this area. Finally, I attended a presentation on the need for protecting the safety of human rights defenders by providing relocation and psychosocial support towards them and  their families through valuing Ubuntu practices across Africa. 

There were youth delegates from a variety of countries at the Forum, representing the 2 billion young people across the globe. This included enabling active and meaningful participation by youth. A conversation across the generations took place between a youth delegate and a senior delegate who spoke about the shared learning of values and experiences which resulted in an agreement of solidarity to support the youth to learn from their seniors as well as contribute to conversations around democracy towards peace. 

Unfortunately, young people are disproportionally affected by war, yet young people are unable to hold political power, a clear discrimination due to age. There is a need to focus more on youth participation and inclusion, as well as on intersectionality and increasing representation from the Global South.

The youth are not only the future, but are absolutely the present too here at the World Forum for Democracy. Each youth delegate has had support from the Council of Europe in training to engage in discussions meaningfully and this is evident in majority of the discussions and questions being led by the youth on important international issues focused on peace building. It is truly inspirational to experience the strength of youth voices here and provides great confidence that our present and future are in good hands, as leaders of the today, here, and now.