ECOSY (short for European Community Organisation of Socialist Youth) is an independent non-governmental organisation that has existed since 1992. It brings together 50 youth organisations of socialist and social democratic parties from European Union member states and candidate countries, as well as from countries covered by the European Neighbourhood Policy.
The decision to organise the congress in Poland was made at the end of last year. The Federation of Young Social Democrats presented the most interesting proposal for organising the meeting. Leaders of left-wing parties from across Europe came to Warsaw, including Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, president of the Party of European Socialists, and Pascal Lamy, director-general of the World Trade Organization. The Polish left was represented by Wojciech Olejniczak, Grzegorz Napieralski and Member of the European Parliament Andrzej Szejna. A total of 400 delegates from 50 countries took part in the congress. The three-day proceedings focused on issues concerning Europe’s future. The organisation’s new leadership was also elected. Giacomo Filibeck of Italy was elected ECOSY president for a second time, while Anna Skrzypek of FMS was re-elected secretary-general.
The special guest on the final day of the congress was former president Aleksander Kwaśniewski, who said that young social democrats would be the future of the Old Continent, as they represented an opportunity for even closer integration of the European Union. He also said that Europe needed the left because “the left represents the most important values, such as democracy, respect for human rights and the rights of all minorities.” The former president also noted that he himself had begun his political career at a young age.
The congress was held under the slogan “Europe of Our Future.”
(information and photographs by Daniel Biernat)