The European Water Movement (EWM) strongly condemns the ongoing siege and denial of water and other basic necessities to the people of Gaza by the Israeli government. We call upon all actors involved to respect human rights and international law in their actions.

The people of Gaza have long endured tremendous hardships, including limited access to safe and clean drinking water, sanitation facilities, and adequate healthcare. These conditions are not only inhumane but also a violation of fundamental human rights. The already dire humanitarian consequences of the protracted 16-year siege of Gaza have rapidly deteriorated since Monday October 9, 2023 when Israel cut off the flow of essential resources, including clean water, medical supplies and as it intensified its aerial bombardment over the course of the week. Now that fuel required to operate critical water infrastructure has run out, the United Nations Agency for Palestine Refugees warns that two million people are at imminent risk.

Read more...

Photo credits: EESC 

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), a consultative body of the European Union (EU), is promoting an initiative to develop a global approach to European water policies. This proposal aims to materialize in a Declaration to be delivered to the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union at the high-level conference "Call for an EU Blue Deal" in October 2023, during the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU. The EESC's objective is for water to be one of the next EU Commission's top priorities.

Taking into account the relevance of this initiative, the European Water Movement specifies below its position in this regard, identifying the main challenges and its proposals for action related to water in the EU, all to influence the process of development and implementation of the Blue Deal.

Discover the 8 pillars of our position paper here (English). Also available in French, German, Italian and Spanish.

1. Water is a common good and not a commodity

2. Addressing climate change

3. Human Right to Water and Sanitation

4. Opposition to the privatisation of water management

5. Support remunicipalisation processes

6. Public and democratic management models

7. Financing 8. Labour conditions

More information on the EU Blue Deal here.

The Platform for Public and Community Partnerships of the Americas (PAPC) held the Horizons of Public and Community Water Management Meeting on September 25, 26, 27, 2023 in the city of Popayán, Cauca, Colombia, to share knowledge and experiences and allow us to renew our understandings of new and old strategies of water dispossession and privatization and to confront, organize and fight against them.

People, organizations and movements from the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia met over three days in the capital of the Department of Cauca, paying homage to this Territory which sits at the confluence of centuries of struggles by Indigenous Peoples and Black and peasant communities in defense of land, cultures and water. But we regret to note that some of our comrades from Africa and Asia could not be here because of the injustice and racism that characterizes international mobility through the arbitrary and inequitable granting of visas and travel permits. We deplore the barriers to entry into Colombia for our compañerxs from the global South which demonstrate that international mobility is controlled by racist and colonial forces that limit the possibilities of face-to-face solidarity between formerly colonized peoples. We will insist on breaking down barriers, meeting and strengthening the exchanges of the peoples of the South.

Read more...

For the past 2 years, “les Soulèvements de la Terre” has been leading or joining forces in the fight against a multitude of absurd projects that are harmful to the environment and nature, in particular water-related projects such as the mega-basins at Sainte Soline.

In the face of popular support and the symbolic significance of their actions, “les Soulèvements de la Terre” has been subjected to a campaign of denigration and stifling, ranging from accusations of eco-terrorism to an attempt by the government to dissolve the organisation. This campaign has just suffered a major setback with the suspension of their dissolution by the courts. This is a 1st victory, as this fundamental decision remains temporary.

The European Water Movement, share not only the fight against mega-basins, but also the idea that the struggle to preserve the common good that is water is intimately linked to the other struggles highlighted by “les Soulèvements de la Terre”. We are also convinced that these struggles know no borders.

The European Water Movement therefore :

• Calls on its members and all those who can to join the current water convoy, which will arrive in Paris on Saturday 26 August;
• Calls on the French government to cease its relentless efforts to dissolve “les Soulèvements de la Terre”;
• Lends its full support to “les Soulèvements de la Terre”: https://lessoulevementsdelaterre.org/