Warsaw holds a major democracy meet

Warsaw holds a major democracy meet

By Pierre-Antoine Donnet

WARSAW (AFP): Poland, backed by a decade of post-communist
freedom, will host an unprecedented conference of 100 countries
here next week on the theme of democracy and how to make it work.

Those attending will include Russia, Ukraine and Indonesia.
But the world's remaining major communist state China has not
been invited.

Poland's acting foreign minister Bronislaw Geremek said the
gathering would adopt a Warsaw Declaration outlining basic
principles of democracy and calling for their universal
recognition.

Co-organizers are India, the United States, the Czech
Republic, South Korea, Chile and Mali. U.S. Secretary of State
Madeleine Albright and United Nations Secretary-General Kofi
Annan will attend.

The idea of the conference, already in preparation for some
months, was first thought up by Geremek and Albright, informed
sources said.

Old-established democracies and countries "struggling for
democracy" had been invited, Geremek told journalists.

They include Bosnia, Algeria, Bulgaria and Nepal.

But neither the Chinese People's Republic nor Taiwan was on
the invitation list given to the press for the gathering on June
26 and 27.

Likewise missing were Iraq, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Cuba,
Vietnam, Malaysia and the former Soviet republic of Belarus.

The conference is entitled Towards a community of democracies.

A major aim was to strengthen links between countries which
have chosen the path of democracy. "We should build a
relationship of confidence," Geremek said.

"Our community should be considered as an open community," he
stressed.

"A fee, even modest, should be paid to enter it," the minister
said: "There is no free lunch for those who refuse democracy."

But Geremek said he hoped countries not invited "will see it
as a positive challenge."

"We do not want to condemn anyone," he added.

An interview on video with Aung San Suu Kyi, head of the
democratic opposition in Myanmar whose movements have been
restricted by the military junta in power, will be shown to
participants.

Russia has accepted the invitation but will be represented as
second-tier delegation. Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov has
already said he will not attend.

The gathering gives Poland a high profile 20 years after the
creation of Solidarity, the union which launched the political
opposition to Polish communist rule, and a decade after Poland's
prominent role in changes leading to the communist collapse in
Eastern Europe.

The choice of Warsaw for the conference sent "a very important
message about the achievements made by Poland in social,
political and economic spheres on the path to democracy," Geremek
stressed.

More than 60 foreign ministers have confirmed their
attendance. Others will send deputies or other officials.

Czech President Vaclav Havel, prominent in the Czechoslovak
civil rights movement under communism, was originally to give the
opening speech, but has canceled his visit because of health
problems.

This will be Geremek's last major engagement as Polish foreign
minister. He will leave the Polish government immediately
afterwards after his party, the Freedom Union, decided earlier
this month to quit the coalition.