国際貧困撲滅デー

本日１０月１７日は何の日でしょうか。

わたくし濱口桂一郎の誕生日などというのはどうでもいいことですが、世界的には国際貧困撲滅デーということになっております。

欧州委員会の労働社会政策担当のシュピドラ委員（＝EUの厚労相）のメッセージがアップされているので、ご紹介。

http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?langId=en&catId=89&newsId=615&furtherNews=yes

>Ahead of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on 17 October, I would like to reiterate the European Commission's commitment to tackling poverty and social exclusion across the European Union and beyond.

We have the good fortune to live in one of the world's most prosperous regions, yet poverty remains a daily reality for nearly 80 million Europeans. Our social protection systems have helped mitigate the worst social impacts of the current recession, but it is often the vulnerable who are hit hardest in situations of crisis: aside from job losses, many face difficulties meeting financial commitments, having decent housing and accessing credit.

我々は幸いにも世界でもっとも豊かな地域に住んでいるが、貧困はなお８千万人にとって日々の現実である。我らの社会保障制度は今時不況の影響を緩和するのに役立ったが、危機に最も打撃を受けたのは弱い立場の人々だ。失業はいうまでもなく、多くの人々が住宅や金融で困難に直面している。

In the short term, it is vital to prevent a vicious circle of long-term unemployment leading to social exclusion. At the same time, we must continue to make our social models sustainable in the long term so that future generations can benefit from them too. Solidarity is a fundamental value of the EU with all members of society sharing the benefits in times of prosperity and the burden in times of difficulty.

短期的には長期失業が社会的排除につながる悪循環を防ぐことが重要だ。同時に、将来世代のために我らの社会モデルが長期的に持続可能であり続けられるようにしなければならない。社会の全メンバーが繁栄の時期には利益を共に享受し困難の時期には負担を共に分かち合うという連帯がＥＵの基本的価値である。

We need to work together at all levels to promote 'active inclusion' through integrated policies that combine and balance measures aimed at inclusive labour markets, access to quality services and adequate minimum income. This is the focus of our 8 th annual Roundtable on poverty and social exclusion, taking place in Stockholm today and tomorrow. The event, jointly organised with the Swedish EU Presidency, brings together national and European decision-makers, NGOs, trade unions and those experiencing poverty. It brings an opportunity to exchange solutions among the 27 member states and learn from one another's experiences in fighting poverty.

統合的な労働市場、上質の社会サービスへのアクセス、十分な最低所得保障を結合した「活力あるインクルージョン」めざして、本日ストックホルムで政府、ＮＧＯ、労働組合、貧困を経験している人々を集めて、貧困と社会的排除に関する円卓会議が開かれる。

In three months from now, the EU will launch the 2010 European Year against poverty and social exclusion. This year-long campaign will better acknowledge the right of people living in poverty to play a full part in society and reinforce partnerships between actors working to fight poverty and social exclusion. The general goal is to generate new impetus in the struggle against poverty and social exclusion in order to build together a society for all.

あと３ヶ月で、ＥＵは２０１０年欧州貧困と社会的排除と戦う年を開始する。この年間キャンペーンは貧困にある人々が社会で十分に役割を果たす権利を知らしめることにある。