Alicante Declaration
The International congress “A Society for all Ages”, convened by the Pensioners' Association of the Savings Banks, saw the participation of more than four hundred people representing the various countries, assembled in Alicante from 5 to 7 May 1999.
On this occasion, the current year was declared International Year of the Elderly, and the opportunity to unite the works that for many years have been realized by several different public and private organizations, as well as the urgent need to fix the coordinates in which the actions to be developed are to be concentrated, widely justified the realization of the Congress.
As a result of the works, a series of conclusions was unanimously approved that will be submitted to the competent authorities in due time. One of the approved agreements was the approval of a declaration of principles that complete those already established by UNESCO. This declaration was called by the participants Alicante Declaration and is based on the following objectives:
1º. To obtain the integration of the elderly, with full rights, into society, in the certainty that this is the best way to improvement of the latter.
2º. To assure our active participation, without any distinction, in any work of educational, vocational, assistance and cultural type, paying attention to our own characteristics.
3º. To facilitate a participating cohabitation among different social age groups, with particular reference to the young people.
4º. To motivate the different vocational sectors in order to, like the several different Pensioners' Associations of the European Savings Banks are already doing, intensify our attention to our own pensioners, and, once embarked on this road, to give all pensioners, whatever their origin, the possibility to benefit from the activities that are realised.
5º. To establish the necessary methods in order that the interventions already begun in different countries may be made known, exchanged and coordinated among them, in areas of greater social profit.
6º. To intensify, in a specific way, the relations with Universities and other educational and research centers, in the certainty that the problems raised require technical and scientific work of high specialization.
7º. To increase the activities of the European cultural foundation, called “Intergenerations”, which immediately began its activity and is considered the suitable instrument for achieving the mentioned objectives.
8º. To ask for a participation as citizens with full right and members in every respect, through our representatives directly elected by us, in all those organizations of the various administrations both public and representative, that directly influence the problems of the elderly, with particular reference to the Savings and Credit corporations.
9º. To use all the available means of communication, information and formation, in order to make a New Culture possible, based on the need of a more integrated cohabitation, thanks to the intergeneration relations, so that the participation in programs for all the ages is to be promoted.
The present declaration will be formally handed over, because of the importance of the effects that it may cause, to the Spanish commission of UNESCO with the request that, if considered suitable, it be presented to UNESCO headquarters in Paris.
Edited in Alicante, the 7th of May 1.999.
