An Intergroup on Youth Issues in the European Parliament?

European Parliament intergroups are a rather unknown but still interesting subject for non-insiders to the European Parliament or the Brussels bubble, which for me is proved by the interest my article on intergroups (covering the last European Parliament) is still raising.

European youth groups and some MEPs, after the success of making 2011 the "European Year of Volunteering", are now pushing for the creation of an Intergroup on Youth Issues in the European Parliament to get more influence.

Part of their effort is displayed in the following video (via letzi from the European Youth Forum):

Parlement européen - Intergroupe jeunesse
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But here, as for any other intergroup, and despite the fact that I support the cause, the question will be: Necessary co-ordination or just hidden lobbyism? - and the answers will have to be given by the participating person.

Video: Youth delegates at the United Nations

The Now-Secretary-General of the European Youth Forum, Guiseppe Porcaro, has directed a 30 minutes long film on (European) youth delegates at the United Nations, titled "The yoUNg"

It is nicely done, although I still don't really get what the role and influence of youth delegates is. But I really like the poem at the end.

Funnily, I've even met one of the people interviewed in the film. Europe is a village. So is the world of young people:

The YoUNg from Giuseppe Porcaro on Vimeo.

Is the European Youth Forum in bad shape?

Nonformality, a former board member of the European Youth Forum (YFJ), has blogged a long article on his view on the current situation in the YFJ, and it is very negative.

An extract:

[T]here is, regrettably, no open discourse on the situation of the Youth Forum between the different movements and strands—with most youth organisations, in united hypocrisy, happily ignoring their own call to politics for more transparency—these voices cannot be easily heard, but the increasing frequency, intensity and attractiveness of networks and meetings working on the establishment of organisational alternatives will soon lead to visible results, which will exemplify for how long the dissatisfaction with the Youth Forum has simmered.

The few large organisations that currently dominate the platform—most notably the scouts and the socialists—share a lack of interest to make the European Youth Forum a strong voice of young people with key institutional players such as the European Commission: both sides fear the loss of power and influence.

Luckily for these players, the Youth Forum is, in its current state, caught in internal power struggles and ensnared by a lack of critical voices: seemingly endless discussions culminate in carefully negotiated position papers that lack both courage and authenticity.

This article comes at the time of the Council of Members of the European Youth Forum, that today has elected Guiseppe Porcaro as its new Secretary General.