Initiative 136

Last updated April 09, 2019

Initiative 136 is a citizen's movement in Thessaloniki, Greece, which was organized in 2011 in opposition to privatization of Thessaloniki's public water and sewage company, EYATH.^[1]

Thessaloniki, also familiarly known as Thessalonica, Salonica or Salonika, is the second-largest city in Greece, with over 1 million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of Greek Macedonia, the administrative region of Central Macedonia and the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace. Its nickname is η Συμπρωτεύουσα (Symprotévousa), literally "the co-capital", a reference to its historical status as the Συμβασιλεύουσα (Symvasilévousa) or "co-reigning" city of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, alongside Constantinople.

Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, self-identified and historically known as Hellas, is a country located in Southern and Southeast Europe, with a population of approximately 11 million as of 2016. Athens is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Thessaloniki.

Water privatization is short for private sector participation in the provision of water services and sanitation. Private sector participation in water supply and sanitation is controversial. Proponents of private sector participation argue that it has led to improvements in the efficiency and service quality of utilities. It is argued that it has increased investment and has contributed to expanded access. They cite Manila, Guayaquil in Ecuador, Bucharest, several cities in Colombia and Morocco, as well as Côte d'Ivoire and Senegal as success stories. Critics however, contend that private sector participation led to tariff increases and has turned a public good into a private good. Many believe that the privatization of water is incompatible with ensuring the international human right to water. Aborted privatizations in Cochabamba, Bolivia, and Dar es-Salaam, Tanzania, as well as privately managed water systems in Jakarta and Berlin are highlighted as failures. Water privatization in Buenos Aires, Argentina and in England is cited by both supporters and opponents, each emphasizing different aspects of these cases.

New water services management

The movement proposes a new type of water services management that is neither state-run nor private, but rather operates on the principles of cooperativism and conceives water as a commons. At the heart of the Initiative's plan is the creation of local water cooperatives in all of the metropolitan area's municipalities and districts. The cooperatives will allow participation of water users in decision making regarding water tariffs and investment, under the principle of "one water meter equals one vote".^[1]

Public service is a service which is provided by government to people living within its jurisdiction, either directly or by financing provision of services. The term is associated with a social consensus that certain services should be available to all, regardless of income, physical ability or mental acuity. Even where public services are neither publicly provided nor publicly financed, for social and political reasons they are usually subject to regulation going beyond that applying to most economic sectors. Public policy when made in the public's interest and motivations can provide public services. Public service is also a course that can be studied at a college or university. Examples of public services are the fire brigade, police, air force, and paramedics.

A cooperative is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise". Cooperatives may include:

The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable earth. These resources are held in common, not owned privately. Commons can also be understood as natural resources that groups of people manage for individual and collective benefit. Characteristically, this involves a variety of informal norms and values employed for a governance mechanism. Commons can be also defined as a social practice of governing a resource not by state or market but by a community of users that self-governs the resource through institutions that it creates.

Union of cooperatives

The union of all the cooperatives will constitute a new company that, according to its statute, will have the goal of managing Thessaloniki's water services in a non-profit manner and ensure water quality, direct democratic control, social justice, access to water for all and protection of the environment.^[2] The union of cooperatives will participate in the public tender for the acquisition of EYATH announced by the Greek government for 2013.

A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is dedicated to furthering a particular social cause or advocating for a shared point of view. In economic terms, it is an organization that uses its surplus of the revenues to further achieve its ultimate objective, rather than distributing its income to the organization's shareholders, leaders, or members. Nonprofits are tax exempt or charitable, meaning they do not pay income tax on the money that they receive for their organization. They can operate in religious, scientific, research, or educational settings.

Water quality refers to the chemical, physical, biological, and radiological characteristics of water. It is a measure of the condition of water relative to the requirements of one or more biotic species and or to any human need or purpose. It is most frequently used by reference to a set of standards against which compliance, generally achieved through treatment of the water, can be assessed. The most common standards used to assess water quality relate to health of ecosystems, safety of human contact, and drinking water.

Direct democracy or pure democracy is a form of democracy in which people decide on policy initiatives directly. This differs from the majority of currently established democracies, which are representative democracies.

European Water Movement

Initiative 136 is a member of the European Water Movement and endorses the European Citizens' Initiative for the Right to Water.^[3]

The European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) is a European Union mechanism aimed at increasing direct democracy by enabling "EU citizens to participate directly in the development of EU policies", introduced with the Treaty of Lisbon in 2007. The initiative enables one million citizens of the European Union, who are nationals of at least one quarter of the member states, to call directly on the European Commission to propose a legal act in an area where the Member States have conferred powers onto the EU level. This right to request the Commission to initiate a legislative proposal puts citizens on the same footing as the EP and the Council, who enjoy this right according to Art. 225 and 241 TFEU, respectively. The Commission holds the right of initiative in the EU. The first ECI, Fraternité 2020, was initiated on 9 May 2012.

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References

1 2 "Greeks Stand Up to Protect Their Water From Privatization". On the Commons. 2013-01-08. Retrieved 2013-04-15.
↑ Κίνηση 136 | Το νερό είναι κοινωνικό αγαθό! (in Greek). 136.gr. Retrieved 2013-04-15.
↑ Πανευρωπαϊκή συλλογή υπογραφών για το δικαίωμα στο νερό. | Κίνηση 136 (in Greek). 136.gr. Retrieved 2013-04-15.

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[On_the_commons-1] 1 2 "Greeks Stand Up to Protect Their Water From Privatization". On the Commons. 2013-01-08. Retrieved 2013-04-15.

[2] Κίνηση 136 | Το νερό είναι κοινωνικό αγαθό! (in Greek). 136.gr. Retrieved 2013-04-15.

[3] Πανευρωπαϊκή συλλογή υπογραφών για το δικαίωμα στο νερό. | Κίνηση 136 (in Greek). 136.gr. Retrieved 2013-04-15.