During the coming days is taking place another NATO summit, this time in Lisbon - Portugal.In this framework, where the Portuguese government is hosting a summit of an assassin organization to which affiliation is even against its Constitution, the attacks to freedoms and democratic guarantees have been growing rapidly.

WFDY highlights the cases of intense police activity, the suspension of the Schengen Area and prevention of entrance of various people in the country, the fact that the Portuguese government has spent millions of euro in military equipment for “defensive manoeuvres that may be necessary” and the growing atmosphere of fear spread throughout the media in a clear attempt to demobilize from the demonstration of Saturday.

WFDY denounces furthermore that today, in this atmosphere of “total control”, police officers have invaded the headquarters of a trade union to destroy propaganda regarding the workers’ general strike of next Wednesday, in an act that is only comparable to those done by the police of the Portuguese fascist regime - that same one that was one of the founding members of NATO.

WFDY reaffirms its support to the campaign “Yes to Peace, No to NATO!” as the umbrella platform where all relevant expressions of the different movements (including our members in the country, JCP, and the Portuguese NPC for the 17th WFYS) come together to struggle against this summit and for the dismantle of NATO. We encourage all Portuguese people and other internationalists to join the demonstration of Saturday afternoon in the centre of Lisbon that is being held under the same slogan of the campaign by that same campaign.

WFDY is sure that a world of peace is necessarily a world free of NATO or any other tool of aggression, therefore demanding its immediate disband and the full respect for the United Nations as platform where the countries should assemble and democratically take the necessary decisions for world peace and respect for the International Law.

The World Federation of Democratic Youth would like to express its happiness over the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from her long house imprisonment. She has sacrificed 15 years of her life in house imprisonment in different times of last 21 years for the sake of democracy in Burma. The sad irony of history is that she was put into house imprisonment by military Junta instead of her party had a position to rule the government winning 2/3 majority in parliament in the election of 1990.

WFDY had been always demanding the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and all political prisoners in Burma. We had already denounced the election declared unilaterally without not participation of Aun San Suu Kyi in the process.

Her release is not still too late as Burma is in dire need of reconciliation, peace, democracy, stability and independence of the country so that the people of Burma could achieve this without any imperialist intervention, war and occupation.

We still believe that Aung San Suu Kyi could have the key role on this process to mainstreaming ethnic groups in conflicts for a long time and to restore democracy in the country.

We demand to military Junta to release all political prisoners and start national reconciliation from the bottom where military should not have the key role to govern the country. We strongly demand the assurance of her freedom and central roles on this whole process.

The World Federation of Democratic Youth is deeply concerned with the ongoing state repression of students in Sri-Lanka.We strongly believe that students’ oppose to the mushrooming of private university for business is the legitimate act of Inter-University Student Federation. The elected body of students has the primary rights to defend educational rights of students.

Most worrying and condemnable act is that the state is continuing its detention to student leaders and expelling the students from universities allegedly forwarding the case of clashes for educational rights happened between students and police in front of Ministry of Higher Education.

Comrade Udul Premaratne the leader of Inter University Student Federation has already been detained for 10 days along with 31 detaining students still in jail and suspending 221 students from University. Student Monks are also suspended and female students are boycotting the exams. Student council leaders are arrested. Such acts are solely violation of human rights and most condemnable.

The World Federation of Democratic Youth has always been defending for free and quality education for everybody that should be the responsibility of the state. We fully support for the unheard and repressed voice of students in Sri-Lanka against privatization of education along with our member organization Socialist Student Union, Sri-Lanka.

We urge the government of Sri Lanka to stop repressive measures taken against students, to withdraw suspended cases of student from University and free to those who are detained in jail.

We strongly demand for the withdrawal of privatization policy of University in front of Sri-Lankan Government and to respect the voices of students.

We urge hereby to all WFDY member organizations to put pressure against Sri Lankan government to stop this repression and to extend your solidarity with ongoing student struggle in Sri Lanka for a just cause.