A young woman works on a mural in Lisbon Sunday, Feb. 24 2013. AP Photo/Armando Franca. All rights reserved.
Manuel Serrano: The Fórum dos Cidadãos (Citizens’ Forum) aims to strengthen democracy in Portugal by making the voice of ordinary citizens heard in important public debates. Where did the idea come from?
Lourenço Jardim de Oliveira: The principle of public deliberation is a very old one, tied to the roots of democracy itself. In that sense, The Citizens’ Forum is not a new idea but rather an updated remake of an older principle. We have seen many countries embracing modern and innovative forms of public participation as an attempt to revive democracy in places where it has often been taken for granted. Initiatives such as the Citizen Juries in the US and Australia, or the Citizens’ Assemblies in Canada, Ireland or the Netherlands have all a common purpose: to bring some fresh ideas into our democracies and to put citizens back into the center of the political system. The Citizens’ Forum is inspired by these foreign initiatives and is being promoted by a small team of dreamers who want Portugal to reinvest in the concept of citizenship and become an example of good practices.
