The political crisis of 2006-2007 demonstrated the low level of capability of Ukrainian politicians to implement state-building policy and the serious shortcomings of the current Fundamental Law. Under such conditions, stimulating the consolidation of democracy, fostering civic political culture both among the political elite and among citizens, as well as involving the latter in active participation in the socio-political life of the country, is a necessary condition for preserving stability in Ukraine. That is why, and given the role of the Constitution in the life of society, the reform of the Fundamental Law cannot be left without the attention of the public (in particular, non-governmental organizations), whose opinion must be taken into account when: determining the expediency and timeliness of constitutional changes; determining the main directions of reform, which must necessarily take into account the interests of the population, as well as affirm the inviolability of the rights and freedoms of man and citizen; implementing the process of introducing changes. To update and advocate for these issues, a public initiative called the Civic Assembly of Ukraine was created, whose Organizing Committee included more than thirty representatives of leading public organizations of Ukraine. Organizational and financial support for the activities of the Civic Assembly of Ukraine is provided by the International Renaissance Foundation.

It is at the initiative of the Organizing Committee of the CAU, with the aim of developing and publicly discussing documents that should record the position of civil society regarding the constitutional process, declare demands to current politicians and political forces regarding the procedure for adopting a new Constitution, as well as proposals for the content of the new Constitution, that round tables and conferences will be held in all regions of Ukraine, and in the city of Kyiv - an all-Ukrainian forum: Civic Assembly of Ukraine "New Constitution: Positions of Civil Society".

We invite representatives of public organizations, experts, scholars, journalists and simply active citizens to participate in the Volyn Regional Conference of the Civic Assembly of Ukraine, which will be held on June 12, 2008 (Thursday) in room No. 14 (2nd floor) of the Educational and Methodological Center of Trade Unions (Lutsk, Prospekt Vidrodzhennia, 24). The event starts at 14:00.

Within the framework of the regional event, three main framework issues will be discussed: 1. the expediency of changes to the Constitution; 2. the procedure for its adoption; 3. specific proposals for the essence and content of the Constitution.

The results of the discussion will be formalized in the form of a final document of the conference. The composition of the delegation that will represent the Volyn region on June 21, 2008 at the all-Ukrainian forum in Kyiv will also be determined.

To participate in the Volyn Regional Conference of the Civic Assembly of Ukraine, you should send by June 11, 2008 a completed Registration Card of a participant in the regional event of the Civic Assembly of Ukraine (in the attachment) to the email address of the regional coordinator [mike.shelep@gmail.com] or report your participation by phone [8-067-41-65-086]

For additional information, please contact the regional coordinator of the Civic Assembly of Ukraine in the Volyn region, Mykhailo Shelep, by phone [mobile (8067) 41-65-086], or by email [mike.shelep@gmail.com].

More information on this topic is provided in the attachments and on the website:

Attachment No. 1

Registration card of a participant in the Volyn Regional Conference of the CAU

1 Name of the organization 2 Head of the organization 3 Contact information of the organization: postal address, email, fax 4 Full names of delegates from your organization to the regional conference of the CAU 5 Contact information of delegates from your organization to the regional conference of the CAU: email, mobile phone 6 Please provide answers to the questions: -Is it expedient to introduce changes to the current Constitution of Ukraine now? -Which procedure for adopting possible changes is, in your opinion, the best? -What are your specific proposals for the essence and content of the Constitution?