Tobias Pfluger

Tobias Pfluger

"As a co-founder and subsequently board member of the Information Agency on Militarisation (IMI) e.V. my focus is on the foreign and military policy of the European Union, and Germany's role within these policies. Since 1996 IMI has been registered as a charitable organisation promoting peaceful options for conflict resolution and raising awareness of the creeping militarisation of Germany and the European Union. The campaign against the draft for a European Constitution was another focus of IMI in the past two years (more information is available at http://www.imi-online.de).

"Since June 1994 the militarisation of the European Union has also been my focus within the European Parliament as coordinator of the Left Faction (GUE/NGL) in the Subcommittee on Security and Defence and in the Committee on Foreign Affairs. The militarisation of the European Union is being developed at lightning speed or [or AT THE SPEED OF LIGHT] even without a new EU constitutional treaty, with the establishment of thirteen EU battle groups from 2007 on, the EU Rapid Reaction Forces with 60,000 soldiers, and with the European Defence Agency which has already been established. I experience this in my daily work in the parliament. Other areas of work within and outside of the parliament are: peace policy, anti-fascism, European asylum policy, and anti-nuclear policy.

"Several international hearings have already taken place in the European Parliament, organised by the Peace Initiatives Intergroup in the EP, which I co-chair. The last hearing took place on 14 March, when Cindy Sheehan and the German major Florian Pfaff had been invited for a discussion with European conscientious objectors.

"I hope through WRI to improve the flow of information from the Subcommittee on Security and Defence into international networks of anti-war and peace organisation.

"A project to surveying and map military bases in Germany related to the military policy of the European Union is presently being worked. This can be a contribution to a world-wide survey of existing military bases and can provide helpful information both internationally and locally for an active anti-war organisation, and can support the demand for the dismantling of all military bases world-wide."

CV

• Member in the editorial board of the magazine “Science and Peace”.
• From January 2000 to December 2002 doctoral stipend holder of the Rosa-Luxemburg-Foundation.
• Since the end of 2002 active member in the scientific advisory board of attac.
• Participation and speeches at the European Social Forums in Florence (2002) and Paris (2003) and the World Social Forum in Mumbai (2004), Porto Alegre (2005), Caracas (2006) and Nairobi (2007).
• Active member in the DFG-VK (German Peace Society – United Opponents of War), passive in the BUND (Association for Environmental and Nature Protection), in the VCD (Traffic Club of Germany), in the VVN-BdA (Association of the Persecuted of the Nazi regime – Association of anti-fascists), in the trade union Ver.di (BA 8 in Ba-Wü), at the DAI (German- American Institute in Tübingen), formerly active at the tenants’ association Reutlingen-Tübingen, more active at the Rosa-Luxemburg Foundation Baden-Württemberg, and even more active of course at the Information Point Militarization. Since 2006 member in the WRI Council (War Resisters' International).
• Committees: Member in the Committee for Foreign Relations (AFET) and there also member in the Subcommittee for Security and Defence (SEDE) and speaker of the Left Fraction (GUE/NGL), substitute member in the Committee for the Economy and Currency (ECON)
• Delegations: First vice president of the delegation for the relations to the Gulf states and to Yemen, substitute member of the delegation for the relations to Croatia, member of the delegation for the relationship to the parliamentary assembly of NATO.
• Inter-parliamentary groups: Co-president of the “Inter-group Peace Initiatives”

• International Council, War Resisters' International