Sign online: FERPA-Petition The European Federation of Retired and Older People (FERPA), and affiliate of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), speaks for some 10 million women and men pensioners in 23 European countries. It was set up in 1993 to argue the pensioners' agenda at European level. FERPA's membership is committed to a society based on solidarity, social and employment rights, full employment, social justice, a fairer share-out of wealth, respect for the individual, and fighting all forms of discrimination and social exclusion. FERPA's members work on a daily basis with the youth and worker members of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) for a good European Constitution, full employment and a more social, democratic and transparent European Union, better able to play its world role in support of peace and more social justice. The Petition that FERPA's pensioner members are asking you to sign calls for compliance with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and with article 25, which says that "the Union recognises and respects the rights of the elderly to lead a life of dignity and independence and to participate in social and cultural life". The voice of pensioners must be heeded by the European Institutions when discussing and taking decisions in areas that affect pensioners' daily lives, like public health, pensions, services of general interest, dependency provision, non-work-related learning, and so on. That can be done by consulting FERPA and the most representative pensioners and older people's organizations at European level. Since 1 May 2004, Europe has had 80 million pensioned and older citizens. Their voice counts for a lot in a democratic Europe!