More about the Meet on March 11

March 11, 2004. Ten bombs exploded on four trains during the rush hour in Madrid. More than 190 people died, almost two thousand were injured. It was one of the most devastating terrorist attacks in Europe in recent history. As in the United States of America on September 11 2001, it was an attack on freedom and democracy by an international network of terrorists.

The people of Spain responded by taking to the streets to demonstrate that they would not be cowed.

On March 11 2005 the route to Atocha station will again be filled by people demonstrating their continued determination to find a democratic response to terrorism and the threat of terror.

openDemocracy, along with the world leaders who make up the Club de Madrid, is inviting people around the world to join with them by holding their own gatherings on that day.

Instead of taking to the streets, we ask everyone who believes that the core principles of democratic government contain within themselves the basis of an effective response to terrorism to sit down with those around them and talk about what this could mean.

We want the people of the world to remember the dead and injured, not just in Madrid but from around the world. We want people to think about the nature of the threats facing modern democracies, and to decide for themselves what governments and people can do together to preserve democracy in a world where terror is used as a political tool.

Those meeting on March 11 will not be aligned with one party, one viewpoint or one political philosophy. They will reflect all areas of debate and include all parties and points of view, united only by their belief in democracy and rejection of terror.

We invite you to be part of this new, open, politics. We invite you to sit down on March 11 and reflect on democracy and terrorism. We invite you to join us in creating a new space in which this vital issue can be discussed, a new focus for debate and action.

And we invite you to tell us, and the governments of the world, what you think. Use this website to find out more, register your meeting and post a report on what you discussed. This will form part of the world-wide consultation on the Madrid Agenda and help influence the message being passed to political leaders.