[WSF-Discuss] [Fwd: [Iwc] report on the Americas Social Forum]
Madhuresh [Work]
madhuresh at cacim.net
Sat Nov 1 06:36:58 UCT 2008
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: [Iwc] report on the Americas Social Forum
Date: Sat, 1 Nov 2008 10:03:46 +0530
From: Meena Menon <meenamen at gmail.com>
To: iwc at wsfindia.net <iwc at wsfindia.net>, igc at wsfindia.net
<igc at wsfindia.net>
*Reflections on the III Americas Social Forum, Guatemala*
By Michael Leon Guerrero and Cindy Wiesner
Grassroots Global Justice Alliance
The 3rd Americas Social Forum (ASF3) convened October 7-12, 2008 in
Guatemala City was an important and exciting benchmark for the global
social forum process. It was grounded by its grassroots nature with
strong participation of peasants, women, and indigenous peoples, and by
the dialogues and debates of alternatives to neoliberal capitalism based
on actual experience. We would like to share what we see as some of the
key characteristics of ASF3 that marked the event as an important
advance for the overall World Social Forum (WSF) process.
The central role of indigenous peoples and women – thousands of the
indigenous people were represented from throughout Guatemala and the
region. Many of them integrated into the National Coordination of
Indigenous Peoples and Campesinos (CONIC), Waqib Kej, the Committee of
the Peasant Union (CUC) and broader alliances such as the Confederation
of Latin American Peasant Organizations (CLOC) and Via Campesina. The
Central Plenary: "Failures of Capitalism: Our Struggle for Land Reform
and the Integration of Peoples to the ALBA" was represented by all
indigenous panelists, Daniel Pascual from CNOC, Tom Goldtooth,
Indigenous Environmental Network, Moira Millán, Frente Mapuche y
Campesino de Argentina and Mirallay Painemal, Mapuche de Chile, CLOC,
Via Campesina. Indigenous communities throughout Guatemala are under
attack by multinational corporations and the government for mineral
resources, water and transportation infrastructure. This was a common
theme throughout the Americas reflected in the workshops and debates.
Local, regional and international women's organizations had a strong and
visible presence at the forum – groups like the Sector de Mujeres from
Guatemala, Mesoamericanas en Resistencia, Las Dignas from El Salvador,
Health Network of Women in Latin American and the Caribbean (RSMLAC)
with representation from Nicaragua, El Salvador and Honduras, and the
World March of Women, which has been one of the central movement
networks in the social forum process. The dialogues reflected the
political advancement of feminist theory beyond the right to one's body
or the right to choose. Slogans, banners, literature, and workshops,
consistently integrated the theme that the fight for sovereignty is a
fight for one's body and one's territory/land and that feminist
struggles include the fight against capitalism, racism, patriarchy and
homophobia.
Feminists also generated one of the major debates within the forum as
strong declarations were made denouncing the Sandinista government in
Nicaragua for its ban on abortion rights. This was a concession of the
Sandinista government to establish a coalition with the Catholic Church
that could hold power in the country. Some local organizers and
Sandinista supporters criticized the denunciation, asserting that the
debate should not have been brought before the ASF.
The sharpening of common struggles – at the beginning of the decade,
neoliberalism was symbolized by global financial institutions like the
World Trade Organization, the World Bank, the International Monetary
Fund, the G-8 and the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). Largely
due to the success of the global justice movement, these initiatives
have either been defeated or stalled. The FTAA was declared dead and
buried by Hugo Chavez and other Latin American Presidents in November,
2005 in Mar de Plata, WTO negotiations have met strong popular
resistance and is currently in limbo, the IMF and WB have lost much of
their financing and political influence.
In the absence of these common targets, however, the social movements
have found it increasingly difficult to define common points of
reference. Many of the movements reverted to local and national
struggles against new bilateral trade agreements, national elections and
other local fights. The overall themes defined by ASF3 helped to reveal
and sharpen common trends, primary among these were:
- The militarization of the Americas. With the expansion of U.S.
military bases, the revival of the U.S. Navy's 4th Fleet, and an
increase in covert operations by the U.S. against Venezuela and Bolivia,
the fledgling Leftist governments face a renewed assault by U.S.
imperial aggression.
- Bilateral trade agreements – Both the U.S. and Europe have begun to
engage in negotiations for trade agreements with individual nations like
Peru and Colombia, and regions such as Central America and the Andes.
- Environmental justice and sovereignty – Communities throughout the
Americas are under attack for exploitation of energy, minerals, water
and other resources. This is intensifying health and environmental
impacts as well as global warming.
- Control over resources – militarization of the Americas accompanies
the overall strategies of the U.S. and Europe to lock down control over
vital natural resources. Trade agreements are accompanied by energy and
security agreements like the Security and Prosperity Partnership, the
Mérida accords, and the Plan Puebla Panamá. These pacts include massive
infrastructure projects to move water, energy and minerals north, while
the trade agreements move products south to the markets opened by the
trade agreements.
- Criminalization of social movements – in addition to the mobilization
of armed forces, internal security laws are being adopted by Latin
American governments modeled after the U.S. Patriot Act and Homeland
Security. Political resistance to neoliberal strategies are being
violently repressed. Several movement organizers at the ASF3 noted that
interrogations and monitoring of organizations, as well as political
assassinations are increasing. An assassination attempt was made on one
of the coordinators of ASF3 3 weeks before the forum convened. As Hector
de la Cueva of the Mexican Network Against Free Trade (RMALC) recently
commented: "the face of neoliberalism is now militarism."
_
Another World in Practice: Debate about concrete alternatives to
neoliberalism and global capitalism _
The central purpose of the social forum process is to define
alternatives to neoliberal capitalism. With the collapse of the Soviet
Union and throughout the globe, for a moment the social movements were
all that stood in the way of the march of neoliberalism. Mass
mobilizations were key in challenging the neoliberal juggernaut at the
turn of the century, but it was clear that resistance had to be matched
by a process to define alternatives to capitalism and the failed models
of Soviet socialism. The World Social Forum (WSF) heralded that "Another
World is Possible" and established a political broad and strategically
diverse "open space" to define this other world. Yet discussions and
debates tended to be theoretical exercises, lofty and ambiguous
declarations, or strategic responses to struggles.
The latter half of the decade saw the emergence of electoral victories
for the Left in a number of countries, particularly in Latin America:
Hugo Chavez in Venezuela, Lula in Brazil, Evo Morales in Bolivia, Rafael
Correa in Ecuador, Christine and Nestor Kirchner in Argentina, Tabaré
Vazquez in Uruguay, Fernando Lugo in Paraguay, Michelle Bachelet in
Chile, Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua, Raúl Castro in Cuba. Although these
Presidents represent a broad political spectrum from the center-left to
revolutionary ideology, they are generally aligned in challenging the
neoliberal agenda that imposes privatization of public resources,
domination of the market in determining social and political
relationships, deregulation of laws that protect the public and the
environment, and reduction of the government's role to supporting
corporate power.
The presence of most of the governments was strongly felt, although not
officially (keeping in accordance with social forum principles). Two
factors made their presence even more significant: 1) the backdrop of
the ongoing collapse of the US financial sector, and 2) discussion about
these Left experiments based on concrete experience and practice, not
just on theory and ideology.
Alberto Acosta, President of the National Constituent Assembly of
Ecuador, arrived with the new Ecuadorian constitution fresh in hand. The
Constitution is founded in the concept of "buen vivir" or "quality of
life" guaranteeing basic rights of all Ecuadorians to basic services
such as health, education, water and electricity. They also establish
the concept of "universal citizenship" meaning that all those who live
within the borders of Ecuador, although not citizens, enjoy the same
benefits of citizens.
Acosta said in a panel on the new socialist governments: "There will not
be one recipe, we must all respond to our unique situations." He also
spoke of the need to establish a "dynamic relationship between the
market, the government and society." Acosta's vision concedes that the
market is important to the economy, but that it "must be in service to
society, not the other way around. Similarly, all power cannot be
centralized within the government. "We must humanize the government and
civilize the market."
Evo Morales was scheduled to speak at the forum, but is currently
confronting the challenge of the wealthy white oligarchs in the Media
Luna region of Bolivia, who are fighting to maintain control of land,
oil and gas. Morales has nationalized these resources in order to
redistribute revenues to the entire population of Bolivia. In a
statement to the ASF3, Morales also defined principles of "quality of
life" as the agenda for Bolivia, challenging capitalism and imperialist
exploitation of the Americas.
Defining "socialism for the 21st century", named by Hugo Chavez at the
2nd ASF in 2006, has become the new challenge for the emerging
governments as well as the social movements. In a workshop packed with
organizers and activists throughout the Americas, social movement
representatives from Chile, Cuba, Brazil, and the U.S. spoke about the
new opportunities presented by the Bolivarian Alternatives to the
Americas (ALBA), a model of economic integration established as an
alternative to the "free" trade agreements being imposed by the U.S. and
Europe. The ALBA has now been signed by 8 countries (Honduras signed as
the workshop was happening), which agree to share resources in a
cooperative way. The ALBA is primarily anchored by Venezuela and Cuba
who exchange oil and technical assistance for doctors and teachers
respectively. The ALBA also makes room for participation of social
movements through a special advisory committee, which is unheard of in
other trade regimes.
However, the ALBA has not generated universal support. Indigenous
communities are concerned about the agreement and what integration will
mean. Despite the participation of Evo Morales and the Bolivian
government in the ALBA process, many indigenous nations remain
marginalized from it. In one of the large gatherings, an indigenous
representative said, "this little word (integration) usually means that
we lose our land and resources".
_Challenges Moving Forward_
Two key challenges face the evolution of the socialist experiments and
the social movements in the Americas. 1) The need to assure that
indigenous leadership is central to the process. Socialism for the 21st
century cannot be realized without a true incorporation of indigenous
thought, practice and vision where such a large percentage of the
Americas is indigenous. Ecuador is one country that is grappling with
this as their Constitution envisions a "plurinational" state. 2) The
need for the feminization of the movement and a central role for queer
and transgender people. Overcoming patriarchal leadership models will be
key to building true democratic practice and allow for vital diverse
leadership to flourish. 3) The need for African descendant populations
to also have central leadership in the process. This has yet to be
effectively addressed. Hopefully the location of the next WSF in the
Amazonian city of Belém, Brazil will mark a turning point in
participation by African descendants, as the ASF3 was for indigenous
peoples.
ASF3 made great strides on these fronts, but there is still much work to
be done. Although diverse representation and leadership in the process
was strong, there was still a noticeable disconnect between sectors.
Women's movements primarily congregated around the Women's tent,
indigenous peoples centered around the IGLU (University building) or the
Campesin at s Tent, social movements activities converged in the S10
building as did the youth. There were few moments where all of these
different forces came together. When it did happen, the debates were
dynamic, and challenging. The Social Movements Assembly was a reflection
of this, and captured the overall spirit, character and substance of the
forum. The closing march and rally were also a call for the deepening
diversity of the Left. An important example is a leaflet put out
announcing the closing march by the National Guatemalan Campesin@
Alliance- CNOC. It was titled: A Call to March on October 12. Day of
Resistance for Campesinos, Indigenous Peoples, Afro-Descendants,
Lesbians, Unions and Popular Movements.
_
The Process of the Americas_
Participation from the U.S. was also key in ASF3. The Grassroots Global
Justice Alliance brought 40 representatives from 20 grassroots
organizations. Southwest Workers Union and the Indigenous Environmental
Network co-organized workshops on the "Wall of Death" on the U.S.-Mexico
border, climate change and environmental justice, the National Domestic
Workers Alliance laid the groundwork to internationalize their network
and organized two workshops. GGJ also held a workshop giving an overview
of grassroots struggles in the U.S. The delegation met with
representatives from the Hemispheric Social Alliance, which was
established to challenge free trade policies throughout the Americas,
COMPA, and the World March of Women. GGJ will seek to deepen
relationships and build working partnerships with these groups.
In addition, the U.S. Social Forum National Planning Committee sent
representatives and organized a reception to honor the Guatemala
Facilitation Committee and the Hemispheric Council (HC) – the two bodies
tasked with organizing the forum process. GGJ and Southwest Workers
Union also had representation on the HC, participating in planning
meetings over the course of the past year. GGJ had a staff person in
Guatemala a week before the event to help coordinate with the local
facilitation committee.
"The US Social Forum and ASF3 mark the closing of the loop in U. S.
participation in the Americas social movements," commented Joel Suarez
of the Martin Luther King Center in La Havana, Cuba, "Now we can truly
talk about a process of the Americas."
In an op/ed piece for the /Prensa Libre/, Ileana Alamilla eloquently
described the Americas Social Forum as a politically significant event
in the struggle against tyranny. In her words, the forum was triumphant
in "liberating the words that for centuries of silence have been held
hostage." In Guatemala, we all witnessed a glimpse of what another
America looks like and most important what it is saying to the world.
Michael Leon Guerrero and Cindy Wiesner are Co-Coordinators of the
Grassroots Global Justice Alliance (GGJ): www.ggjalliance.org
<http://www.ggjalliance.org/>. For more information about GGJ's
delegation to the Americas Social Forum, visit
http://ggjalliance.blogspot.com <http://ggjalliance.blogspot.com/>.
--
Cindy Wiesner
Grassroots Global Justice Alliance/Alianza Popular
por la Justicia Global
305.735.3256
cindy at ggjalliance.org <mailto:cindy at ggjalliance.org>
www.ggjalliance.org <http://www.ggjalliance.org/>
Mailing Address:
1330 NE 132nd Street
North Miami, FL 33161
--
Focus On The Global South, India
A-201, Kailash Apartments
Juhu Church Road, Juhu
Mumbai – 400 049. India
Tel: +91-22-6592 1141 / 51
Telefax: +91-22-2625 4347
Email: focusind at vsnl.net <mailto:focusind at vsnl.net> / focusind at yahoo.com
<mailto:focusind at yahoo.com>
Website: http://www.focusweb.org
--
**********************************************
Office :
CACIM
A-3 Defence Colony, New Delhi 110 024, India
Ph / Fx : +91-11-4155 1521 (O)
madhuresh at cacim.net [Work]]
www.cacim.net / www.openspaceforum.net
Residence :
32-D, DDA Flats, Masjid Moth, Phase 1, New Delhi 110 048
Ph : +91-11-1614 2140 (R), +91-98-1890 5316 (Mobile)
Email : kmadhuresh at gmail.com [Personal
-------------- next part --------------
An embedded and charset-unspecified text was scrubbed...
Name: Attached Message Part
URL: <http://mail.openspaceforum.net/pipermail/worldsocialforum-discuss_openspaceforum.net/attachments/20081101/c94308a1/attachment.ksh>
-------------- next part --------------
An embedded and charset-unspecified text was scrubbed...
Name: Attached Message Part
URL: <http://mail.openspaceforum.net/pipermail/worldsocialforum-discuss_openspaceforum.net/attachments/20081101/c94308a1/attachment.asc>
More information about the WorldSocialForum-Discuss
mailing list