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| Number 2 | December 1998 | ||
Contents |
Globalisation and People’s Alliance Some Citizens’ Movements... In the context of globalisation, the actors of a civil society are forced to invent new forms of action and coordination. Challenges are posed both at the national level (interactions between social classes and relations with the State) and the international level. To announce some of the actions that the Earth Citizens Assembly might take, here are a few contemporary examples: Citizens’ Action against Hunger, Poverty and for Life (Brazil) This Citizens’ Action started in 1993 as a movement against the extent of poverty observed in this country (32 million people facing famine conditions). Taking off from statements like "Democracy and poverty are incompatible" and "Everyone is capable of pinpointing poverty in his locality" (Betinho), this movement appealed to various sectors of the society and tried to tie up the need and the action with medium and long-term structures. It is neither an organised movement nor a centralised organisation. It is just a dynamic movement which is followed by more than three million people taking up a number of local initiatives for discussions at the regional and national levels in various forums. Even if the results were disappointing at the political level and as far as the federal governments’ actions were concerned, they were able to sensitise the society. This can over time definitely change something with regard to social relations and citizens’ participation in development. The National Alliance of People’s Movements (India) This alliance, which was created on Medha Patkar’s initiative, combines movements which include social groups in India living on natural resources or marginalised by an age-old tradition, and the contemporary type of economic development: women, untouchables, landless farmers, fishermen, craftsmen, slum dwellers, tribals, etc. On a major action day in 1998, NAPM not only denounced the New Economic Policy, the construction of dams, the hold of multinationals and the World Trade Organisation, but also demonstrated other ways of producing and consuming (indigenous technology, local exchanges, non-consumerist life styles, etc.). It even appealed for the creation of a new social order based on people’s power. The Zapatist Movement (Mexico) The National Liberation Zapatist Army (EZLN) is a new form of political struggle in Latin America. This "bare-feet army" with poor people does not seek to take over power. Since they got together in 1994, they simply wanted to spark off a national debate on the rights of the indigenous populations, and more generally, the rights of the very poor and also to assert that "Enough is enough! Y a basta!". For that, they maintain a close contact with public opinion and the media. This feature transformed them into an international symbol of the struggle of the oppressed against all forms of oppression, old and new. It enables them to organise several "global" meetings against neoliberalism, right in the area of conflict. The signing of the San Andrès Agreements gave hope that there could be a positive solution to their struggle. But, the army is still around in the mountains of South-East Mexico. The Forum of the Poor (Thailand) About 20 000 people squatted with their tents and provisions for 77 days (March-April 1997), bang in the centre of Bangkok at the Government House. They were members of 121 protest groups who came with their families to demand their rights. They mainly included agricultural farmers, fishermen whose means of livelihood were threatened, people from the slums of Bangkok, expelled indigenous populations, etc. All these groups were united. Every morning, they practised meditation in order to collect their minds before sending their leaders to meet the government. The evening was spent in meeting groups and leaders for reviewing the situation. Some groups won their case very soon, but the entire movement was carried on till all the rights of all the groups were admitted. The "Forum of the Poor" ended with the decision that the following year they would come in greater numbers if the government did not keep the promises made to them. And they did what they said in July 1998. American Peoples’ Summit This meeting was called while the Santiago summit (Chili, April 1998) was in session with the Heads of State concerned to launch the American Free Trade Zone. The American Peoples’ Summit was a step towards the construction of a ‘intersectorial continental social alliance’ and the setting up of an alternative proposal for development by trade unions and people’s movements in the continent. In the same manner, while the G8 Summit between the rich nations of the world was in session, the New Economics Foundation (Great Britain) presented a different analysis and a series of proposals with the support of the People’s Summit. It suggested that external social and economic "external" factors must be taken into account, new economic movements must be recognised and measures at the international level should be taken. For all these steps, it is necessary to go beyond purely financial aspects to include social and ecological concerns. Association for Taxing Financial People’s Global Action against
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