----- Original Message ----- From: "Soren" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, June 12, 2000 11:11 PM Subject: (50 Years) World Social Forum > From: Maria Luisa Mendon�a > > PLEASE DISTRIBUTE THIS INFORMATION: > > WORLD SOCIAL FORUM > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Porto Alegre, Brazil > January 25-30, 2001 > > The World Social Forum will be a new international arena for organizing > against neoliberal policies and for building economic alternatives that > prioritize social justice. > > It will take place every year in the city of Porto Alegre, Brazil, > during the same period as the World Economic Forum, which happens in > Davos, Switzerland, at the end of January. Since 1971, The World > Economic Forum has played a key role in formulating neoliberal policies > throughout the world. It's sponsored by a Swiss organization that serves > as a consultant to the United Nations and it's financed by more than one > thousand corporations. > > The World Social Forum will provide a space for building economic > alternatives, for exchanging experiences and for strengthening > South-North alliances between NGOs, unions and social movements. It will > also be an opportunity for developing concrete actions, to educate the > public, and to mobilize civil society internationally. > > The World Social Forum developed as a consequence of a growing > international movement that has gained greater visibility since the > mobilizations against the > Multilateral Agreement on Investments (MAI), which happened in Europe in > 1998, the demonstrations in Seattle, during the WTO meeting in 1999, and > the recent protests against the IMF and the World Bank in Washington, > DC, among others. > > For decades, these international financial institutions have been making > decisions that affect the lives of people all over the world, without > being subject to any sort of democratic control. People in Third World > countries, as well as the poor and excluded sectors of industrialized > countries suffer the devastating effects of economic globalization and > the dictatorship of international institutions such as the IMF, the > World Bank, the WTO and the governments that serve their interests. > > We need to continue pressuring these institutions to be accountable to > our societies. Similarly, our governments must be made aware that this > oversight will be exercised with increasing intensity over their > actions. Many of us have struggled in our own countries, regions, or > cities, thinking that we were isolated. Recently, we have begun to > realize that together we can constitute a planetary archipelago of > resistance. The World Social Forum represents a new opportunity toward > the construction of an international counter-power. > > Brazil is one the countries that has been greatly affected by neoliberal > policies. At the same time, different sectors of Brazilian society are > resisting these policies, in rural and urban areas, in shantytowns, > factories, political parties, churches, schools, etc. The richness of > Brazilian grassroots organizations represents a source of inspiration > for the development of the World Social Forum. > > The Brazilian Organizing Committee invites international networks of > NGOs, unions and social movements to help us build the World Social > Forum. We hope to receive support from organizations in the Americas, > Africa, Asia and Europe with a commitment to contribute with this > organizing process and to send delegations to Porto Alegre in January. > We are asking for a special commitment from organizations in the First > World to help funding delegations from their partner organizations in > Third World countries, in order to guarantee diversity within the World > Social Forum. > > The World Social Forum will represent a historic moment for organizing > and social change. Let's build it together! > > > Brazilian Organizing Committee: > > The Brazilian Association of Non-Governmental Organizations > (Associa��o Brasileira de Organiza��es N�o Governamentais, ABONG) > > Action for the Taxation of International Financial Transaction in > Support of Citizens > (A��o pela Tributa��o das Transa��es Financeiras em Apoio aos Cidad�os, > ATTAC-BR) > > The Brazilian Commission of Justice and Peace > (Comiss�o Brasileira de Justi�a e Paz) > > CIVES - Brazilian Association of Businesses for Citizenry > > The Central Union Federation > (Central �nica dos Trabalhadores, CUT) > > IBASE - Brazilian Institute for Social and Economic Analysis > > Global Justice Center (Centro de Justi�a Global) > > The Landless Workers Movement > (Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra, MST) > > > - Organizational Issues Regarding the World Social Forum > > 1) The World Social Forum (WSF) will take place in Porto Alegre, Rio > Grande do Sul state, Brazil, from January 25-30, 2001, the same period > in which the World Economic Forum occurs in Davos, Switzerland. > > 2) It will take place in the Events Center of the Catholic University of > Porto Alegre (Pontif�cia Universidade Cat�lica de Porto Alegre, PUC), > with the capacity for 2,500 people in a single auditorium. The PUC > Events Center is a modern facility with up-to-date technological > resources. The Center also has several smaller auditoriums. > > 3) The WSF will consist of three types of activities: > a) A series of daily plenary sessions with several invited speakers; > b) presentations of current initiatives and exchange of experiences; > c) strategy meetings to develop networks and to strengthen ties among > groups that engage in similar forms of organization. > > The plenary sessions will be scheduled by the organizers of the WSF in > accordance with suggestions by participants. The other meetings will be > organized based on the interests and requests of the participants. > > 4) The Events Center also has a large space for information tables and > art exhibits. > > 5) The Rio Grande do Sul state government and the Porto Alegre city > government (both are Workers Party administrations) officially support > the World Social Forum. > > 6) The International Committee of the World Social Forum will organize > its first meeting on June 24, 2000 in Geneva, Switzerland at the same > time as the Social Summit of the > United Nations' Copenhagen + 5, which will bring together organizations > and activists from all over the world. > > 7) Our priorities until then will be: > - To invite networks of NGOs, unions and social movements to form the > International Committee of the World Social Forum, with the > responsibility of organizing the event at the international level; > > - to establish topics for speeches and presentations to be given during > the WSF, in common agreement with the International Committee; > > - to invite speakers to the WSF; > > - to prepare the first meeting of the International Committee in > Geneva, Switzerland. > > - to invite Brazilian organizations for the National Support Committee > of the WSF; > > - to organize logistical issues, such as the communications systems, in > conjunction with the support committee in Porto Alegre, > > 7) We expect to attract 2,500 representatives of NGOs, unions and social > movements, as well as elected representatives. Participants must be > registered by their organizations. We will establish quotas for > different sectors and geographic areas. > > 8) The Brazilian Committee and the International Committee will be > responsible for guaranteeing the presence of Third World organizations, > in particular from Africa, Asia and Latin America. > > 9) Parallel events involving the WSF speakers can be organized in > coordination with the Brazilian Committee. > > 10) The World Social Forum is not a decision-making body. Participants, > however, can disseminate proposals and positions resulted from > organizing meetings. > > 11) At the Forum's closure, we will organize a large public event. We > will also evaluate our organizing process and make decisions for the > following year. > > > To get involved or to request further information, please write to: > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > __ > > =========================================================== > 50 Years Is Enough Network http://www.50years.org > To unsubscribe, email [EMAIL PROTECTED] with > unsubscribe > in the body of the message. Questions? email [EMAIL PROTECTED] <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. 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