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POLITICS-KENYA: Campaigners Seek Gov't Participation in WSF Meetings
By Joyce Mulama
NAIROBI, Jan 30 (IPS) - As dust begins to settle on the just concluded World
Social Forum, some civil society activists are suggesting that governments
should be allowed to participate in future meetings.
Without their engagement, the campaigners argue, it will be hard to
implement recommendations drawn from the forum, whose policy marginalises
governments.
"It is not enough to just go out there, shout, and then come back to
continue with our lives. As civil society, we must begin to look at how we
can engage governments because they are the ones with power to effect
reforms," says Gertrude Kopiyo, Programme Director of Gender Sensitive
Initiative, a Nairobi-based non-governmental organisation (NGO).
Kopiyo took part in the World Social Forum (WSF) held in the Indian
coastal city of Mumbai from Jan. 16-21. About 100,000 campaigners from
across the world, mostly developing nations, met in the city to protest
against the effects of globalisation, unfair loaning policies from the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. They also protested
against the unfriendly trading policies being advocated by the World Trade
Organisation (WTO). Other topics discussed included HIV/AIDS, debt relief
and gender.
"We tackled matters affecting women such as violence, and discrimination
in areas such as education. Since the situation is similar in many
countries, recommendations were drawn for implementation," Kopiyo says. "At
country level, we need to translate them into action, and this cannot be
done without government."
Concurring, Ababu Namwamba, of Chambers of Justice, an international
rights organisation, says: "We need government to listen to us and be able
to effect reforms arising from such forums."
Namwamba presented a paper in Mumbai on Africa's crippling
300-billion-dollar debt that, he argued, was as a result of high interests
pegged on loans awarded to governments by donor institutions.
He says governments' presence in WSF would enable officials to listen
more to campaigners.
But others disagree. "It is not a matter of having government at the
negotiating table. The idea of the forum is to be able to distil its agenda
of protesting against hostile western policies," Oduor Ong'wen, a key
speaker in Mumbai on unfair trade between developed and least developed
countries, told IPS.
"WSF is a protest forum against the World Economic Forum (WEF) that takes
place in Davos, Switzerland, every year. It is the Third World governments
that effect unfair policies originating from the west. And that is why this
forum is opposed to government presence," he says.
WSF was formed to provide alternative thinking from WEF, a grouping of
western political and economic "heavyweights" who determine the World Order.
According to Ong'wen, WSF holds the key to a better world free of
suppression by the world's rich nations if it tackles policies that impact
negatively on developing countries, mostly in Africa.
"Africa has never had space to make its own policies. It has been relying
on policy packages designed by colonialists and the donor community.
Sometimes we have good policies that favour us but are trampled upon by the
west," he claims.
Ong'wen says continuous pressure by anti-globalisation campaigners will
transform the world.
Namwamba agrees. "Never before has there been an organised movement to
counter western forces that have for a long time taken advantage of the
(African) continent," he says. "WSF provides an opportunity for civil
society organisations to ventilate and express their opinions even if there
is no one listening."
But critics warn that the WSF still does not have enough teeth. "This is
still a young event that needs to gain root first. As of now, there is
nothing much that can come from it, it may be just another talk show and an
opportunity for people to globe trot," says Edward Otambo, a university
student in Kenya's capital, Nairobi.
Mutahi Ngunyi, a renowned political scientist, says "WSF, a perfect tool,
puts governments on their toes by checking their performances".
"WSF is absolutely necessary for purposes of producing shadow reports on
government performance, and the only way to keep authorities in check is to
have shadow reports by civil society," Ngunyi states.
The first, second and third WSF was held in 2001, 2002 and 2003
respectively, in Porto Alegre, Brazil. (END/2004)
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