Skip to content or view mobile version

Home | Mobile | Editorial | Mission | Privacy | About | Contact | Help | Security | Support

A network of individuals, independent and alternative media activists and organisations, offering grassroots, non-corporate, non-commercial coverage of important social and political issues.

OSCE meeting in Porto

Alternativa Social do Porto | 20.10.2002 12:34

Please check our manifesto and subscribe it if you fell it expresses what you feel. Or even best... come to Porto (portugal) by the end of November and stay for a few days. Please feel free to ask for english updates to our mailing list

Porto Social Alternative

1.
During the mid-seventies, in the peak of the Cold War, an organization was created with the purpose of softening the clash between the two world superpowers (that organization would evolve to become OSCE today). Back then the organization's purposes were established by the Helsinki decalogue:

1.Sovereign equality, respect for the rights inherent in sovereignty;
2.Refraining from the threat or use of force;
3.Inviolability of frontiers;
4.Territorial integrity of States;
5.Peaceful settlement of disputes;
6.Non-intervention in internal affairs;
7.Respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms including
the freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief;
8.Equal rights and self-determination of peoples;
9.Co-operation among States;
10.Fulfilment in good faith of obligations under international law.

All this is nothing but hypocrisy and colourful yet meaningless words - as was later shown when one of the superpowers disrupted the equilibrium of forces in the world, eventually leading to a fratricidal war in Central Europe (ex-Yugoslavia). Nowadays, with the end of the Cold War and the establishment of a new world order, new priorities have arisen for the OSCE:

1. To consolidate the participating States' common values and help in
building fully democratic civil societies based on the rule of law;
2. To prevent local conflicts, restore stability and bring peace to war-torn
areas;
3. To overcome real and perceived security deficits and to avoid the
creation of new political, economic or social divisions by promoting
a co-operative system of security.

Just as the initial priorities of the seventies, these new purposes are nothing but a façade of respectability (claiming to be ideologically fair and supposingly aimed to defend the universal benefit) when, in reality, their single purpose is to uphold the interest of money and profit over people.
Particularly, in this time period after the September 11th, when the oppression and the threats on the individual freedoms and citizen's fundamental rights are increasing alarmingly, we cannot allow ourselves not to make the representatives of this new world order feel that they are the sole responsible entities for the terror, the economical insecurity, the inequality and the continuous destruction of the planet.

2.
We have come to a moment in time in which the omnipotent and ever-present money appears behind every corner of people's lives. In these tough times, it becomes more and more clear that the choice is between it and us, the human beings trapped in this capitalized world and the all-mighty currency.
In fact, how can they sustain the flag of "upholding the law"(a law which stands above the citizens themselves), if the offences to the remaining human dignity are caused by the law itself? Current legislations predict the positive discrimination in favour of the upper classes and point the finger to the common man as being held responsible for the crisis of the world lords and their system in which we are treated like parts of a machine.
What kind of security and cooperation is this in which legislations will consider us all suspects of terrorism or accuse us of committing some other equally hedious crime just because we dare to think differently from the institutionalised way?
Under the façade of defending "our civilization", brutality spreads everywhere, insuring that rich get richer and poor get poorer and wars are started because of merely economical and geo-strategical reasons.
Under the façade of "our freedoms", the label "terrorist" is applied to anyone that might have thought one day: "What we need is a change!"
Under the façade of protecting "our security", they breakthrough our computers, go through our mail, tap our phones. They know what we do, what we like, on what we spend our money.
Under all this hides the supreme commander - Profit. It's the same old oppressive ideologies with a whole new fresh outlook. Profit is still the supreme reason and purpose, everything else becoming secondary.
Do not doubt. if you get in the way of Profit, you shall not survive!

3.
The representatives of this new world order, under the entity of OSCE, are aiming to gather up in Porto. Being aware of their role, we do not expect good things for Humanity arising from this meeting. So, a group of concerned citizens of this planet has decided to unite and proclaim protest during the OSCE meeting in Porto, next December 4th-5th.
In this way, the Porto Social Alternative is created!

4.
The Porto Social Alternative is a free association of individuals and collective groups that reads under the same basic statement, the above mentioned (namely in 2.) and under the organizing principles here defined (namely in 4.). The Porto Social Alternative intends to manifest an alternative path to capitalist organization, and it intervenes on the occasion of the OSCE meeting in Porto.
The basic statement and the organizing principles of the Porto Social Alternative are to be followed by everyone who decides to join. They can only be changed through absolute consensus.
The Porto Social Alternative is, from the start, an organization with a defined time span.
The Porto Social Alternative organizes itself under the principle of autonomy. Every action organized under its name is to be submitted to consensus. The individuals though, possess the autonomy to take action under their own name, of course.
The Porto Social Alternative is a strictly horizontal organization. Therefore, no individual or collective group is hierarchically placed above others.. Smaller groups can be formed, though, to best carry out the general decisions.
The actions of the specific groups should always be ratified if no other possible form of control is found. No such specific group has a regular existence and can be dissolved and reinstated at any time.

Porto, September 28th 2002



The Porto Social Alternative runs open organizational meetings, to which everyone that agrees with this document is welcome. The public call for these meetings is made through the site www.azine.org. The Porto Social Alternative calls for the citizens from all over the world to step forward in order to coordinate their will with our own. If you agree with this document and want to subscribe it, please write to  forumsocialp@yahoogroups.com manifesting your intention.

Alternativa Social do Porto
- e-mail: forumsocialp@yahoogroups.com
- Homepage: www.azine.org

Upcoming Coverage
View and post events
Upcoming Events UK
24th October, London: 2015 London Anarchist Bookfair
2nd - 8th November: Wrexham, Wales, UK & Everywhere: Week of Action Against the North Wales Prison & the Prison Industrial Complex. Cymraeg: Wythnos o Weithredu yn Erbyn Carchar Gogledd Cymru

Ongoing UK
Every Tuesday 6pm-8pm, Yorkshire: Demo/vigil at NSA/NRO Menwith Hill US Spy Base More info: CAAB.

Every Tuesday, UK & worldwide: Counter Terror Tuesdays. Call the US Embassy nearest to you to protest Obama's Terror Tuesdays. More info here

Every day, London: Vigil for Julian Assange outside Ecuadorian Embassy

Parliament Sq Protest: see topic page
Ongoing Global
Rossport, Ireland: see topic page
Israel-Palestine: Israel Indymedia | Palestine Indymedia
Oaxaca: Chiapas Indymedia
Regions
All Regions
Birmingham
Cambridge
Liverpool
London
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
Wales
World
Other Local IMCs
Bristol/South West
Nottingham
Scotland
Social Media
You can follow @ukindymedia on indy.im and Twitter. We are working on a Twitter policy. We do not use Facebook, and advise you not to either.
Support Us
We need help paying the bills for hosting this site, please consider supporting us financially.
Other Media Projects
Schnews
Dissident Island Radio
Corporate Watch
Media Lens
VisionOnTV
Earth First! Action Update
Earth First! Action Reports
Topics
All Topics
Afghanistan
Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-Nuclear
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Energy Crisis
Fracking
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Policing
Public sector cuts
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista
Major Reports
NATO 2014
G8 2013
Workfare
2011 Census Resistance
Occupy Everywhere
August Riots
Dale Farm
J30 Strike
Flotilla to Gaza
Mayday 2010
Tar Sands
G20 London Summit
University Occupations for Gaza
Guantanamo
Indymedia Server Seizure
COP15 Climate Summit 2009
Carmel Agrexco
G8 Japan 2008
SHAC
Stop Sequani
Stop RWB
Climate Camp 2008
Oaxaca Uprising
Rossport Solidarity
Smash EDO
SOCPA
Past Major Reports
Encrypted Page
You are viewing this page using an encrypted connection. If you bookmark this page or send its address in an email you might want to use the un-encrypted address of this page.
If you recieved a warning about an untrusted root certificate please install the CAcert root certificate, for more information see the security page.

Global IMC Network


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa

Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india


United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech