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.

The European Social Forum - Coming to the UK in 2004?

imc uk | 25.01.2004 00:00 | European Social Forum

In January 120,000 people from around the globe converged on Mumbai, India for the World Social Forum (WSF). They came to discuss and organise against neo-liberalism, war and for a world of justice, peace and equality [WSF Lands on Mumbai].

Last year 60,000 altermondailists met in Paris for the European Social Forum (ESF). Addressing similar problems, one result was the European Day of Migrant Struggles on Saturday January 31st. [ESF - Paris Dossier]. The previous year in Florence gave rise to the day of protest against the war on Iraq on February 15th, 2003.

The movement started with the first meeting of the WSF in Porto Allegre, Brasil [Official History] it was organisationally dominated by the Brazilian Workers Party (PT). Since many social fora have been created around the world, often with a traditional party at their core. At best, these give activists a space to exchange experiences and ideas, a chance for networks to get together face to face. For some the "rock concert for political hacks" :-) For the newcomer an ESF presents a bewildering array of causes and struggles and contradictions.

The ESF Assembly decided the 2004 European Social Forum would be in Britain. The ever more fraught process is underway...

esf 2004?
esf 2004?


Seen by many, the ESF in UK would be a fantastic opportunity. Tens of thousands of activists involved in an exciting new way of working together. A supposed stress on openness, pluralism, self-organisation, non-hierarchical structures and consensus decision-making. Political parties and government institutions are formally excluded from being represented in the Forum.

In Florence the ESF organisation was dominated by the Democratic Left (DS) and more so the Communist Refoundation (PRC); Paris ATTAC original WSF supporters close to the Socialist Party (PS) were at the fore. This has caused activists to stay away or distance themselves from event. On the fringes we have had the successful HUB, GLAD, MediaLab. But also many who argue the ESF is wedded to the liberal agenda and a distraction.

The ESF has agreed to abide by the World Social Forum Charter of Principles, which states that:

"The World Social Forum is a plural, diversified, non-confessional, non-governmental and non-party context that, in a decentralized fashion, interrelates organisations and movements engaged in concrete action at levels from the local to the international to build another world," (item 8)
"The World Social Forum will always be a forum open to pluralism and to the diversity of activities and ways of engaging of the organisations and movements that decide to participate in it, as well as the diversity of genders, ethnicities, cultures, generations and physical capacities, providing they abide by this Charter of Principles." (item 9)

In theory building the event provides a space in which the diversity of people struggling for justice and peace work together.

However, many activists involved in the organising process for what has become the ESF in London are accusing the Socialist Workers' Party (aka Globalise Resistance) - a traditional, hierarchical and authoritarian sect - a clutch of national trade union officials and the private office of the Mayor of London, of hijacking the organising process. Holding closed negotiations, packing meetings, blackmailing the process with the withdraw of funds and disregarding the consensus principle. Far from being a forum in which to discuss, compromise and progress together, some activists believe that self-appointed organisers are working to exclude some of the diverse groups and networks of the UK anti-capitalist movement from being involved. While continually claiming that the process will be "open", "accountable" and "transparent", in practice it has been and is none of these things.

Reports: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | ... appearing on the esf topic newswire all the time

Further reading:
ESF reports from the CPGB, Red Pepper and of course the in-depth reporting from the Socialist Worker. ESF 2004 unofficial discussion site. IMC UK ESF documentation.

imc uk

Comments

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