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An article from Métro (translated by CPNN)

We expected 50 000, but it was rather 35 000 people who participated in the World Social Forum (WSF) 2016, which ended Sunday in Montreal. Organizers estimate however that the event is a success. According to the co-ordinator Carminda Mac Lorin, visa applications from hundreds of international guests were refused or delayed which has undoubtedly contributed to the low number, as compared to 60 000 people in 2013 in Tunis and 155 000 in Porto Alegre in 2005.

Barely a hundred people attended the closing ceremony of the World Social Forum on Sunday at Jarry Park. Photo by Mario Beauregard / Metro

“These refusals were ultimately positive, because they have made it possible to make public a subject we do not talk about enough: the issues of international mobility, closure of borders, and refugees,” said Mrs. Mac Lorin, who conducted a debriefing meeting on Sunday with the International Council of the WSF.

The organizers are also proud of the diversity of countries represented by the participants (125), and the variety of topics covered in the forum. “The people who were involved at the forum put forward many initiatives they are going to implement, whether in relation to the status of women, indigenous rights, demilitarization or the fight against violations of human rights by mining companies, “expressed Mrs. Mac Lorin. During the week, about 70 concrete action plans have been adopted and made public Monday.

“We saw that there are practical collective solutions to global issues. I was able to build links that will result in something. “- Ramiro Lopez, Colombian activist

Mrs. Mac Lorin also welcomed the strong contribution of young people in the event. This also impressed Raymonde Maisonneuve, a participating member of the religious congregation of the Holy Cross Sisters. “To a great extent, it was managed and presented by youth. It’s amazing. This is the future “, welcomed Ms Maisonneuve, who yesterday attended the WSF closing ceremony at Jarry Park.

It lacked atmosphere in the park on Sunday, where only a hundred people attended the ceremony. To some participants who were there, it was like the rest of the week. “I was expecting huge crowds at our demonstration, but that was not the case. In addition, various activities were very scattered, “said Marie Guerda Saint-Fort, a citizen of Haiti.

Several participants, however, were satisfied with the exchange of ideas which resulted from the WSF. “The issues that affect the entire planet, such as mining, oil and food safety, we addressed them,” said Ramiro Lopez, an activist who paid his way to come from Colombia.

In the same vein, the WSF international council is satisfied that such a space of convergence is always needed and that it will be back soon in another corner of the world.

(Click here for the original article in French)

World Social Forums, Advancing the Global Movement for a Culture of Peace?

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An article by Hassan EL AMRI for Agence Marocaine de Presse (translated by CPNN)

Following up the previous forum in the Tunisian capital Tunis, in March 2015, the Canadian city of Montreal is welcoming, from 9 to 14 August, the 12th edition of the World Social Forum (WSF). The forum will have a very diverse program, consisting of more than 1,300 activities presented as part of its anti-globalization theme.

(Click on photo to enlarge)

Organized under the motto “Another world is necessary. Together we can make it possible “, the WSF in Montreal will make history this year as the first such event to be held in a country of the northern hemisphere. Since its inception in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in 2001, the Forum has been held exclusively in the South (Latin America, Asia and Africa).

Despite only 15,000 people registered before the start of the conclave, the organizers of the Montreal edition are optimistic to achieve their goal of 50,000 participants from 120 countries, as agents of change to bridge the North-South divide, to exchange ideas, make their claims, initiatives and action plans and give birth to a positive momentum for change: Think globally, act locally.

The organizing committee has expressed their displeasure with Canadian immigration authorities because they have refused to issue entry visas to Canada for hundreds of participants and guests. This refusal particularly affects the countries of Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and Asia. It adds to the inability of others o come because of financial reasons, especially with the high cost that characterizes the metropolis in full summer season.

Despite these obstacles, the Committee has not lost hope and insists on making this WSF 2016 an open meeting place for reflective thinking and debate of ideas, formulation of proposals and free exchange of experiences in order to achieve efficient action by actors and movements of civil society that are opposed to neoliberalism and imperialism, and to build an inclusive global society and egalitarian.

The committee members said at a news conference Monday that the WSF in Montreal aims to promote a convergence of solutions and energies to construct a globalization that is more inclusive, and to transform the Canadian metropolis during those few days into a meeting place for social movements, self-expression alternatives, citizens’ exchanges, artistic events and concrete commitments.

The WSF 2016 also aims they believe to be a space for the development of networks of actions that promote social economy, international solidarity, social and environmental justice, participatory democracy and the recognition of equal dignity for all.

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(Click here for the original article in French)

World Social Forums, Advancing the Global Movement for a Culture of Peace?

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The various sites and venues of the Forum will allow local and foreign participants to engage in a genuine debate for an inclusive and mobilizing society with proposals for tomorrow’s world, where the slogan is the change based on civic engagement, plural and positive, which gives life to the initiatives and solutions of social actors.

The Montreal Forum will begin Tuesday afternoon with a festive anti-globalization march in the center of the metropolis. It aims to mobilize around social issues that affect all citizens of the planet, and to celebrate reconciliation and solidarity between peoples, while the weekend will be marked by presentations of practical solutions of projects in the short or long term.

During the conclave, 13 major themes have been selected after a collaborative process which aims to enable participants to better identify issues of interest and importance to them. These, include: ”

– “economic, social and solidarity alternatives against the capitalist crisis”;

– the “democratization of knowledge and communication rights”;

– the “culture of peace and struggle for justice and demilitarization”;

– “defense of the rights of nature and environmental justice”;

– “migration and citizenship without borders”;

– “democracy, social movements and citizens”;

– the “struggle against the dictatorship of finance and the sharing of resources.”

– the “world of work against neoliberalism”;

– “cultural, artistic and philosophical expressions for another possible world”;

– “global struggle and international solidarity”;

– “human and social rights, dignity and struggle against inequality;

– and “struggles against racism, xenophobia, patriarchy and fundamentalism. ”

Furthermore, the WSF 2016 will be punctuated by 22 major conferences which will aim to raise awareness of the current challenges and stimulate citizen engagement on issues as diverse as climate change, socioeconomic inequalities, racism and discrimination, the impact of international finance, indigenous struggles, labor and feminist, education and the place of youth.

Following up on the forums in Latin America, Asia and Africa, the participants in Canada want to counterbalance the World Economic Forum held annually in Davos, Switzerland. In addition to denouncing economic globalization and the neoliberal model, they will also think about how to change the world today, including the provision of solutions and practical alternatives for a better, more just, egalitarian world with respect for human being, nature and the planet.