| ashu |
Posted
on 17-Nov-02 10:24 PM
This is here for your info only.
oohi
ashu
ktm,nepal
*******************
Asia Social Forum 2003,
Hyderabad, India,
January 2-7, 2003
Program Note
About the Asia Social Forum
The Asia Social Forum (ASF) 2003 provides a forum for an
open dialogue among the movements opposed to capitalist led
globalization. The only criteria is that the participants are
opposed to imperialist globalization as well as religious
sectarian violence, and have a commitment to democratic values,
plurality and peace. The ASF 2003 is open to the social
movements and organizations, networks, coalitions, alliances
and campaigns that are committed to fight against neo-liberal
globalisation and ethnic/caste/religion/gender based dis-
crimination and who are willing to meet in consonance with
the World Social Forum (WSF) Charter of Principles.
The ASF 2003 is a step towards calling on the movements who
work in Asia and are opposed to neo-liberal globalization to
take initiatives and to collaborate for the start of the WSF
process in Asia. The ASF 2003 is being hosted by WSF, India
and will be held in the city of Hyderabad in India from
January 2 to 7, 2003. In the World Social Forum process the
ASF, 2003 is the first Asia level event to be convened with
an understanding that Asian Social Forum event would be
repeated over a period in all the sub-regions of Asia.
The thematic content of Asia Social Forum (ASF) 2003 is defined
by the Charter of principles and the policy guidelines adopted
by the World Social Forum, India. It will be hosted as an open
space to the movements for free discourse, debate, interaction
and discovery. It will try for the participation of a rich
diversity of mass organizations, people's movements and citizens'
groups. It will organize the forum as a platform for parti-
cipatory formulation of alternatives to the dehumanizing world
order resulting from the policies and practices of neo-
liberal globalization. It is conceived as a process capable of
generating a movement of ideas and of building a development
approach based on the vision and strategies devoted to realizing
all human rights for individuals, communities and people. It will
endeavor to contribute to creating a new political climate of
dialogue across differences and sensitize them of the need to
add to the existing repertoire, new ways of resistance.
The World Social Forum was conceived in Brazil as an inter-
national forum against neo-liberal policies and capitalist
led globalisation around the slogan: "Another World Is Possible".
The World Social Forum (WSF) has emerged in the movements
working against capitalist led globalization as a forum that
seeks to provide a space for discussing alternatives, for
exchanging experiences and for strengthening alliances between
social movements, unions of the working people and NGOs. The
Asian Social Forum 2003 is a milestone in that journey. The
process of ASF, 2003, in the WSF spirit, would be open, inclusive
and flexible, and would the movements opposed to capitalist
led globalization working all over Asia. WSF India believes
that another world and another Asia is possible; the ASF 2003
is an expression of this hope.
The Asia Social Forum 2003 provides space for proposing con-
ferences with participation of 4,000 delegates each and a range
of seminars - large and small - and workshops. The WSF India
seeks the participation of mass organisations, social movements
and other groups who would take the initiative and responsibility
in organising such events. The opening and closing sessions, the
cultural programs, public lectures and testimonials are being
organised by WSF India.
Thematic Areas
The Asia Social Forum 2003 will be organized around the
identified six thematic areas. Their scope is provided here
below in broad indicative terms only as a point of entry in
to the process of working out more elaborately the agenda for
discussion to be proposed by the participants interested to
organize the events in Hyderabad as a part of the ASF 2003. We
give below themes by the programme committee:
-Peace and Security
-Debt, Development, Trade, Finance and Investment
-Nation State, Democracy and Exclusion
-Social Infrastructure, Planning and Cooperation
-Ecology, Culture, Knowledge
-Alternatives and People's Movements
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 17-Nov-02 10:29 PM
The organisations who are interested to hold the events being
proposed by them as a part of the ASF 2003 in Hyderabad are
requested to go through the brief notes attached here on each
of the proposed thematic area. In each thematic area, as
illustration, the brief notes indicate the sub-areas and the
possible topics. Participants are free to add under each of the
thematic area many more new sub-areas and topics. Participants
are also free to consider even those topics that cut across
the boundaries of proposed thematic areas for the organization
of a dialogue of their choice.
While proposing the events, the participants may go beyond
academic discussions on the impacts of neo-liberal globalisation
and also offer concrete alternatives and strategies of resistance.
It may also include struggles and experience of and victims
testimonials to involve them in the WSF process of an open
dialogue.
Participating organisations are invited to formulate the proposed
subject matter of their choice in the shape of conference/panels,
seminars and workshops as a part of the ASF 2003. Participants
are expected to indicate the information details sought in the
proposal format attached to give a clear idea to the organizers
of the nature and content of the event so as it is appropriately
in the proposed overall structure.
Those interested in organising events at the Asian Social Forum
should contact the following address:
Programme Committee
WSF India Secretariat
204, Elite House,
36 Community Centre, Zamrudpur,
New Delhi - 110048
Phones: 91-11-6476580, 6473425
email: wsfindia@vsnl.net
For specific details about the programme interested groups
and organisations can also contact persons of the programme
committee, whose contact details are provided with the annexure.
Detailed information about facilities, costs, etc. for organising
events is provided in a separate Event Note for the Asian Social
Forum.
--
Programme and Theme co-ordinators:
Chairpersons: S.P.Shukla (spshukla@eth.net), Prabhat Patnaik,
D.L.Seth Convenors: Dinesh Abrol (ap1966@hotmail.com),
Yogendra Yadav (lokniti@del3.vsnl.net.in)
Thematic Groups
Peace & Security :
Kamal Mitra Chenoy -- Co-ordinator (chenoy@nda.vsnl.net.in),
Srilatha Swaminathan -- Co-ordinator (rajkisan@datainfosys.net),
Praful Bidwai, Achin Vanaik, Achyut Yagnik, N. D. Jayaprakash,
Rama Melkote, Bela Bhatia
Debt, Development & Trade :
SP Shukla -- Co-ordinator (spshukla@eth.net), Raghav Narasalay
-- Co-ordinator (focusind@vsnl.net), Vinod Raina, K.S. Gopal,
K. Ashok Rao, D.R.Pandey
Nation State, Democracy & Exclusions :
Paul Divakar -- Co-ordinator (pdivakar@satyam.net.in), Yogendra
Yadav -- Co-ordinator (lokniti@del3.vsnl.net.in), Kodandram,
Rama Melkote, Chakrapani Ghanta, Vijay Pratap, Ilina Sen,
D. L. Sheth, Javeed Alam, N. D. Jayaprakash
Ecology, Culture & Knowledge :
Smitu Kothari -- Co-ordinator (smitukothari@vsnl.net), Dinesh
Abrol -- Co-ordinator (ap1966@hotmail.com), Siddharth, Sagarika
Ghose, Rajendra Ravi, Narendernath Ozha, Sheila Prasad,
Ilina Sen, Mukul Sharma, P. Sainath, Nitin Pranjape, Anand
Patwardhan
Social Sector :
Jaya Velankar -- Co-ordinator (jaya_velankar@tatanova.com),
Amit Sen Gupta -- Co-ordinator (ctddsf@vsnl.com), Jai Sen,
K.K. Krishna Kumar, Ravi, Janardhan Reddy, Sadhana Saxena,
Vinayak Sen, Jean Dreze, Anil Sadgopal, Sanjaya Paula
Alternatives & Peoples Movements :
Sanjay Mangala Gopal -- Co-ordinator, Kavita Srivastava* --
Co-ordinator, Prabir Purkayastha , Vinod Shetty, P.K. Murthy,
Madhusudhan, Javed Alam, Uma, Aruna Roy, Medha Patkar
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 18-Nov-02 06:48 AM
Hi nuts and Kalanidhi,
In Nepal, much of economic discourse -- believe it or not -- is DOMINATED by people
who actively go to this kind of seminars and conferences in Nepal and elsewhere.
You can't really avoid prominent Nepali intellectuals and thinkers and writers and columnists who do swear by this sort of gatherings in India or elsewhere -- gatherings where they float from place to place, bashing capitalism and globalization for unleasing all kinds of sins upon the mankind.
Now, here's the the part that interests me.
Those of us -- younger folks -- who tend to believe in, well, neoclassical economics, in the overall logic of the market, in the inevitability of globalization (and how that is a good thing!) and other such related issues, can:
a) either dismiss these people for being absolute idiots and then watch these people hijack policy-related issues by pushing us to the sidelines, or
b) pause to understand these people's concerns/complaints/philosophies even when they appear to be, well, "misguided", and then see how we can talk to them and NOT talk past them to come up with workable solutions that do not distort incentives and
lead to growth.
Personally, I am interested in creating ways to do more of the (b) and less of the (a).
It was in that spirit that I posted the above info for your information.
oohi
"The members of the Nepali Left remain some of my most stimulating debating
partners :-)"
ashu
ktm,nepal
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