Este documento faz parte do
Repositório Institucional do
Fórum Social Mundial
Memória FSM
memoriafsm.org
ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE
World Social Forum
Mumbai, India
16 – 21 January 2004
A Report:
The fourth annual World Social Forum took place in Mumbai India
this year. The event, traditionally held in the Brazilian city of Porto
Allegre, moved to the Indian sub-continent to attract a wider range
of participants. This was a successful move with over 100,000
people converging on an old factory site over the five-day event,
determined to discuss, network, plan and dream the theme that
indeed ‘another world is possible’!
There were over 2,000 side events held along with the large
(20,000 participant) plenary events taking place throughout the
day. The events ranged from examining World Bank and IMF
policies to the role of the military and conflict prevention. All the
time the events were taking place, the many different civil society
organisations
were
holding
colourful
and
innovative
demonstrations up and down the central ‘street’ of the conference
site.
The overall impression of the event was
chaotic. The enormous number of people
and the mass of signs, banners, session
announcements
overwhelmed
and
the
the
participants.
like
In
addition to the seminars and processions,
Memória FSM
memoriafsm.org
1
there were hundreds of stalls for participating organisations to distribute their literature,
champion their cause or for the many communities attending the event, sell and promote
local crafts and wares.
Despite the seemingly hectic
organisation, the event was an excellent
venue to meet with NGOs, grassroots
movements and other people researching
and advocating on issues ranging from
corporate accountability, water
privatisation to child protection. Despite
the apparent confusion of people and protests, the event was an excellent way of
understanding the key issues confronting civil society as well as determining the issues
civil society groups were championing.
Raju Bhagwat, Director-Advocacy, was a
translator for three seminars on issues
pertaining to child rights: 1. Housing and
Land Rights Network focused on Children’s
Right to Adequate Housing - Children
Facing Homelessness, Forced Evictions and
Displacement. 2. Life Skills Training for
Adolescent Girls with a special focus on
Street Children and Child Labour; and 3.
Opportunities
for
Defending
Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights in the UN System.
As a member of a network of organisations
and NGOs in Delhi, World Vision also cohosted a well-attended seminar on the
‘Celebration of Diversity’.
Memória FSM
memoriafsm.org
2
On the last afternoon, World Vision’s Mumbai ADP/NOC; presented a 40-minute street
play on Issues of Poverty on one of the main performance stages of the WSF. The play
was performed by youth from one of the Mumbai slums that World Vision serves.
Reena Samuel, Associate, Government and Media Relations, who mainly writes on
Child Rights and Protection issues, also attended the event and played a key role in
organizing this cultural event.
In addition to this, World Vision International supported
one of the main sessions on child rights. The Co-ordinator
of the Global Movement for Children, Miguel de Palladella
spoke at what proved to be a popular seminar. In a large
hall filled with children and people keen to promote child
rights, Miguel spoke alongside UNICEF, regional NGOs
and a number of child speakers.
World Vision also held a separate meeting
with representatives of the World Bank
attending the event. Discussions included ongoing World Bank civil society engagement
framework, forthcoming meetings of the
Bank in the Spring and Autumn as well as
current situation of human rights and the World Bank’s policy formation.
On the whole, the World Social
Another
Forum
did
not
receive
the
international press it deserved.
World
is
Memória FSM
memoriafsm.org
Possible
This is due to the lack of set
pieces – media-friendly panels
3
where participants make statements in the form of sound bytes. Instead, the WSF was a
difficult media event with many parallel events taking place and much of the heated
discussions happening in the multitude of side rooms where NGOs crowded together on
plastic seating.
However, for
the advocacy
NGOs, it was
an
excellent
event to listen
to
the
drumbeats of
international
advocacy
issues for the
coming years;
and help build
coalitions
between
the
NGOs in the North and the South.
Reported by
Alan Whaites
and Raju Bhagwat,
World Vision
Photographs by
Raju Bhagwat,
World Vision
Memória FSM
memoriafsm.org
4