World Social Forum seeks ideal world

Evi Mariani, Journalist, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

How possible is another world? This would have been the question on any observer's mind at a recent global forum of activists, the World Social Forum (WSF), in Mumbai, India. Its confident theme was "Another World is Possible", referring to an alternative to the mind-set that globalization must and will come soon to every corner of the world, and that those who reject it are surely at a disadvantage.

For nothing seems to have changed in regards to the seemingly unstoppable surge of globalization as the WSF held its fourth meeting, as massive, if not more so, as before. It was also as hectic as before -- the meeting last year was held in Brazil -- with all sorts of issues of the marginalized discussed in various fora and addressed in numerous rallies.

Organizers of the Mumbai event held from Jan. 16 to Jan. 21 did try to be consistent, as participants and observers could choose from a variety of local food and beverages which were not products of global companies.

Yet the paper plates we used turned out to be made partly of Tetra Pak packages from around the world. The top of the plates were silver colored but the bottoms showed various brands of beverages, including the familiar sight of the Sari Asem drink package from Indonesia. Packages of milk from Vietnam and Canadian and Spanish fruit juices all bore the Tetra Pak brand, the name of the Switzerland-based packaging company.

Was this a sign that WSF activists had been beaten in their battle for global welfare and justice? How would they ever achieve their slogan while there seemed no place to run from global corporate products? Or maybe it was their way of using such products as creatively as possible, and as little as possible.

It was thus hard to imagine how South Korean activists, who said they had taken up extra jobs to be able to purchase return tickets to India, would smash "U.S. imperialism". Along with some 140 "comrades" of the organization called All Together, South Korean Choi Il-bung protested against the United States every day and every night during the six days of the forum.

"Bush's invasion to Iraq did not merely have a military goal; it was a grand strategy to impose U.S. economic interests," Choi said, adding that what happened in Iraq could happen anywhere including his country.

These South Koreans met thousands of other of antiwar activists from across the world, including Indonesia, and agreed to organize global protests on March 20 to coincide with the first anniversary of the U.S.-led attack on Iraq.

The U.S. "occupation" of Iraq was among the major concerns raised in Mumbai, which also hosted prominent figures like Egyptian author Nawal el Sadawi, Indian Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy, British antiwar activist Jeremy Corbyn and former U.S. attorney general Ramsey Clark.

So far it has all been noise ignored by the U.S. and its allies -- despite protests against the then imminent war on Iraq at the last WSF in Porto Alegre, Brazil, the attack was launched anyway.

Organizers insist the WSF is not designed to provide solutions, neither is it designed to produce one resolution from the thousands of diverse participants.

Instead it stresses "a permanent process" of raising people's voices and interests, which they say have been bypassed in the surge toward a globalization biased to the interests of the powerful. As mentioned in their charter, "The alternatives proposed at the WSF stand in opposition to a process commanded by the large multinational corporations and by the governments ...."

WSF thus aims for a "globalization in solidarity", the charter says. The consequence of giving a forum to all voices is a rainbow, an immense collective energy of the world's people -- or cacophony and confusion, depending on your perception.

Organizers stumbled here and there, and reaped criticism for failing to provide easy access in the compound for the disabled. And in its fourth year the WSF is increasingly faced with the question of whether it is still needed in its present form.

Agence-France Presse quoted a participant, Troy Davis, as saying that just like before, the panels had "friends and buddies of the present WSF intelligentsia -- politically correct people ... criticizing A and B and not proposing what to do."

The WSF joins many other fora of activists addressing injustice through similar issues like unfair global trade and unemployment blamed on privatization. Though held close to the date of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, organizers reject the label of WSF being the opposite of the WEF, which they see as mainly representing government and business interests.

Tarnishing the event this year was the incident of a South African judge, a participant, who was accused of raping his fellow national in a hotel room in Mumbai.

Despite all shortcomings it seems the WSF has gained more support and confidence from participants.

"Look at the people involved; there's for example the 'World is Not For Sale' network that brought down the WTO in Cancun," noted Philippine activist and academician Walden Bello said -- though maybe there are other explanations for the failure of the last talks of the World Trade Organization in Mexico.

He added that the WSF had a significant role as a campaign and education vehicle "against unjust globalization".

However, he conceded that while it has been agreed that WSF does not adopt a stance representing participants, it should take a strong stance against something that had a clear consensus among its members, for example, against the WTO and against the U.S. invasion in Iraq.

Amid criticism some activists like South Korean Choi Il-bung say they would never regret their visit.

Choi said, "We need to be in high spirits and we can get that in this massive meeting. Moreover, we can interact, inspire each other while coordinating international action like that planned for March in dozens of countries."

So, hopes are either high or low regarding the possibility of "another world". One banner read: "Another world is possible. Somewhere."