*** please distribute widely ***
THIRD INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
OF PEOPLES' GLOBAL ACTION (PGA)
********************************
COCHABAMBA, Bolivia, September 16 - 24, 2001
[Deadline for applications: May 15 2001]
By way of introduction:
***********************
What prevents us from realising our dreams and aspirations of a just and
peaceful society, where our dignity and our different ways of life are
respected? Do we have control over our own lives and communities? Who takes
the decisions that affect us?
At no other time in history have so few institutions dominated so many
women and men. The 15 biggest corporations are present in over 120
countries. Corporations control 70% of world trade. Our governments have
actively contributed to expand the power of these companies. This growing
centralised economic power has resulted in the creation of institutions
such as the World Trade Organisation (WTO), a legal vehicle for their
policies that counts with the support of almost all our governments. More
countries are now more deeply indebted than ever been before in history.
The Third World pays far more in terms of services and debt transfer than
it receives in the form of assistance, investment and aid.
Whilst continuing to promise prosperity for all, the present phase of
capitalism is creating more victims, more environmental havoc and more
vulnerability than ever before. Wealth and power are concentrated in fewer
hands than they ever have been. In the last 30 years the rich have doubled
their capital while poverty and misery grow. The poorest 20% possesses less
than 4% of world resources whereas the richest control over 85%. The
complex life of this planet, which is the source of sustenance and cultural
diversity for all men and women, is increasingly transformed into a
merchandise, mercilessly exploited, privatised, patented and irreversibly
transformed. There are ever-increasing numbers of firearms in private
hands, more destructive potential in the form of modern armies and greater
stocks of conventional nuclear, chemical and biological weapons than ever
before. The purpose of the majority of them is to defend the privileges of
the leading players in the dominant economy.
Peoples' Global Action (PGA), since its creation in February 1998, has
provided a common communication and coordination tool for movements that
struggle against the social, economic and political processes that have
increased vulnerability, dependence and environmental destruction. An
instrument done by and for those who, from their homes, fields, factories
and workplaces, are confronting all the authoritarian, centralising and
homogenising processes and institutions, and believe in the importance of
internationalising the struggle due to the global roots of their local
problems. PGA, although being still in its own process of construction,
provides a global forum for the struggles against the old and the new
capitalism to associate their efforts and share experiences and skills. It
has also nurtured the hope that, if we remain united within the respect to
diversity, we will prevent dignity and justice from being undermined,
manipulated or destroyed.
This hope strengthens our commitment to fight against oppression,
domination and destruction, to unmask and abolish the institutions and
companies that regulate the global capitalist regime, to build a broad
unity based on the respect to difference and diversity, and to continue
defining, practising and spreading local alternatives to take back control
over our destiny. This hope, that lives in the irreverent determination of
our bodies, minds and feelings, can and must realise our dreams of
self-governance, freedom, justice, peace, equity, dignity and diversity.
WHAT IS PEOPLES' GLOBAL ACTION?
*******************************
>>From the 23rd to the 26th of February of 1998, grassroots movements of all
continents met in Geneva to launch a worldwide coordination network of
resistance to the global market, a new alliance of struggle and solidarity
called Peoples' Global Action against 'free' trade and the WTO (PGA). That
was the birth of this global tool for communication and coordination for
all those who fight the destruction of humanity and the planet by
capitalism and build local alternatives to globalisation.
The hallmarks of this alliance are:
1. A very clear rejection of the WTO and other trade liberalisation
agreements (like APEC, the EU, NAFTA, etc.) as active promoters of a
socially and environmentally destructive globalisation;
2. A very clear rejection of all forms and systems of domination and
discrimination including, but not limited to, patriarchy, racism and
religious fundamentalism of all creeds. We embrace the full dignity of all
human beings.
3. A confrontational attitude, since we do not think that lobbying can have
a major impact in such biased and undemocratic organisations, in which
transnational capital is the only real policy-maker;
4. A call to non-violent civil disobedience and the construction of local
alternatives by local people, as answers to the action of governments and
corporations;
5. An organisational philosophy based on decentralisation and autonomy.
PGA is an evolving coordination, and as such it changes with time. For
instance, the second hallmark was incorporated at the 2nd PGA conference in
Bangalore (India) in order to distance clearly PGA from organisations of
the extreme right looking for a political space to spread their xenophobic
rejection of globalisation. At the same conference, the character of the
network was redefined: its previous focus on 'free' trade agreements (and
on the WTO in particular) was broadened, since we reached the consensus
that PGA should be a space to communicate and coordinate globally not just
against treaties and institutions, but also around the social and
environmental issues related to them. An opposition to the capitalist
development paradigm in general was made explicit.
The main objectives of PGA are:
1. Inspiring the greatest number of persons, movements, and organisation to
act against corporate domination through non-violent civil disobedience and
people-oriented constructive actions.
2. Offering an instrument for co-ordination and mutual support at global
level for those resisting corporate rule and the capitalist development
paradigm.
3. Giving more international projection to the struggles against economic
liberalisation and global capitalism.
PGA is a tool for coordination not an organisation. The political analysis
and call to action of PGA are reflected in its manifesto, a dynamic,
evolving document that will be revised at each PGA conference (see appendix
3). PGA has no members and does not have and will not have a juridical
personality. No organisation or person represents the PGA, nor does the PGA
represent any organisation or person. PGA will limit itself to facilitating
coordination and exchange of information between grassroots movements
through conferences and means of communication.
The PGA conferences are called by a committee of convenors, formed by
organisations and movements from all continents and representing different
social sectors (as well as the local organisers of the conference). This
committee determines the agenda of the conference, takes decisions
regarding participation at the conference and the use of economic
resources, decides whether publications may be printed in the name of the
PGA, and checks the contents of the PGA's information tools. The committee
cannot speak in the name of PGA. Each PGA conference elects the convenors
of the next conference.
The roles of the PGA conferences are, at least, to update the manifesto (if
necessary), advance the process of global coordination of resistance
against capitalism, coordinate worldwide decentralised Global Days of
Action and electing a new convenors' committee.
PGA has no economic resources. The funds needed for the conferences and the
information media must be raised in a decentralised manner. All funds that
are collected for the conference are administered by the convenors'
committee. Publications must be self-financing.
THIRD INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF PGA
*************************************
Hence, the convenors' committee of PGA herewith formally convenes the Third
International PGA Conference, to be held in the month of September 2001 in
Cochabamba, Bolivia. The conference itself, where all collective decisions
about the future of PGA will be taken, will take place from the 20th to the
22nd, but the conference program also includes roundtable discussions, a
visit to the Chapare and a rally in Cochabamba:
-> 16 September: arrival to Cochabamba. Registration and orientation.
-> 17-19 September: roundtable discussions (see description below)
-> 20-22 September: conference (see description below)
-> 23 September: visit to Chapare, a region characterised by the struggles
of social movements for their own life choices, for the social control of
natural resources and against the presence of North American military bases.
-> 24 September: Rally in Cochabamba with the social movements of the region.
Issues to be discussed at the conference (20-22 September):
-----------------------------------------------------------
1. Action strategies within the space of communication and coordination of
PGA:
This header includes several discussions that came up in the regional PGA
meetings (Latin American meeting in Nicaragua, March 2000; South-Asian
meeting in Bangladesh, September 2000; European meeting in Italy, March
2000) and in the global meeting of convenors and former convenors that took
place in Prague before the protests against the World Bank and the IMF
(September 2000). These meetings discussed the need to go beyond the global
days of action, which are the form of global action practised so far within
the PGA space, and explored the idea of sustained global campaigns as a
possible step forward. Other issues discussed included the question of
violence; the criminalisation of our movements, the expression of
solidarity in cases of urgent need; the need to localise more deeply the
PGA process, etc. In Cochabamba we should continue these discussions in a
global and participatory way, together with other discussions that might
come up in the regional meetings planned for the next months (North
American meeting in Massachusetts, June 2001; possibly South Pacific
meeting in Aoteoroa, date still to be determined).
2. Revision of the PGA manifesto:
At the second PGA conference it was not possible to revise the manifesto in
depth, but several shortcomings were pointed out, especially the need to
incorporate the gender perspective throughout the whole text. We expect
that in the Cochabamba conference it will be possible to advance in this
process.
3. Extension of the contacts and of the space of communication and
coordination articulated through PGA:
One of the issues of discussion in Cochabamba is how to make the PGA known
as space for coordination and communication in regions and among social
sectors where so far it is not widely known. We should also discuss the
communication channels of PGA, which so far have not really worked as
expected.
4. Plans of sustained action:
concrete proposals of globally coordinated campaigns against particular
aspects of capitalist domination. The issues discussed in Prague as
possible proposals were a global campaign against the Colombia Plan (the
North American intervention in Colombia and the Andean/Central American
region which, using the pretext of the 'War on Drugs', wants to assure the
access to the natural resources of the region and the execution of
transport megaprojects such as a new interoceanic canal, mega-harbours,
finishing the Panamerican road, etc., by smashing the social movements that
oppose these projects), and a global campaign for the local self-government
of the rural communities that struggle to keep (or regain) control over
their natural resources, especially land and water. These proposals are
still being worked on, and they are not exclusive.
5. Global mobilisation:
against the annual meeting of the IMF/World Bank (Washington, 2-4 October
2001), against the 4th Ministerial Conference of the WTO (Nov. 2001) and
other globally coordinated actions.
Issues to be discussed in the roundtable discussions (17-19 September):
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
As in previous occasions, the preparation and facilitation of the
roundtables should take place in a decentralised way. The issues,
objectives and methodologies of the roundtables will hence depend on the
initiative of the participants. There could for instance be roundtables on
common issues of struggle (for example, the struggles of indigenous
peoples, or the struggle against industrial agriculture and biotechnology,
etc.), roundtables to prepare specific topics for the conference (for
example, a roundtable to discuss how to introduce the gender perspective
throughout the text of the manifesto, or roundtables to prepare more in
depth the proposals of global campaigns, etc.) or on any other topic. The
application form includes space to propose issues for the roundtables,
since the initiative should come from the participants, who are also
responsible for their preparation and facilitation. There will be more
information about the roundtables that will finally take place in the
conference preparation package that will be sent to the participants whose
applications are accepted by the convenors' committee.
Participation and finances:
---------------------------
We convene all the grassroots organisations and social movements that agree
and identify with the hallmarks and objectives of PGA, giving priority to
those who took part in the first and second PGA conferences. We have the
objective of having A BALANCE OF 50% OF MEN AND WOMEN IN THE CONFERENCE. We
hope that all organisations and movements will take this into consideration
while choosing their representative. If there is an over-representation of
men, we will look for mechanisms to ensure a balanced participation of men
and women, but we hope that this will not be needed.
At the meeting in Prague of the former and current convenors (in September
2000), one of the issues discussed was how to avoid the North-South
imbalance that was experienced at the second PGA conference (Bangalore,
August 1999), where Northern participants took a disproportionate space,
among other reasons because it is easier to find money to travel in the
North. In order to prevent this situation from happening again in
Cochabamba, there should be a relation of 70% Southern and Eastern
participants and 30% Northern participants with full participation at the
conference. If more than 30% of the participants come from the North, some
of them will be given the status of observer, meaning that they will they
will be able to participate fully in the roundtables, but will not be able
to speak at the conference. (The same observer status might be used in case
there is a big imbalance in the number of women and men, to ensure a
minimal gender balance at least among the conference participants).
Consequently, the amount of people from the North who will be able to
participate fully in the conference will depend on the amount of
participants from the South and the East. In turn, the amount of
participants from the South and the East will depend on how much money we
will all be able to raise for travel expenses, since most genuine
grassroots movements from the South and the East will need help in order to
be able to reach Cochabamba. WE CONSIDER THAT GATHERING FUNDS FOR TRAVEL
EXPENSES IS THE COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY OF ALL PEOPLE AND MOVEMENTS WHO
IDENTIFY WITH THE PGA PROCESS, in the North and in the South, but the
possibilities to raise funds in the North are obviously much greater.
There will be a worldwide decentralised campaign to look for funds to cover
part of the travel expenses of Southern and Eastern organisations. This
campaign will work in the following way: in the second half of May the PGA
secretariat will publish a list of organisations and movements that want to
attend the conference but don't have enough funds for the travel. This list
will include, for each organisation, a brief description, the total travel
expenses from the country of origin to Cochabamba, the amount that each
organisation can cover and the amount that is still needed to participate
in the conference. There will hence be total transparency on the funds that
are being requested. We will ask people all over the world to make
donations, either by paying directly the travel expenses of one Southern or
Eastern organisation, or by transferring the money to one of the
organisations that will channel travel funds for Southern movements. More
details will be publicised with the list of movements that need financial
help for the conference.
Due to the decentralised fundraising model that we have chosen, it is very
important that the Southern movements that need help with their travel
expenses send their application as soon as possible, in any event before
the deadline for applications (15th of May). If you send it later, it is
most likely that we will not be able to help.
The convenors' committee has decided that only the most basic travel
expenses will be reimbursed (not including superfluous expenses such as
taxis), with the cheapest transport. In exceptional cases we will consider
reimbursing all the basic travel expenses, but this will only be done with
movements of which we know with total certainty that they work practically
without budget. In general, we expect all movements to make an effort to
find their own funding possibilities, no matter how limited they are, in
order to prevent us from fostering dependency or paternalism.
At the Prague meeting it was suggested that a realistic objective in terms
of participation would be 140 participants from the South or the East and
60 participants from the North. (In this context, the North is understood
to include Western Europe, North America and Japan, as well as
non-indigenous participants from the Pacific.) We will need to raise among
all of us a substantial amount of money in order to secure the
participation of 140 Southern and Eastern movements. This will only be
possible with the active participation of many organisations in the
fundraising efforts, and even then it will also depend on the efforts of
Southern movements to reduce the travel costs to a minimum and to cover
part of it themselves.
Many Bolivians are interested in the conference, but most of them will
participate as observers in order to avoid an over-representation from that
country; only a small number of the full participants will be Bolivian.
Additionally, we expect that there will be more than 60 applications from
the North, so it is also planned to accommodate some Northern observers.
The local organisers of the conference have made logistical arrangements
assuming a maximum of 300 participants, including the Northern and Bolivian
observers. Ideally, everybody will be able to participate fully, but this
will depend on our collective fund-raising efforts.
At the European meeting of PGA in Milan (March 2001), a long time was
devoted to discuss how to deal with the question of full participants and
observers. The final consensus was than if more 30 persons from Western
European movements want to participate in the Cochabamba conference, the
Western European group may organise a rotational system so that different
people will speak at different sessions of the conference, depending on
their specific interests. The group of Western Europeans who will speak at
each session will be fixed in advance. This is a proposal that the Western
European convenors still have to discuss with the other convenors. In Genoa
in July there will be further preparations of the participation of Western
Europeans in Cochabamba, since many people will converge there for the
protests against the G8 summit.
All participants will have to pay a fee to cover the organisational, food
and logistical expenses. This fee will depend on the region that the
participant comes from and from the character of his/her organisation.
Participants from the South and the East will pay 15 US dollars,
participants from Northern groups that operate without a budget will pay
100 USD and participants from Northern organisations that have a budget
will pay 300 USD. This fee covers the accommodation and food during the
whole period (16-24 September) and the visit to Chapare. The fee will
remain the same for people who participate only in part of the programme.
Application and preparation:
----------------------------
Those organisations and movements interested in taking part should send the
application form included below BEFORE THE 15th OF MAY 2001. As par of this
form, they should send a brief description of the organisation or movement
with information about its objectives, structure, experiences, etc.
Between the 15th and the 31st of May the convenors' committee will reply to
all applications, and will send the invitation (or, if this is the case,
the notification that the application has been rejected) with logistical
and practical information. WE EXPECT ALL ORGANISATIONS THAT HAVE RECEIVED
AN INVITATION TO CONFIRM THEIR ASSISTANCE BEFORE THE 30TH OF JUNE.
If you need a visa to enter Bolivia, you should try to obtain one as
tourist. When you request the visa, PLEASE DO **NOT** SAY THAT YOU WANT TO
GO TO THE PGA CONFERENCE in Cochabamba, since the Bolivian government is
most likely to deny it. Most Asian, African and East European citizens need
a visa to enter Bolivia. There is a non-official list of all Bolivian
embassies on-line at http://www.boliviaweb.com/embassies.htm. PLEASE START
WORKING ON THE VISA AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, DURING THE SUMMER IT MIGHT BE
IMPOSSIBLE TO OBTAIN IT.
The PGA secretariat will send in the middle of June several preparatory
documents, including the final programme of the conference and the
roundtables. WE REQUEST ALL PARTICIPANTS AND OBSERVERS TO PRESENT IN
WRITTEN BEFORE THE 15TH OF JULY THEIR COMMENTS AND CRITICISMS OF THESE
DOCUMENTS, AND THEIR PROPOSALS OF CHANGES FOR THE PGA MANIFESTO AND
ORGANISATIONAL PRINCIPLES (see appendix 4), if possible in English and
Spanish.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
APPLICATION FORM
****************
My organisation/group is interested in taking part in the Third
International Conference of PGA:
Organisation or group:
Please include a brief description (of approximately one page) of the
objectives and field of action of your organisation. THIS DESCRIPTION IS
NECESSARY FOR YOUR APPLICATION TO BE PROCESSED.
Delegate / Representative:
Postal address (preferably of the organisation or group):
Country:
Tel.:
Fax:
Email:
Do you have any special needs regarding food, like vegetarian, vegan, or
any other? Please specify.
Do you have any other special needs, like wheelchair access, or any other?
Please specify.
Do you have comments or suggestions for the conference agenda?
What topic(s) would you suggest for the roundtables?
Are you willing to participate actively in the preparation of one roundtable?
If yes, on which topic(s)?
Can you help with the translation of written documents? If yes, in which
language(s)?
Can you help with interpretation during the conference? If yes, in which
language(s)?
Questions for organisations and groups from the South and the East:
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Can your organisation/movement pay the whole cost of the ticket to Cochabamba?
If not, what are the total travel costs by the cheapest means of transport?
US$ ________
How much can your organisation contribute? US$ ________
If your organisation needs help with the travel expenses, the convenors'
committee will consider whether it will be included in the list of
organisations for whom donations will be solicited publicly, and in which
level of priority with respect to other organisations. BUT FOR THIS TO
HAPPEN, YOU SHOULD SEND YOUR APPLICATION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
Questions for organisations and groups from Western Europe, Japan and North
America:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------
Can your organisation also pay for (part of / more than) a ticket for a
southern organisation?
If yes, please specify what donation you can make: ___________
At the European PGA meeting (Milan, March 2001) a group of people
(including representatives of several Colombian movements) expressed the
intention to organise a visit to Colombia just before the Cochabamba
conference. The provisional plan is to fly to Venezuela, visit several
Colombian movements and then travel by land to Cochabamba through Ecuador
and Peru (where we also hope to get in contact with grassroots movements).
Ideally, if we fly together we will be able to arrange cheap fares with an
airline to fly from anywhere in Europe to Venezuela and return from
Cochabamba or La Paz. We hope that people from other continents will join
the same itinerary. The organisation process has not even started yet, but
if you are interested in this initiative, please let us know in order to
coordinate (no matter in which continent you live).
Please send this form (together with a one-page description of your
organisation or movement), if possible by e-mail, to: PGA Convenors'
Committee, technical secretariat c/o Canadian Union of Postal Workers 377
Bank Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, email <pga@agp.org> and
<pgasec@gmx.net> (please send the application to both addresses, to be sure
that we get it).
THE DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS IS THE 15TH OF MAY 2001
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
[The appendixes are included in the second message. If you dont receive it,
please visit www.agp.org or contact pga@agp.org]
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