The beginnings of the biggest ever mobilisation against poverty launched at the World Social Forum
Release Date: 31 January, 2005
By Kumi Naidoo, CIVICUS Secretary General
More than 12,000 people crowded into a sports stadium at the World Social Forum in Porte Alegre, Brazil on 27 January, and thousands more filled the streets outside, to witness the launch of the ‘Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP)’, a worldwide alliance of hundreds of organisations calling on world leaders to fulfill their promises to end poverty.
This event, which is the culmination of a year of planning and organising, represents the beginnings of the biggest ever mobilisation against poverty.
The event was attended by President Lula of Brazil, who expressed his support of the campaign, and by Coumba Toure of the Africa Network Campaign on Education For All, who took the opportunity to tie a white band - the symbol of the campaign - around the President’s wrist.
Lula lifted his arm to cheering crowds and went on to talk about the importance of developing countries joining together to ensure that the voices of people living in poverty are heard. He added that there have been significant steps in this direction but that 2005 would see a huge movement from southern leaders to create the conditions for addressing the causes of poverty.
People from across the globe provided many powerful speeches throughout the launch. Wahu Kaara from the All Africa Conference on Churches laid down the gauntlet to world leaders, telling the crowd: ' Let's make poverty history because there are no excuses anymore. We will wear the white band to continually remind our leaders of their responsibility to fight poverty'.
The overwhelming message of the launch was one of hope and belief that GCAP will make a huge impact in the fight against poverty this year. Coumba Toure said '..you can buy a bird for 50 cents and if you free the bird it will bring fortune to your life. I realised that you had to catch the bird before freeing it. GCAP is not about buying freedom - it's about breaking the cage'.
Last week, several GCAP members also lobbied the World Economic Forum in Davos to put pressure on the political leaders attending the event. Surprisingly, the political and business establishment acknowledged that poverty and inequitable globalisation are the two key challenges facing the world.
At a press conference convened by GCAP at which the French and British Finance ministers were invited to provide their response to the policy objectives of GCAP around debt, trade and aid, the initial responses suggest that 2005 could be the year when civil society manages to make a break-through in these central issues for development and justice.
Maintaining sustained citizen pressure will be critical in the coming twelve months.
The initiating organisations now call upon all civil society organisations to join the campaign and ensure that it will be difficult for political leaders to ignore their citizens concerns about the need to ensure that debt, trade and aid is addressed in a manner that justice and fairness is made possible. The first major mobilisation that lies ahead of GCAP will be Women’s Rights week from 1-8 March.
CIVICUS is helping to coordinate the GCAP work and invites you to write to kumi@civicus.org to join the campaign.
Together we aim to encourage the participation of ordinary citizens in their millions to get engaged in a joint global effort to make sure that governments deliver, in the first instance, on the minimalist commitments they have made and to push for even further social, economic and political justice.
