World March of Women at the World Social Forum

It is the next to last day of the 2nd World Social Forum, and we want to update you directly from Brazil on the involvement and participation of World March of Women representatives at this global rendezvous of social movements whose theme is "Another World is Possible."

The week began with a meeting (January 28 and 29) of the International Council of the World Social Forum (WSF) in which Diane Matte of the international secretariat participated on behalf of the World March of Women. The discussions held during this meeting and the concerns of the WSF were similar at times to those of the World March because the Forum's situation resembles that of the March-how to ensure the continuity of the mobilization and process without falling into "over-institutionalization." In the case of the WSF, the challenge is to promote the convergence of all social movements struggling against neoliberal globalization. One of the decisions made at the International Council meeting was to set up regional and sub-regional forums starting in October 2002 in order to strengthen regional alliances based on issues linked to the struggle against neoliberal globalization. Some regions have already committed to organizing regional forums (Europe, the Mediterranean, the Arab world, Asia/Africa and the pan-Amazonian region). It was also decided that the 2003 World Social Forum will again be held in Porto Alegre, Brazil, and that in 2004 it will be moved to another country in the South. The Council reaffirmed the principle of holding the WSF in countries of the global South.

With respect to the participation of World March of Women representatives at the WSF, not only were we numerous (20 countries were represented), but all our preparatory work for the WSF is bearing fruit. Women of the March in Brazil did a wonderful job of heightening the visibility of the World March of Women at the Forum. Brazilian women activists were there in large numbers, and World March flags and women wearing March T-shirts are omnipresent on the site. March documentation and materials are being distributed at two stands on the site and 10,000 flyers on the World March and our participation in the WSF have been distributed since the beginning of the Forum. In addition, the Brazilian team worked hard to provide political and general support to feminist activists.

The World March has organized and participated in many activities since the beginning of the Forum on January 31. We organized a seminar called "A Feminist Alternative for Another World" (moderated by Miriam Nobré of the March in Brazil). In a room bursting with people, March representatives from Italy (Nadia De Mond), the Philippines (Sylvia Estrada-Claudio), France (Anne Leclerc) and the international Secretariat (Diane Matte) presented analysis of the current situation and the feminist alternatives being proposed by the World March of Women. A number of women from different feminist networks then responded to our paper (including a Chilean economist, women from Feminists for a Gift Economy, and the Alliance for a United and Responsible World. Also featured were a personal testimony by a representative of the World March in the Democratic Republic of Congo on the dramatic situation in her country, and a presentation by a feminist popular theatre group called "las Louces," including an updated adaptation of the World March theme song "Capire Mosamum."

Our Conference on Violence Against Women was also a big success. Over 700 people attended, and after a presentation of our analysis and our paper by Suzy Rojtman (France), Shashi Sail (India) and Diane Matte (international Secretariat), there was a presentation by Jurandir Freire (a well-known psychologist and activist in Rio de Janeiro) and reactions from participants. As follow-up to this conference, it will be proposed that an International Tribunal on Violence Against Women be organized for the next World Social Forum in 2003. A declaration of social movements against violence against women will also be proposed for the next WSF.

In addition to these two activities organized specifically by the World March, women from the March participated in and spoke at a number of other evens. A workshop called "Women and Work" was co-organized by the Latin-American network, Women Transforming the Economy, and the World March (particularly, women from the March in Brazil, Ecuador, Peru and Mexico). Rosa Guillen, of the March in Peru, also spoke at the Conference on the Solidarity Economy. Marie-Frantz Joachim of the March in Haiti participated in the International Tribunal on the Debt. Sylvia Estrada-Claudio, of the March in the Philippines, spoke at the Conference on Work in response to a paper presented by a South African trade union, stressing the need for unions to incorporate feminist analysis in every area of their work, and take all women's concerns into account, including non-unionized women workers, women in the informal sectors, etc. Other presentations by women from the March included a workshop on Resistance and Struggle in North America (Vivian Barbot, from Québec) and another workshop on Social Movements (Diane Matte, of the Secretariat).

Despite the presence of a large youth delegation at the WSF (over 10,000 young people have set up a "youth camp," with their own programming and activities), feminist analysis is unfortunately not very visible. We did, however, manage to speak about the importance of the struggle against patriarchy during several activities. In the seminar entitled, "From Seatte to Porto Alegre: Strategies and Perspectives," held as part of the youth camp's "resistance laboratory," Isolda Dantes de Moura of the March in Brazil shared the experiences and strategies of feminists of the March. Also, at the International Youth Meeting (lasting two days), after noticing that virtually all the panelists were men and that women's point of view was missing, Elsa Beaulieu (Québec) addressed young people in the room on the importance of taking feminist analysis into account and of linking the struggle against patriarchy with the anti-neoliberal globalization struggle.

The World March was also involved in writing the final Declaration of Social Movements. Three women from the March (Italy, India, and the Secretariat) worked in the committee responsible for drafting the text. They succeeded in assuring that the central role of the patriarchy in neoliberal globalization is recognized in this year's declaration. The final declaration will also mention sex trafficking and the importance of struggling against all forms of inequality.

A large World March contingent was part of the big march that opened the Forum on January 31. Roughly 50,000 people marched in the streets of Porto Alegre and the World March contingent was covered in the Brazilian media. Another World March of Women contingent is being planned for the March against the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) being held later today. Before the end of the Forum all the women of the March present here in Porto Alegre will gather to share our experiences and thoughts; this will help to prepare the meeting of the March's international Follow-up Committee, which is taking place on February 6 and 7.

Our initial evaluation of our participation in the WSF is a very positive one. While we can see that it will be some time before feminist analysis is firmly entrenched in the critique of neoliberal globalization, we have nevertheless advanced many steps in that direction. "Without feminism a new world is impossible. Without changing the world, women's lives cannot be changed."

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