REFLECTIONS
ON MUMBAI RESISTANCE 2004
By JOANNA K. CARINO
Having earlier attended the World Social Forum at Porto Alegre, Brazil
in 2003 and the Asia Social Forum at Hyderabad, India in 2003, here are
some reflections on the Mumbai Resistance (MR) 2004 against Imperialist
Globalization and War, held at Mumbai, India from January 17 to 20 this
year.
MR 2004 drew inspiration from the Thessaloniki Resistance in Greece in
June 2003. The idea was further developed by the international coordinating
group of the International League of People's Struggle (ILPS) when its
Indian partner, the Anti-Imperialist People's Resistance Forum, volunteered
to coordinate the international activity.
The main objective of MR 2004 was to bring together and strengthen various
forces from all over the world with a clear anti-imperialist agenda. It
was conceived to run parallel and serve as a counterpoint to the World
Social Forum, a gathering which organizers of MR 2004 saw as a huge forum
for "reflection and debate" in a festive atmosphere, while failing
to build a genuinely anti-imperialist people's resistance at the international
level.
MR had its inaugural plenary session on January 17. There were opening
speeches from the Indian organizers of the resistance after which Crispin
Beltran, Kilusang Mayo Uno and ILPS chairperson, gave the keynote address.
An international panel of speakers gave short speeches. There were a number
of militant cultural numbers interspersed throughout the program. There
were messages of solidarity from all over the world. The opening program
extended to mid-afternoon, culminating with a march on the grounds, with
sustained chanting and sloganeering, and with the Philippines' Bagong
Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN)-ILPS delegation waving our flags and shouting
our slogans. From late afternoon extending into the night, six workshops
were held simultaneously, including that of the trade unions, peasants,
women, and the ILPS Study Commission on National Liberation, Democracy
and Social Liberation.
The following day, January 18, had six more simultaneous workshops, among
which was that on "Intensified Marginalization of Tribals (Indigenous
Peoples) under Imperialist Globalization." At its peak, which would
be during the cultural presentations, the workshop numbered to around
500 people, mostly adivasi from all over India, a sprinkling
of indigenous peoples from Nepal and Bangladesh, and a few other foreigners.
With this number, it was not really a workshop but more of a seminar where
a panel of discussants made their presentations before an audience. There
were questions from the floor after each speaker.
The panel of speakers was composed of the foremost Indian tribal leaders,
all male and with firm Gandhi orientation, and myself, representing the
Cordillera Peoples Alliance. After the speakers, there were individuals
and representatives of other tribal people's organizations in India and
South Asia who also wanted to say their piece. For the benefit of us foreigners,
the proceedings were largely conducted in Hindi, with an effort at English
translation or into the other local languages.
We had a friendly debate with some of the Indian tribal leaders on the
forms of struggle for ancestral land rights and self-determination. The
major bone of contention was about non-violence and respect for the law,
versus more militant forms of struggle. Dr. B.D. Sharma, the workshop
coordinator, was the main proponent of affirmative legislation recognizing
prior rights of tribal peoples to their land. He asserts that the adivasi should persevere in using the law to achieve their ends. I told them
about CPA lobbying at the Constitutional Commission for the recognition
of ancestral land rights and regional autonomy and, later, against the
Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act, a deceptive legislation that mislead the
people about what they can expect from the law.
The workshops ended mid-afternoon, after which the closing plenary session
took place. Around 20 individuals from various anti-imperialist organizations
from all over the world were called to the stage. They gave short speeches
one after the other, interspersed with cultural numbers. Then the participants
joined the cultural march on the grounds, after which the MR 2004 Declaration
against imperialist globalization and war was presented.
January 19 was a day of waves of cultural resistance. January 20 was
supposed to be the large protest rally at the American Consulate against
the US war of terror, but as the organizers were unable to get a permit,
the march had to be held elsewhere.
MR 2004 was a huge success. For the first time, the thorough-going anti-imperialists
challenged the World Social Forum in a big and organized way. Through
its program, speeches, statements and other documents, MR 2004 drew a
sharp divide between its clear anti-imperialist line and the reformist
line of the WSF. Even the venue was excellently across the highway from
the WSF. The slogans painted in the main thoroughfares and posters plastered
in the public places projected MR 2004's call for resistance to imperialism,
and served as a rebuke to WSF's lame and vague "another world is
possible." MR 2004 provided the left pole to which genuine anti-imperialists
in Mumbai could gravitate.
While the WSF engaged in endless debate on countless issues, thereby
confusing about the forces behind globalization, MR 2004 clearly identified
and targeted monopoly capitalism, or imperialism, as the main enemy of
the whole world.
While the WSF advocated giving a "human face" to globalization
and providing a "bridge" across the wide gap among classes,
MR 2004 pointed to the sharp contradictions between the exploiters and
the exploited, the oppressors and the oppressed.
MR 2004 concretely demonstrated its difference from the WSF, with the
former as a gathering of revolutionary, militant, anti-imperialist forces
with clear analysis and concrete calls for resisting imperialism. This
is in contrast with the broad, all talk, and primarily festive nature
of the latter, WSF.
MR 2004 is indeed an outstanding contribution to the global anti-imperialist
struggle. After Thessaloniki and Mumbai, initiating and organizing RESISTANCE
to imperialism is a tradition that the International League of People's
Struggles should sustain. |
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