‘World Social Forum will see 50,000 activists from around the world’

KATHMANDU: Over 50,000 activists from around the world are descending on Kathmandu in the third week of February to participate in the 16th World Social Forum.

The Forum is being held at the Bhrikuti Mandap Exhibition Hall on February 15-19. According to the organizers, preparations for the mega event have reached their final stage.

The Forum is an annual meeting of civil society organizations who believe that another world is possible. The first Forum was held in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in 2003.

Social activists of Nepal, representatives of various organizations, political party leaders, local people’s representatives, and others will participate in the conference, according to the organizers. The Forum will deliberate on different issues, according to Netra Timilsina, a member of the organizing committee. “The Forum will cover economic inequality and economic justice, labor, migration, forced labor, slavery and trafficking, discrimination based on caste, work, descent, gender, ethnicity, etc. Representatives from different countries will hold discussions on all these issues,” he added.

Similarly, issues such as land, agriculture, agro-ecology, food sovereignty, energy and natural resources, peace, conflict, war, occupation, displacement, and security, education, arts and culture, communication, social networks, and media will also be discussed in the Forum. Likewise, the Forum will also deliberate on democracy, human rights, authoritarianism, law and justice, health, social security, and equality, climate justice, ecology, housing and sustainable development, women, children, youth, adolescents, the elderly and persons with disabilities, social movements, civic space, and global society etc. More than 300 sessions will be conducted daily. “During the Forum, senior socialist leaders will present the latest situation in the world. It will also discuss issues ranging from Russia’s attack on Ukraine to the Israel-Palestine conflict,” Timilsina said.

Why was another world envisioned?

Om Thapaliya, executive director of Homenet Nepal and a member of the organizing committee, said the Forum will envisage another world where there is no caste-based discrimination, no gender-based violence, no gap between the rich and the poor, and where people can put forth their views without fear. “Rich becoming richer and poor becoming poorer won’t happen in the other world,” he added.

The World Women’s Forum is also being organized as part of the Forum. Dr Renu Adhikari Rajbhandari, another member of the organizing committee, said 35 different associations are becoming a part of the Women’s Forum which is being hosted by the World Women’s Forum. “This is not a separate event though. These two events complement each other,” she added.

Likewise, the Forum will also have a Youth’s Forum. Naren Khatiwada, a member of the organizing committee, said youths from 40 countries are participating in the Forum. “We will hold group discussions on issues like education, private sector, peace, climate change, mental health, gender, and migration, among others,” he added.

Ram Karki, senior vice president of the National Federation of the Disabled, said the Forum is an opportunity to disseminate the voice of the voiceless to the world. “Social organizations active around the world will participate in the Forum. We have taken this as an opportunity because the voices of oppressed classes, regions, and communities will be heard during the Forum,” he added.

Yogendra Kunwar, president of the Nepal Trade Union Congress, said that trade union rights and social justice issues will be discussed during the forum. “National and international speakers will address the forum. Through the Forum, we will take stock of the progress being made in the trade union movement throughout the world as well as the challenges,” he added.

Likewise, Blue Diamond Society, an organization working for the upliftment of sexual minorities, is organizing Rainbow Planet on the sidelines of the Forum. Preeti Peter, program coordinator of the Society, said they will discuss how the problems of marginalized women can be taken forward. Speakers from Nepal, Bangladesh, India, and others will discuss the problems of sexual minorities and solutions to them.

According to the organizers, Nepal has been chosen as the host for various reasons. First, according to them, is to disseminate the message of peaceful resolution of Nepal’s decade-long conflict to the world. “Similarly, Nepal transitioned to the republican setup from monarchy without violence,” Kunwar said. “Also, there are plenty of exemplary works in Nepal in terms of inclusiveness.”

The World Social Forum will conclude by issuing a Kathmandu Declaration.