BRAZIL: The anti-globalisation alternative to Davos, the World Social Forum, also opened yesterday. Michael McCaughan explains its agenda
Thousands of people have flocked to the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre for the opening yesterday of the World Social Forum (WSF), which showcases an alternative economic order, based on equality and social justice.
Delegates from 125 countries will discuss alternative energy sources and organic farming while also debating ways to increase citizen participation in a global democratic order which prioritises corporations over citizens.
"This gathering is not simply to protest the unjust economic order but to propose sustainable alternatives," said Mr Joao Silva, one of hundreds of volunteers in charge of logistics in this steamy port.
Under the banner "Another world is possible", delegates were warmly welcome by local authorities and police while churches and schools opened their doors to provide makeshift campsites.
The star guest at the event will be Brazil's new president, Mr Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the country's first elected left-wing leader who today will become the first government leader to personally address the forum.
President da Silva is expected to use the platform to declare war on poverty and hunger as he launches an ambitious social reform project which could redefine politics in the region. Latin America has turned to the left in recent times, in search of a government that can provide basic needs without incurring the wrath of the US, the sole global superpower.
President da Silva's attendance dispels the myth that the gathering is simply a free jamboree for cranks and crusties as delegates negotiate global fair trade networks and other practical ways to humanise the new world order.
This year's proposed themes, democratic development, human rights and culture are likely to be trodden underfoot by participants eager to debate the threat of war in Iraq and the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas, described by President da Silva as "economic annexation" of the Americas.
Porto Alegre itself is a living example of participatory democracy where Brazil's Workers' Party pioneered the "people's budget", an annual citizens' assembly which determines spending priorities at budget time.
A large Argentinian delegation will include representatives from the Union of Recuperated Factories, who will explain how thousands of workers have turned abandoned factories into functioning workers' co-operatives, without state help.
Participants will hear hundreds of panel discussions, debates and seminars on themes ranging from corporate misdeeds to the Third World's foreign debt.
Prominent activists attending the forum include US actor Danny Glover and Prof Noam Chomsky, who leads a 1,000-strong US delegation. Ms Aleida Guevara, the daughter of legendary guerrilla leader Ernesto "Che" Guevara, will also be there.
French global activist Mr Jose Bove said he had no plans to create disruption as he did at the first forum in 2001 when he led the invasion and occupation of a farm owned by US agribusiness giant Monsanto. Brazil expelled him the following day. "Things have changed in Brazil," said Mr Bove.
The gathering also facilitates a parallel meeting, the Parliamentary Forum, which last year brought together 1,000 legislators from India, Italy and Argentina. Former president Mrs Mary Robinson and Socialist TD Mr Joe Higgins attended last year's summit along with former Portuguese president Dr Mario Soares.
The WSF belongs to social movements rather than political parties and the presence of the Workers' Party, Brazil's left-wing powerhouse, provoked bitter debate and more than one walk-out. This year, however, the election of Presidentda Silva has put a smile on the face of even the most reluctant participant, a sign this alternative vision is gathering pace worldwide, as free-market economics deliver declining living standards and the erosion of democratic rights.