Around 75 thousand people came together in Dakar, Senegal, for the World Social Forum between the 6th and 11th February 2011. Caravans from across the West African region were organised, and awareness-raising activities were carried out on their journeys towards Dakar. We, World March of Women activists, took part in several different caravans, with our largest delegations from Mali and Mauritania.
The strong participation of African women and men and the revolutions underway in North Africa created an atmosphere of strength and energy that helped participants to overcome the Forum’s logistical and organisational problems.
Furthermore, it was this energy created by the uniting of grassroots struggles that was present at the centre of the Social Movements Assembly on the 10th February, in which approximately 3000 people participated. At the Assembly – which we organised along with CADTM, Via Campesina, Grassroots Global Justice and other movements – all social movements were invited to continue, strengthen or become part of collective struggles organised on two global mobilisation dates: the 20th March, an international day in which we will stand up in solidarity with African and Arab peoples, whose national victories strengthen the struggles of all peoples, and a global day of action against capitalism the 12th October, when we will express, in myriad ways, our rejection of a system that destroys everything in its path. Click to reed the declaration of the assembly in:
The Assembly also called for the convergence of our struggles around four issues: against transnational corporations, for climate justice and food sovereignty, against violence against women and against war, colonialisation, occupations and militarisation. Our challenge is to intertwine these issues, reminding us of the permanent challenge we have to strengthen the links between our four Action Areas. These links were traced out during the WMW’s self-organised activity, “Feminist struggle against militarisation, capitalism and patriarchy: the 3rd International Action”, which brought together around 500 people on the 8th February.
Women from 22 countries shared news of the activities carried out, and lessons learnt, during the International Action, as well as the regional actions and Closing Event in Bukavu, DRC. Click here for further information on the activity, pictures and to read the texts with the presentations made by the WMW in Turkey and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
On the 9th February, we organised an alliance building workshop between the WMW and women from Via Campesina and Friends of the Earth International around the issues of food sovereignty, violence against women and climate justice. It was an important moment for activists and leaders from these three movements to get to know each other better and discuss how to advance in our discussions around these themes.
Finally, after a large process of convergence among the initiatives of the gender and equity committee of the WSF Senegalese Steering Committee in Dakar and the initiatives of international movements and networks, we held a Women’s Assembly in the 10th and 11th Februray 2011. Despite efforts, it was not possible to finish the debate around a common declaration because a minority sector, but a very active one, in the Assembly was against mentioning the right to self-determination of the Saharawi women.
Many organizations that participated in the Assembly had decided to spread out the content of the proposed declaration in the form of a signed letter, the “Letter on solidarity with women’s struggles around the world”. Still, we are aware that many other women and organizations have contributed to the content of this Letter. Click to read the Letter and further information on the issue:
More information about the WSF 2011 will be sent in the next edition of the WMW international newsletter, which will be sent out until the end of March.