BY PETER BOYLEÌý
With the successful M1 mobilisations under its belt, the movement against corporate globalisation will soon discuss its next major focus.
A month ago we floated the idea of a Canberra convergence against the new World Trade Organisation round for September 11. It had a good response from activists at the Melbourne Global Action conference who agreed that it was important to organise opposition to the proposed new WTO round that the imperialists hope to force through in Qatar in November.
But after canvassing the idea with other activists, the Democratic Socialist Party has decided to argue for the next national convergence of the movement to be in Brisbane in early October when the Commonwealth Head Of Government Meeting (CHOGM) is scheduled. The International Socialist Organisation shares this view.
New WTO round
A Brisbane convergence would need to focus on several important issues. Coming one month before the Qatar meeting, which seeks to reverse the movement's victory at the “Battle of Seattle” in 1999, the WTO round will undoubtedly be a focus.The Australia government is one of the imperialist governments strongly promoting this round, which will further strengthen corporate trading, investment and “intellectual property” rights at the cost of millions of lives. It supports measures that will make it even more impossible for the Third World to break its chains of debt. It supports the sneaky reintroduction of the scuttled Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) and WTO enforcement of privatisation of essential services like water and energy, under the General Agreement on Trade and Services (GATS), which is currently under negotiation.
But the Howard government also knows that “free trade” is deeply unpopular, even among some of its own traditional supporters. The Howard government has announced a “public consultation” on the proposed new WTO round to try and placate a suspicious public.
Third World debt
In addition Jubilee 2000 has begun planning a mobilisation around Third World debt during CHOGM. It is planning to bus activists to Brisbane and has sought union assistance. Australian Manufacturing Workers Union national secretary Doug Cameron says that his union will assist. Friends Of the Earth (FOE) is also committed to mobilising for CHOGM. Student activists in Brisbane have also begun to organise for it.Indigenous rights activists are set to make racism a big issue at the Brisbane convergence too.
There are two possible protest points against CHOGM. On October 3, Steve Bracks' Labor government of Victoria is hosting a CHOGM business leaders' meeting in Melbourne and then there is the main summit in Brisbane, on October 6-8.
Between now and October, the movement should build up a campaign to demand Australia and other countries boycott the WTO round, which could include the use of the significant S11 date for local actions or public meetings.
Apart from planning something for S11, anti-corporate globalisation activists should support the June 3 national day of action on refugee rights. The racist campaigns against refugees in Australia and the rest of the world's richest countries is one of the ugliest features of corporate globalisation.
Better organised
M1 was a great success. It showed that the movement could mobilise the broad range of anti-corporate activists who turned out last year at S11 without the help of a summit or meeting organised by the corporate globalisers. It showed that the movement could go beyond “summit hopping”.It also showed that this movement cannot advance without greater organisation. Sure, it will only advance with inclusive and democratic organisational forms but they need to be created.
The widely promoted myth that the activists in this new movement are totally averse to all forms of organisation only serves the corporate rulers.
But it is true that the activists in this movement are deeply suspicious of the organisational forms and the politics of the old movements, and with great justification. This is a movement that is arising after nearly two decades of attacks from the corporate ruling class that have been shamefully accepted by the leaders of the old social movements. Most of the trade union leaders and the leaders of the “old left” — particularly in the world's richest countries — betrayed their ranks time after time.
The old movement leaders had long abandoned the politics of radical mass action. And by and large they have played little role in organising S11 and M1. Some of them are even probably hoping that our movement will fail, if only to justify their abstention and political retreat. What a sorry sight!
Meanwhile, however, many former activists who had dropped into inactivity after the years of retreat are breaking from demoralisation and joining the new movement.
Organising for S11 and then M1 has been an important experience for the new movement in Australia. Activists have learnt how to work better together. The tremendous success of M1 greatly boosted the confidence of new and old activists.
The M1 alliances should continue and build the Brisbane convergence and other activities. There will be a day during the Brisbane convergence (probably October 7, when the CHOGM delegates are expected to fly up north for sightseeing) that could be used for an anti-corporate activists' national conference/consultation. Such a meeting can further advance the new movement.
[Peter Boyle is a member of the Â’s national executive.]