KARACHI, Feb 13: The six-day World Social Forum, a gathering of civil society organizations from around the world, will be held from March 24 to 29 in Karachi to reinforce the global movement against globalization, wars, colonization, denial of rights of all sorts, terrorism, extremism, fundamentalism, militarization and a host of other issues.

Opening plenary of the polycentric WSF-2006 will be addressed by Bishop Desmond Tutu, Tariq Ali and Arundhati Roy, while the closing plenary will be addressed, among others, by Dalai Lama. Both the plenary sessions will be held at the People’s Stadium in Lyari.

KMC Sports Complex Kashmir Road, National Coaching Centre, Liaquat National Library, Auditoriums of Dawood College, Adamjee College, Islamia College and Nishtar Park have been chosen as the main activity venues where cultural events would also be organized, according to members of the WSF organizing committee who were addressing a news conference on Monday. They included Karamat Ali, B.M. Kutty, Fahimuzzaman Khan, Begum Saleha Athar, Iqbal Haider, Baseer Naveed, Anushae Alam and Riaz Nawab.

The organizers hope to attract between 30,000 and 40,000 activists and groups, from different continents, mainly from the Asia-Pacific region, to give a boost to the movement launched in January 2001 at Porto Alegre, Brazil.

Originally, this gathering was planned to be held on January 24-29, but had to be postponed due to the October 8 earthquake. This alternative annual meeting has grown into the world’s largest gathering of civil society. With the slogan Another World Is Possible, the gathering in Karachi will not only dispel the negative impression of the city but will also send positive signals to the world that city is the abode of friendly and tolerant people. It will open the opportunity for new alliances and create opportunities for civil society groups and movements to take on forces of extremism and militancy, as well as religious intolerance.

Mr Karamat Ali, a member of the organizing Committee, said the event was taking place at a time when the world at large and the region in particular was facing turmoil due to unilateralism, extremism, militarization and denial of rights of all sorts.

The WSF is opposed to the process of capitalist globalization by large multi-national corporations and by the government and international institutions. Rallies, seminars, cultural activities and interaction among various groups will be the hallmark of this event.

This gathering of the civil society will deliberate upon a host of subjects, including the peace initiatives by India and Pakistan, Myanmar-Thailand, Palestine-Israel, Iraq, Iran-West and the US, and Afghanistan.

Terrorism, matters related to people’s right to have control of their natural resources, privatization and trans-boundary disputes, trade development and globalization with particular reference to WTO, Safta, trade unions and free trading zones, etc., would also be part of the agenda, he said.

The issues of social justice and human rights, including democracy, de-institutionalization of political systems, support to military regimes, political victimization, child/women trafficking and sexual exploitation are some of the proposed themes.

The event will also provide an opportunity to deliberate upon religious fundamentalism and intolerance and treatment of minorities, besides state- entrenched violence, militancy, violence against women and children, honour killings, etc.

The other issues to be deliberated upon are those relating to water and dams, problems in mega cities, livelihood and the problems faced by fisher-folk, etc.

The organizers said that the city government had assured them of its full cooperation in organizing the event. They expected that the federal government would also facilitate issuance of visas to the delegates and other participants, particularly those coming from India and Bangladesh.

In reply to a question, Mr Karamat Ali said that the WSF charter was actually a charter of humanity and all those subscribing to the views expressed in the charter would be welcomed to attend the moot. Political leaders and activists may participate in their individual and independent capacity, not from the party platform, he added.

Earlier Begum Saleha Athar said the event would strengthen the international civil society’s quest for reflective thinking, democratic debate of ideas, formulation of proposals, free exchange of experiences and inter-linking for effective action. It will provide an alternative open meeting place to the groups and movements of civil society which are opposed to the domination of world by capitalist forces and any form of imperialism and are committed to building a world order meant for humanity.