The Hindu : Left parties to hold convention against globalisation

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Dec 31, 2002

Southern States

Southern States - Andhra Pradesh-Hyderabad

Left parties to hold convention against globalisation

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD Dec. 30. Several Left parties and socialist groups have resolved to hold a political convention against globalisation here on January 5 coinciding with the Asian Social Forum which is expected to be attended by 10,000 delegates from all over the continent.

As these parties are not directly participating in the Asian Social Forum, they have decided to organise a parallel meeting from 11 a.m. onwards at Gandhi Bhavan focussing on the same agenda. However, their frontal organisations representing youth, students and workers, will take part in the debates of the forum.

A number of national and State leaders including the former Prime Minister, V. P. Singh, veteran socialist, Surendra Mohan, CPI(M) politburo member, Sitaram Yechury, and others including S. Sudhakar Reddy (CPI), Kanu Sanyal (CPI-ML, Unity Initiative), Dipankar Bhattacharya (CPI -ML Liberation), Krishna Chakravarthy (SUCI), G. Gangadhar Reddy (MCPI) and K. Venkateswara Rao (ML Committee), will attend the convention.

Meanwhile , differences have surfaced among the nine Left parties, which have been conducting struggles jointly in AP on several people's issues, over their participation in the ASF. Some of the constituents, reportedly New Democracy and Janashakthi, are averse to identifying themselves with the Forum.

Admitting some differences on this score, Mr. Sudhakar Reddy said some Left parties felt that the WSF and the ASF were broad platforms for debate which were strengthening the fight against globalisation. They were of the view that this fight should not be weakened by entering into unnecessary debates with friends. "Our goal is the same although the road may be different'', he said.

He was addressing a joint press conference here on Monday along with the CPI(M) State Secretary, B. V. Raghavulu, Vijaya Kumar of the Unity Initiative and Sudheer of the SUCI. Clarifying that the Asian Social Forum was not being organised by the Left parties as reported in a section of the press, he explained that it was the first World Social Forum (WSF) held at Porto Alegre in Brazil which had decided to organise an Asian conference at Hyderabad in January 2003 as a prelude to the next WSF. The ASF was a useful platform, he added.

Mr. Raghavulu strongly denied a suggestion that the CPI(M) was hijacking the convention and said his party would only be too happy if others came forward to hijack the fight against globalisation.

Accusing the TD Government of promoting globalisation with the active backing of the World Bank, the CPI(M) leader said the Left parties were fighting the Government's reform agenda and would welcome anyone joining forces with them. The convention would also discuss the issue of secularism since the NDA Government was pursuing the twin agenda of globalisation and communalisation, he added.

CPI(ML) hits out

Meanwhile, the CPI (ML), New Democracy, has accused the World Social Forum of trying to mislead people. At a meeting presided over by Y. Sambasiva Rao, State secretariat member, it said the NGOs and voluntary organisations were being used by imperialist forces to suppress revolutionary and people's struggles all over the world.

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