• Iraq Social Forum

IRAQI SOCIAL FORUM, INTERNATIONAL CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS

de parte de "Martina Pignatti M." en 22/07/2013 12:30
Dear all,
the international call for participants has been finalized! Thanks to 
Judith for language revision, and thanks to Pierre for suggesting 
amendments to the extended forum participation form. *You can start 
spreading the following text (and eventually the attached pdf) to your 
organizations and all mailinglists of social movements that could have 
an interest in the ISF.* Please also consider the option of inviting key 
people that may want to go to Baghdad (for example Naomi Klein? who can 
contact her?), even if we don't have a solidarity fund to cover 
international flights. *Clarify in your messages that going to Baghdad 
implies a risk, but those who want to try need to register as soon as 
possible (in any case within August 5), since getting the visa is not an 
easy process.*
Finally, we need language translations of this call. As soon as you've 
done one, please send it to this mailinglist! Thanks a lot!

Martina

PS: Text to be disseminated follows...

****

**

DF-12777.jpg 
<http://www.iraqicivilsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/logo-ISF.jpg>

*Another Iraq is Possible!*

*With Peace, Human Rights and Social Justice!*

Dear Friends

We invite you to attend and seek your support for the first Iraqi Social 
Forum [ISF] to be held on *September 26-28, 2013 in Baghdad, Iraq *.

*Active international solidarity is the need of this hour!*

The Iraqi Social Forum is an extraordinary event that opposes decades of 
immense violence and destruction. It proposes a time and a space managed 
by civil society and social movements to build another Iraq based on 
peace, respect for human rights and social justice, in partnership with 
all those who adhere to the principles and charter of the WSF, adopted 
in Porto Alegre in 2001.

The loss of the lives of over one million people, the destruction of 
infrastructure, fatal and debilitating effects of depleted uranium and 
chemical weaponry used by the occupation forces cannot be forgotten, 
neither by the Iraqi people nor by the international movements who have 
been mobilizing against the war and the occupation.

The withdrawal of the US and occupation troops has opened the way to 
complete the struggle of Iraqi people for democracy and social justice, 
but the current Iraqi leadership has been built on sectarian lines, and 
does not guarantee the rights and safety of its citizens. Hundreds of 
thousands have protested in the streets of Iraqi cities since 2011 
against corruption, for social services, for freedom of expression, and 
for an independent judiciary system. More than 2600 Iraqis have been 
killed since April 2013 in terrorist attacks, most of them in Baghdad. 
Still Iraqi civil society acts for change.

*Now it is the time to all work together to build a way for hope to 
emerge, and to contribute to the desires of the Iraqi people for a 
civil, democratic society and State, based on respect for different 
cultures.* The country is experiencing a political, economic and social 
crisis: this is the time to build partnerships, foster dialogue and 
cooperation, to find solutions to outstanding problems. Now is the time 
to end violence and terrorism for which the people of Iraq have paid, 
and continue to pay, a heavy price. These are the challenges of the 
Iraqi Social Forum, we believe that these are our shared challenges!**

*The WSF process is now well anchored in the region. *Since 2008 we have 
witnessed successful regional social fora in the Maghreb/Mashreq, a 
World Education Forum in Palestine and the World Social Forum in Tunis 
earlier this year. These collective experiences provide a fertile ground 
for the Iraqi civil society to build the first Iraqi Social Forum as an 
open space for exchange of experiences and ideas, and to build a 
movement against neo-liberalism, for social change.

*Iraqi civil society organizations will raise the following issues 
within the ISF:* building a civic and democratic country; challenges 
faced by minorities; equitable distribution of wealth and social 
justice; trade unions, and peasant associations; rights of women, youth, 
children; economic, social, and cultural issues; nonviolence as a way of 
social, cultural, and economic change in Iraq; international solidarity 
campaigns with the Iraqi civil society. Sports Against Violence and 
Artistic activities will be associated to the forum.

*The world witnessed huge demonstrations, unparalleled in the history, 
against the US invasion of Iraq. This international solidarity is now 
once again being convened in support of the Iraqi Social Forum.* 
International participation in the Baghad ISF forum event will be 
limited in numbers for security reasons, but the ISF preparatory 
committee is looking for a venue in Baghdad safe enough for some 
internationals to attend. We strongly encourage your remote 
participation from your own country, via the "Extended Iraqi Social Forum".

Please consider the following ways of joining us:

*1) Be with us in Baghdad. Be aware that this entails a certain degree 
of risk,*

and that we will confirm international participation only in early 
September depending on the situation. Meanwhile, *you need to register 
before the 5th of August* in order to receive a letter of invitation and 
apply for the visa at the Iraqi Embassy in your country.

You will be contacted individually after submitting the application form 
here: 
http://www.iraqicivilsociety.org/registration-form-iraqi-social-forum-2013

*2) Extended ISF. Organize a solidarity event in your own country, *

before or during the ISF, or a live exchange via Internet with a group 
in Baghdad , or a tele-participation in an activity held in Baghdad . A 
group of Iraqi volunteers is being trained to help connect with 
counterparts who want to exchange via Internet. Define with the local 
organizers which ISF activities will be enlarged for Internet 
participation, and build the corresponding connections.**

You can learn more about the Extended forum and announce each of your 
extended collective participations in the ISF in a form accessible 
here:**http://www.iraqicivilsociety.org/extended-iraqi-social-forum-registration-form 


*Let us know if you are willing to participate!*

*The Iraqi Social Forum Organizing Committee *

*The International Solidarity Committee for the Iraqi Social Forum
*

/Link to read this document online, and check updates in the coming weeks://
//http://www.iraqicivilsociety.org/iraqi-social-forum/iraqi-social-forum-an-international-call-for-participants//
//To receive support for international participation contact: 
icssi.project@.../*
*

******

*Member organizations of the Iraqi committee:

*

	*Organization* 	*City*
1
	Women for Peace 	Baghdad
2

	Tammuz Organization for Social Development 	Baghdad
3
	Laonf Group 	Basra
4
	AL Mesalla Organization for Human Resources Development 	Erbil
5
	Kurdistan Youth Empowerment Organization 	Erbil
6
	Information Center for research and development 	Baghdad
7
	Iraqi council for peace and solidarity (ICPS) 	Baghdad
8
	Al Amal Association 	Baghdad
9
	General Federation of Iraqi Workers 	Baghdad
10
	Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions 	Basra
11
	Press Freedom Advocacy Association In Iraq 	Baghdad
12
	Madarik for Studying Mechanisms of Conceptual Promotion 	Baghdad
13
	Yazidi Solidarity and Fraternity League 	Ninawa
14
	Engineering Professions Union 	Baghdad
15
	Iraqi Democratic Future Network 	Baghdad
16
	Ofok Organization 	Baghdad

*Members of the international committee:*

*Name*

	

*Organization*

	

*Country*

Ismaeel Dawood 	Iraqi Civil Society Solidarity Initiative 	international
Martina Pignatti Morano 	Un ponte per... 	Italy
Judith Hitchman and Sergio Cordeiro 	Support to "Iraqi Social Forum 
interpreters' team" 	international
Sabiha Ben Ammar 	Confédération Générale Tunisienne du Travail (CGTT) 
Tunisia
Feroz Mehdi 	Alternatives International 	international
Mireille Fanon-Mendes 	Frantz Fanon Foundation 	international
Elena Laurenti and Nicola Visconti 	A.D. Sport Against Violence 	Italy
Pierre George 	Support to "Extended Iraqi Social Forum team" 	France
Mboirick Mohamed 	Gathering of Young Mauritania for Development 	Mauritania
Olfa Mohamed 	Tunisian League of Women Voters 	Tunisia
Ahmad Jaradat 	Alternative Information Center 	Palestine/Israel
Gershom Kabaso 	Zambia Social Forum 	Zambia
Terry Kay Rockefeller 	September 11 Families for Peaceful Tomorrows 	USA
Felipe Daza 	NOVACT 	Spain
Raffaella Bolini 	ARCI 	Italy
Hamouda Soubhi 	Alternatives Forum in Morocco (FMAS) 	Morocco
Muhanna Al-Shamary 	Friendship and Peace International Organization 
Denmark/Iraq
Alessandra Mecozzi 	Italian Network for the World Social Forum 	Italy
Gustave Massiah 	Initiatives Pour un Autre Monde (IPAM) 	France



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