[Peace-discuss] Fwd: [lib-plic] WEF events in NYC: a guide for the reference desk

[Al Kagan]

>Delivered-To: akagan at alexia.lis.uiuc.edu
>X-eGroups-Return: 
>sentto-2842517-86-1012193721-akagan=uiuc.edu at returns.groups.yahoo.com
>X-Sender: iskra at earthlink.net
>X-Apparently-To: lib-plic at yahoogroups.com
>To: alacoun at ala.org, member-forum at ala.org
>Cc: srrtac-l at ala.org, plgnet-l at listproc.sjsu.edu,
>	lib-plic at yahoogroups.com
>From: Mark Rosenzweig <iskra at earthlink.net>
>X-Yahoo-Profile: mrosenz
>Mailing-List: list lib-plic at yahoogroups.com; contact 
>lib-plic-owner at yahoogroups.com
>Delivered-To: mailing list lib-plic at yahoogroups.com
>List-Unsubscribe: <mailto:lib-plic-unsubscribe at yahoogroups.com>
>Date: Sun, 27 Jan 2002 23:54:59 -0500
>Subject: [lib-plic] WEF events in NYC: a guide for the reference desk
>Reply-To: lib-plic at yahoogroups.com
>Sender: sentto-2842517-86-1012193721-akagan=uiuc.edu at returns.groups.yahoo.com
>Status:  
>
>In case you have any inquiries at the reference desk here's a nice
>guide to the World Economic Forum, the group to which i referred in
>my previous posting whose meeting in NYC this coming week will  sure
>to be in the news, as it is certain to be the occasion for
>counter-actions, from teach-ins to demonstrations, organized by trade
>unions, NGOs, social justice groups, cultural activists, educators,
>students, and many others.
>
>Since information about previous counter-actions to the power elites'
>global confabs has been , shall we say, notoriously one sided and
>tendentious, you may want to provide alternative information
>resources. As the week unfolds I will make these available as
>necessary.
>
>Mark Rosenzweig
>co-editor 'Progressive Librarian'
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------
>FACT-SHEET from the Independent Media Center
>
>Beginning January 31, the Swiss-based World
>Economic Forum will hold its first annual meeting
>ever in the United States in New York City at the
>Waldorf-Astoria hotel. Thousands of
>anti-corporate globalization protesters are
>expected to converge to demonstrate against the
>WEF. Indymedia offers this guide to the Forum
>and the protests.
>
>
>Beginning January 31, the Swiss-based World
>Economic Forum will hold its first annual meeting
>ever in the United States in New York City at the
>Waldorf-Astoria hotel. Some 3,200 business
>leaders, politicians, journalists and academics
>will meet behind closed doors to set an agenda
>for the global economy. Thousands of protesters
>are expected to converge in the New York. To help
>make sense of it all, the New York City
>Independent Media Center offers this factsheet on
>the World Economic Forum.
>
>If you find this guide useful please considering
>donating money to NYC Indymedia's WEF fund to
>help this volunteer-run organization cover this
>historic event.
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>Table of Contents
>
>1.	What is the World Economic Forum?
>2.	Why is the Forum meeting in New York?
>3.	What impact will the meeting have on the city?
>4.	Who is protesting the WEF?
>5.	Why are people protesting?
>6.	What is the connection between the World
>Economic Forum and the World Bank, the
>International Monetary Fund and the World Trade
>Organization?
>7.	How effective has the WEF been?
>8.	What has happened at previous WEF
>meetings?
>9.	What is the connection between the World
>Economic Forum and the World Social Forum?
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>What is the World Economic Forum?
>
>The WEF is a private member organization
>comprising representatives from 1,000 of the
>world's largest corporations including Microsoft,
>Monsanto, Nike, General Motors and, until
>recently, Enron. Originally formed in 1971 as the
>European Management Forum, the Swiss-based
>group has grown into a major global agenda
>setter and a leading proponent of corporate
>globalization. Until this year, the organization held
>its annual meeting in the Swiss mountain resort
>town of Davos.
>
>The exclusive meeting is open to members - who
>pay upwards of $30,000 in annual dues - as well
>as selected politicians, journalists and
>academics. President George W. Bush and
>British Prime Minister Tony Blair are both
>expected to be among the 3,200 in attendance.
>While the WEF helps set global economic and
>trade agendas that affect the entire world, the
>group predominantly includes European and
>American businesses. The member breakdown
>by continent is Europe, 43 percent; North America,
>26 percent; Asia, 13 percent; Central/South
>America, 7.5 percent; Middle East, 4.5 percent;
>Africa, 4.3 percent; Australasia, 2.2 percent.
>
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>Why is the Forum meeting in New York?
>
>"As the world's financial capital and the site of the
>recent terrorist attacks, there could be no better
>place than New York City to confront [post 9/11]
>issues," said WEF founder Klaus Schwab on
>Nov. 7. City and state officials welcomed the
>decision with hopes that the meeting will help
>stimulate New York's lagging economy.
>
>Protesters claim the meeting was moved to New
>York in an effort to muffle protest and dissent. "We
>are offended that at such time of crisis, the world's
>richest and powerful are descending upon the
>ruins of New York to plot and schmooze," read a
>statement by the Anti-Capitalist Convergence.
>Even before 9/11, many suspected years of
>protest in Davos would cause the WEF to seek a
>new home for its annual meeting in a less
>protest-prone venue.
>
>"City and World Economic Forum officials also
>note that one factor working in their favor is the
>diminished furor, particularly after Sept. 11, of the
>American anti-globalization movement," reported
>the Washington Post. In contrast, activists predict
>the New York action will be the largest
>anti-corporate American protest since April 2000,
>when tens of thousands took to the streets of
>Washington D.C. to protest the World Bank.
>
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>What impact will the meeting have on the city?
>
>The economic impact of the meeting on the city
>remains to be seen. While the business leaders
>and foreign dignitaries are among the world's
>wealthiest individuals, the city must spend
>millions in security costs. In Davos, a town of only
>13,000 permanent residents, police spent $5.4
>million last year in security. In New York, which
>has a police force of 40,000, the security budget
>has not been released but, in an interview with the
>New York Post former Philadelphia Police Chief
>John Timoney predicted "it is going to cost the city
>a fortune in security." The New York Times has
>reported a military-like force would be ready. "Law
>enforcement officials said the Police
>Department's response would have to include
>almost military-style tactics," the Times reported
>Jan. 11th. "All of the department's tools and the
>lessons learned about security since Sept. 11 will
>have to be put to use, officials said." The police
>department has also been prepping officers by
>staging mock demonstrations where "protesters"
>attack police and attempt to overturn cars.
>
>While the area near the meeting's headquarters
>at the Waldorf Astoria may be turned into a "frozen
>zone," the city reportedly will not build any fences
>or gates around the hotel as seen at recent
>protests in Genoa and Quebec City.
>
>Members will also attend functions elsewhere in
>the city. On Feb. 2nd, for example, the Forum will
>have to abandon the plush Waldorf ballroom to
>make way for a previously planned wedding.
>According to the Washington Post, the New York
>Stock Exchange has agreed to open its doors to
>host a party for 3,000 that Saturday night.
>
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>Who is protesting the WEF?
>
>Scores of organizations have planned protests,
>marches and counter summits to take place the
>week of Jan. 30 - Feb. 4. These include the
>Students For Global Justice, AFL-CIO, Another
>World Is Possible, Anti-Capitalist Convergence,
>Public Citizen and International ANSWER.
>
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>Why are people protesting?
>
>The World Economic Forum is seen by many as
>the corporate architect of the recent wave of
>economic globalization. Representatives from
>WEF set the foundation for the formation of the
>World Trade Organization, the highly contentious
>global economic body that was the focus of the
>Seattle protests in 1999.
>
>In addition, WEF's growing clout is beginning to
>challenge even that of the United Nations which
>concerns many critics since the Forum is a private
>entity accountable to only its members. "Should a
>Forum that is dominated by corporate interests be
>encouraged to take on the role of mapping out
>future frameworks for global governance?" asked
>Australian scholar Peter Goodman in his article
>"The WEF: Capital's First International?" For
>protest groups, the answer is clearly no.
>
>While many activists agree in their objections to
>theWEF, debate has arisen over what tactics
>should and should not be used in a city still
>recovering from the devastating attacks in New
>York. Many debates have occurred on the NYC
>Indymedia site. Read some here: (1), (2), (3).
>
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>What is the connection between the World
>Economic Forum and the World Bank,
>International Monetary Fund and World Trade
>Organization?
>
>The IMF and World Bank were both formed
>following World War II ostensibly to help stabilize
>the international economy and to provide loans to
>struggling nations. The institutions, which are run
>by member nations, have advocated for the
>neo-liberal economic model that has been
>criticized widely for the inequality it produces both
>within countries and between first and third world
>nations.
>
>“Since the 1980s the debt situation has steadily
>worsened, so that now the total debt of the
>developing world equals about one-half their
>combined GNP and nearly twice their total annual
>export earnings,” says the group 50 Years is
>Enough. “Because of this crushing debt-service
>burden, foreign governments have virtually no
>bargaining power when negotiating a structural
>adjustment program and must accept any
>conditions imposed by the World Bank and the
>IMF.”
>
>The World Economic Forum dates to the early
>1970s and was directly responsible for paving the
>way for the World Trade Organization. The IMF,
>World Bank and WTO all have power to
>implement policy and affect economic regulations
>while the WEF is a private group that can set the
>corporate agenda on trade.
>
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>How effective has the World Economic Forum
>been?
>
>Since Swiss professor Klaus Schwab organized a
>small meeting of European corporate chiefs in
>1971, the annual meeting has grown rapidly in
>size and scope. It was originally known as the
>European Management Forum. In 1982, the first
>Informal Gathering of World Economic Leaders
>took place in Davos. A year later the inaugural
>Davos Governors' Meetings were held. In 1986,
>the organization became known as the World
>Economic Forum and has since become the
>foremost annual corporate gathering in the world.
>Its impact on global economic policy has likewise
>been profound.
>
>"The Forum has been remarkably successful -
>since 1971 the 'state of the world' has
>dramatically improved for many of the participating
>corporations. WEF strategizing drove the
>neo-liberal agenda in the 1980s, bringing
>together politicians from the 'pretender' states of
>the newly industrializing world, as well as from the
>OECD states, to map out an agenda with
>transnational business executives. It offered a
>proactive forum, removed from the public gaze,
>and played a central role in diffusing
>neo-liberalism," writes Peter Goodman, an
>Australian professor at University of Technology
>Sydney.
>
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>What has happened at previous WEF meetings?
>
>Until the late 1990s, the World Economic Forum
>attracted little attention outside the financial elite.
>But that changed when annual protests began in
>Davos as activists demanded more accountability
>to this leading agenda-setting organization.
>Demonstrations grew to include over 1,000
>people two years ago spurriing Swiss officials to
>ban protests in 2000. But that did not prevent
>"hacktivists" from decoding the WEF computer
>server to gain credit card numbers, travel
>information and private cell phone numbers for
>over 1,000 attendees including Yasser Arafat,
>Madeline Albright and Bill Gates. In September
>2000, WEF held a regional meeting in Melbourne,
>Australia. There 10,000 protesters converged
>forcing delays in the meeting as one-third of the
>delegates were prevented entry into the meeting
>center. WEF protests have also occurred in
>
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>What is the connection between the World
>Economic Forum and the World Social Forum?
>
>The World Social Forum formed last year Porto
>Alegre, Brazil, as a counter summit to the WEF
>annual meeting. Some 10,000 activists,
>educators, unions and workers from around the
>world met to discuss alternatives to the
>neo-liberal economic model. " 'Another World Is
>Possible' was the event's official slogan," reported
>Naomi Klein last year. "After a year and a half of
>protests against the World Trade Organization,
>the World Bank and the International Monetary
>Fund, the World Social Forum was billed as an
>opportunity for this emerging movement to stop
>screaming about what it is against and start
>articulating what it is for." As many as 60,000
>people are expected to attend this year's Forum
>which meet again from Jan. 31 to Feb. 5.
>--------------------------------------------------------------------
>----
>
>NYC Indepdendent Media Center
>No Copyright. Please print out and distribute.
>
>
>
>
>--
>
>To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
>lib-plic-unsubscribe at yahoogroups.com
>
>
>
>Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

-- 


Al Kagan
African Studies Bibliographer and Professor of Library Administration
Africana Unit, Room 328
University of Illinois Library
1408 W. Gregory Drive
Urbana, IL 61801, USA

tel. 217-333-6519
fax. 217-333-2214
e-mail. akagan at uiuc.edu