Building an Urban and Communitarian Way from Porto Alegre to the Peoples’ Summit in Rio
During the Thematic Social Forum in Porto Alegre which included CONAM, FCOC, IAI, FNRU, the unity of urban social movements was highlighted. Also highlighted was the fight against evictions. This debate takes place in the context of participation-building at the Peoples’ Summit and at the Peoples’ Permanent Assembly that will take place parallel to the Rio+20 United Nations Conference, where we intend to advance the construction of the Urban and Communitarian Way.
The Thematic Social Forum debated the actual world economic crisis, the defense of the environment using a progressive vision combining social and economic development with the preservation of nature, guaranteeing the rights of workers and the sovereignty of nations.
As a result of the present world economic crisis, millions of jobs were lost, and millions of people have been subjected to absolute poverty, and overcoming it means that we need to confront it with determination, clarity of purpose and unity of the popular democratic camp in defense of the rights of workers and of national sovereignty. Capitalism does not guarantee a prosperous future for mankind, and it only implies that times of recession and anguish will return for workers, and in this sense it is necessary to strengthen the resistance.
The Assembly of social movements indicated that the current situation can only be changed with a broad unity of the people around banners of united struggles, such as the fight for environmental preservation and economic development, combating the idea of a green economy. Only a model of production alternative to capitalism will be able to give the necessary responses and effective solutions to the struggles of the people.
Contained within the letter approved by the CMS, there is a platform for the struggle of social movements, with an emphasis on democratic reforms, among them the progress of social politics and the Urban Reform, with the guarantee of more democratic cities which are against evictions and the criminalization of social movements.
In this sense, we should organize campaigns and schedule days around progressive struggles, in response to the environmental and social problems of humanity. The democratization of society is the central issue within the struggle of social movements, to social inclusion, and to the humanizing of the lives of those that live in large urban centers in conjunction with the universalization of public politicies.
The construction of a common agenda for the organizations of inhabitants
In the workshop, “Construction of the Urban and Communitarian Way, Zero Evictions Campaign,” CONAM, FCOC, IAI, FNRU participated in this Thematic Forum, indicating a united road of urban national and international social movements, towards the ends of advancing the construction of the Urban and Communitarian Way, as a common space for organizations of inhabitants to exchange experiences, share strategies reinforce global solidarity with local struggles. Also highlighted was the struggle against eviction, such as the case of the Pinheirinho in São Paulo, strengthening the commitment to Antenna Brazil, and the struggle against forced evictions. It also emphasized the increase in mobilization so the World Cup and megaevents in general are not used as arguments to legitimize the oppression of communities in big cities.
This debate takes place in the context of the construction of CONAM, FCOC and IAI participation at the People's Summit for social and environmental justice and the Permanent Assembly of the Peoples against the marketization of life and of nature, in defense of the common good, that will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from the 18th to the 23rd of June, 2012, parallel to the United Nations Conference for Sustainable Development (Rio+20) and that contribute to the construction of a common agenda for the organizations of inhabitants.
For better understanding, the commitment to deepen the debate of the Urban and Communitarian Way was assumed with the rest of the entities of the National Forum of Urban Reform. This debate should be reintroduced at the Forum Meeting in March 2012.
For the Rio+20, the commitment to create collective workshops of the IAI, HIC, and the entities that comprise was assumed at the National Forum for Urban Reform.
At the People'sv Summit, Rio+20, we intend to advance the debate of the construction of the Urban and Communitarian Way. With it we are able to contribute to effecting the social function of property, of the city, and of land in general, believing that social movements have an accumulated experience that enable them to contribute to and to recuperate and defend cities, nature, culture, wisdom, capabilities, sustainability, self-determination, sovereignty of the peoples, justice, peace, and democracy. In this way, we seek to reassert the Urban Social Pact, beginning with the primacy of alternative paradigms of human and environmental rights, and the responsibilities of inhabitants as the builders and managers of human settlements, indisputable pillars of the “living well on our planet.”