Preparatory Assembly of the Central and Eastern European Social Forum (CEESF)

In limited number we can provide private accomodation as well. Registration form in English is attached, too.

When registering will you please indicate which theme (Working Group) you wish to participate in and send us in advance (until 15th September 2005) in written form the abstract of your planned speech (contribution) enabling us to put it into the printed program. Anybody can make proposal(s) for further Working Group(s).

Participation fee
(rate of exchange 1 EUR = about HUF 250,-)

The participation fee of the preparatory assembly is 25,- EUR for organisations (This is the main resource for the Solidarity Fund)

 10 EUR This fee includes one delegate per organisation. Extra delegates and individuals will be charged:

 10 EUR for participants

 5 EUR for students and retired people.

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPEAN SOCIAL FORUM (CEESF)

„Deceived Central-Eastern Europe”

 Preliminaries, brief history of the Initiative for CEESF

CEESF Invitation

The peoples of Central and Eeastern Europe have not received either what they expected from the system change or what they were promised. These dissapointments and the specificities of the region stimulated the original initiators of the CEESF, i.e. the Bulgarian, the Polish, the Hungarian and the Romanian ATTAC organisations (in Budapest on 12th February 2005) to make a proposal to organize a regional social forum. We came to the conclusion that while the previous European Social Forums (Florence-2002, Paris-2003, London-2004) provided opportunities for tens of thousands of people opposing the destructive consequences of globalisation to participate in debates, to look for alternatives as well as to organize common actions and in order to strenghten the movement to build networks on regional, continental and global level, in the meantime - for financial and other reasons – only rather few people could be involved in the social forum process.

In our region the nationalisms stirred up by the élite try to turn the peoples of similar fate against each other. Such a forum could demonstrate clearly that the peoples of the region refuse the policy of „divide and rule” and take their common fate consciously. They are aware that their condition can be improved by international collaboration.

The specific development of the Central and Eastern European countries, the grave social consequences of the globalization experienced in the last one and a half decades (e.g. the dramatic rise of poverty and umenployment, the dissemination of extreme right ideas, the support of the Iraqi war against the will of the majority of the peoples, the food secutity scandals, etc.) make it necessary that the relatively weak social movements of this part of Europe join forces, analyse the situation, elaborate alternatives, establish effective networks and realize closer cooperation.

At the same time we deem it absolutely necessary to strenghten our relations with the developing countries facing more or less similar situation.

For the above reasons we will launch the preparatory work in Budapest between 14th and 16th October 2005 in the frame of a meeting, which is a Conference and an international Preparatory Assembly of the CEESF at the same time.

 Main goals of CEESF

1. To demonstrate that the peoples of the region oppose the nationalist propaganda instigating the inhabitants and nationalities of different countries against each other;
2. To rouse the social movements of the region, to open up a new prospect to their collaboration in order to put an end to the advancing neoliberal globalization by joining wide forces (including the developing countries);
3. To make a report on the economic, political and cultural situation of peoples of the region;
4. To make proposals for improving the conditions of the great masses of the people as well as for the way of international cooperation necessary for safeguarding their interests.

In harmony with the basic principles of the WSF (i.e. the Porto Alegre Charter) the initiators of the CEESF stand in opposition to a process of globalization commanded by the large multinational corporations and by the governments and international institutions at the service of those corporations interests, with the complicity of national governments. We uphold respect for Human Rights, the practices of real democracy, participatory democracy, peaceful relations, in equality and solidarity, among people, ethnicities, genders and peoples, and condemn all forms of domination and all subjection of one person by another. Our goal is to establish a global society based on solidarity between the peoples and their equal rights.

 CEESF target groups

The CEESF wants to offer a space for the organisations and movements of the civil society that are opposed to neoliberalism and to domination of the world by capital and any form of imperialism, and are committed to building a planetary society. Mainly the civil society of the ex-socialist countries is to be involved, but it is open towards the developing countries as well. Neither party representations nor military organizations nor government institutions shall participate in the CEESF.

 Measures taken upto now for the realization of CEESF

1. In the letter dated of 26th April 2005 addressed to the International Secretariat of the World Social Forum we requested to support our Initiative emphasizing its close linkage to the social forum movements as well as to the Porto Alegre Charter of Principles. The Initiative was hailed by the WSF as well as by several organisations and individuals working together in the frame of the European Social Forum.
2. Our Initiative was declared at the Prague European Preparatory Assembly (held between 20-22 May 2005)of the 4th ESF, which will take place in Athens in April 2006.
3. We started organizing the CEESF in April 2005.
4. Venue and date of the Meeting of the International Organizing Committe (International Working Group) are proposed to be in Bucharest/Romania in the first half of July 2005. (not yet confirmed)
5. The Central and Eastern European Social Forum is expected to be held in automn 2006 or in 2007.

 Draft Programme

14 October 2005 (Friday)

15 October 2005 (Saturday)

Morning (until noon):

*Planned Working Groups (Seminaries)

• The position of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) in the world, its relation to the world
• Poverty (in the region and in the developing world)
• Nationalism-racism-fascism
• Possibilities for trade unions’ collaboration
• Environment protection
• Women’s position
• Position of Education
• Role of the Media
• „Another world is possible” – What is it like?

Anyone interested in the preparation of the CEESF is welcome!

Please contact: Matyas BENYIK
Phone/Fax: +36 1 282 70 92, mobile: +36 30 252 43 26,
E-mails: mbenyik@freemail.hu or mbenyik@freestart.hu

Registration form

CEESF Registration form

 Please fill in this form completely providing all data as requested.
 Each organisation (or movement) can register more representatives but not more than two representatives from one organisation can ask for the reimbursement of their travel costs.
 Please send your form to the Initiative for CEESF by 15 July 2005, preferably by email.