Forum vows fight against neo-liberalism, militarism

Staff Report

LAHORE: The newly-formed Pakistan Social Forum (PSF) has expressed concern over the international system that has evolved since World War II and now faces a serious crisis of legitimacy if the US goes ahead with its plan to attack Iraq regardless of the world opinion.

The PSF is an assembly of people from all walks of life and have joined hands as part of the burgeoning global movement against neo-liberalism and militarism, symbolized by the process known as the World Social Forum (WSF).

The PSF is an affiliate of the WSF as it represents the interests and beliefs of people across the world based on peace and justice for all. The PSF pledges allegiance to the goals of this movement and aspires to further the cause of this movement in Pakistan.

The PSF met here over the past two days to take this process forward in anticipation of the next WSF in India in 2004. A coordination committee was formed for this purpose and the South-Asia Partnership-PK (SAP-PK) would act as the secretariat.

Addressing a press conference on Thursday at the Lahore Press Club, the members of the coordination committee, led by Mr Irfan Mufti, said the United Nations�f mandate would be damaged forever if the US attacked in spite of the opposition in the Security Council and across the globe. He said it was imperative that the UN was not further discredited.

Mr Mufti said: “We refuse to believe that the people of the world should be left at the mercy of the market and the whims of corporate globalisation.”

He feared should international law be sacrificed at the altar of the US hegemony, institutions such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and regimes such as the World Trade Organization would be left to dictate the future of the vast majority of people across the world. “We pledge to resist this slide towards oppression at all levels,” he remarked.

The PSF demanded that the government of Pakistan unequivocally vote against war in the Security Council.

Mr Mufti demanded that the government of Pakistan should get military bases, currently under the US control, vacated forthwith and that the same happens in all countries of the world where the US has maintained a military presence.

He said today the threat of militarism and neo-liberalism was greater than ever, given the imperialist advance of the US in Afghanistan and the now imminent invasion of Iraq. He said the PSF rejected the neo-imperialist order that was being framed by the US, and called upon all peace-loving people to articulate their opposition to US aggression. He said PSF considered the impending attack on Iraq an attack on all people of the world, and not the clash of civilisations that had been depicted both by the “hawks in the Bush administration” or the extremist elements who had been engaged in sloganeering of a similar character.

Also present were Chaudhry Manzoor Ahmed, Shahida Jabeen, MB Naqvi, Gul Rehman, Karamat Ali, PUJ President Chaudhry Bakhtgir and President LPC Arshad Ansari.

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