People’s G20 Response Preparation Committee, South Korea Newsletter July, 2010

Dear Colleagues,

The fifth G20 Summit will be held in Seoul on November 11th to 12th. This meeting has grave consequences for the people of Korea and the entire world. The G20 has appointed itself the principal body responsible for finding a solution to the global economic crisis and managing the world economy. Yet it excludes the majority of poor and developing nations from decision-making. It also seeks to make common people shoulder the burden of the crisis and to promote neoliberal policies, which have already created vast poverty and increased inequality. In addition, the South Korean government is using the upcoming summit as an excuse to severely restrict democratic rights and carry out a crackdown on migrants, street vendors and homeless people.

Recognizing the huge impacts posed by the G20 on the rights of people in Korea and around the world, labor unions, social movement organizations and progressive NGOs in South Korea formed a People’s G20 Response Preparation Committee (hereafter People’s Preparation Committee) on June 18th in order to respond to the G20 Seoul Summit. The People’s Preparation Committee will take full responsibility for organising various activities and actions protesting the G20 summit as the representative of South Korean people’s, social and civil movements.

We would like to share with you developments in our preparation for the G20 Summit.

Four Main Action Principles of People’s Preparation Committee

The People’s Preparation Committee agreed to the following four main principles:

1) We are committed to organising various activities and actions to denounce the G20 Summit for making people and developing countries pay for the crisis and criticise the structural problems of neo-liberal financial globalization.

2) We are committed to organise various activities to denounce the South Korean government for using the G20 Summit as an excuse to repress democracy and human rights and ignoring internationally-recognised labour and human rights standards.

3) We are to maintain political, organisational and financial independence from the South Korean government and capital, so that we can truly represent the alternative voices of labour, people’s and civil society movements about/against the G20.

4) We will contribute to strengthening solidarity with local and international labour, social and civil society movements to build a labour-and-environment-friendly alternative economy, and to introduce capital controls and contribute to strengthening the capacity of international movements against neo-liberal globlaisation.

Points of Action (provisional)
 
Agenda 1. Financial regulation and taxation on speculative capital
Agenda 2. Decent work
Agenda 3. Basic Labour rights
Agenda 4. Environment and climate change
Agenda 5. Alternative trade agreement to FTAs and TNCs
Agenda 6. Food security and agriculture
Agenda 7. Democracy and human rights
Agenda 8. Poverty and development
Agenda.9. Forced migration
Agenda 10. Peace and security
Agenda 11. Gender and G20
Agenda 12. Cultural diversity and IPRs
Agenda 13. Public services


Main Role of People’s Preparation Committee

People’s Preparation Committee will take full responsibility to organise the following activities and actions.

1) We are committed to organising a People’s Week of Collective Action from November 6th to 12th including:

   * A rally and march on November 11th.
   * A People’s Summit
   * Opening and closing ceremonies for the People’s Joint Action Week
 
2) We will organise all possible activities and actions concerning current, future and emerging issues related to the G20 Summit based on general consensus among participating organizations, including:

   * Protesting the crackdown against migrant workers, homeless people and street vendors in the name of a successful G20 Summit.
   * Responding to the G20 Finance (Vice) Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meetings
   * Protesting the government’s repression of democracy and universal human rights under the excuse of successful G20 Summit.

3) We are encouraging and supporting thematic activities based on the proposed points of action so as to expand and strengthen our response to the G20.

4) We are committed to making every effort to encourage social forces to join the people’s G20 actions and strengthen their participation, as well as to create and build people’s alternative positions on the global economic crisis. 

5) We are committed to organising various publicity and public consciousness-raising activities to expose the fundamental problems of G20 summit.


People’s Summit(provisional title), Seoul

South Korean people’s, social and civil society organisations are calling upon international social movements to jointly organise a People’s Summit protesting the G20 Summit. The Peoples’ Summit will be organised as part of the People’s Week of Collective Action programmes, and it will be based on equal participation of all people to develop people’s alternative solutions for responding to the global economic and social crisis.

Korean people’s, social and civil society organisations will host the Peoples’ Summit (provisional title) in solidarity with international social and civil movements to develop peoples’ alternatives. The main goal is to develop a solution to the current crisis and to shield poor people who are suffering from the impact of the crisis.

The format of the People’s Summit will be a forum consisting of several creative workshops held directly before the G20 Summit. During the People’s Summit people from G20 and non-G20 countries will assess the impact of current economic and social policies promoted by the G20, and demand alternative global economic reform and the social change necessary to create a better world.

Calendar for People’s Week of Collective Action


- Date: November 6th to 12th  
- General Picture of People’s Week of Collective Action
* Opening (November 6th)
* National Workers Rally (November 7th)
* People’s Summit( November 7th to 9th )
* Press Conference – Seoul Declaration
* Mass Rally and March (November 11th)
* Closing v(November 12th)

Participating Organisations

Korean Confederation of Trade Unions(KCTU)
National Association of Professors for Democratic Society(NAPDS)
Citizen’s Movement for Environmental Justice
Korean Federation of Medical Groups for Health Rights
Korean Women's Association United(KWAU)
Global Call to Action Against Poverty Korea(GCAP-Korea)
Korean Peasants’ League(KPL)
Civil Society Network for Financial regulation and taxation on speculative capital
Civil Society Organisation Network in Korea
People’s Solidarity for Social Progress(PSSP)
People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy(PSPD)
Korean Progressive Solidarity
National Students March
Korean Women Peasant Association
Joint Committee with Migrants in Korea (JCMK)
All Together
Green Korea United
Korean Urban Poor Association
Alternative Forum of University Students
National Democratic Association of Street Vendors
Citizen’s Coalition for Economic Justice
Institute for Global Political Economy
Imagine Institute
Corea Institute for New Society
New Community Institute
Institute for New World
SpecWatch Korea
Korean Clerical and Financial Workers Association
NANUMMUNHWA_ Global Peace Activities
Solidarity for Ending Poverty
Energy & Climate Policy Institute for Just Transition (ECPI)
Action for Energy Justice
Migrant Workers Rights Watch, Korea
Solidarity for Street Vendors and Informal Workers
Joint Preparation Committee for Building Socialist Workers Party
Korea Progressive Academy Council
Progressive Strategy Council
Center for Energy Politics(CEP)

Contacts for the People’s Preparation Committee

- Joint Secretariat Team will be established shortly. 
- Official E-mail : peoplesg20action.Seoul@gmail.com

- Thematic working group and/or networks based on each point of action will also be established.

- Provisionally you can contact the People’s Preparation Committee through the following persons/organizations:

? Korean Confederation of Trade Unions
Contact : Mr. Lee Changgeun(bulnavi@gmail.com), / Ms. Ryu Mikyung(inter@kctu.org) 

? CSO Network in Korea
Contact: Mr. Sungkyu Oh(ohskks@gmail.com), / Ms Youngmi Yang,( pspdint@hotmail.com)

? CS Network for Financial regulation and taxation on speculative capital
Contact: Mr. Lee Hanjin (hanjin444@hanmail.net )

? Regional Southeast-east Asia Office, La Via Campesina
Contact: Ms Kim, Haesook(rupina72@gmail.com )

? Energy & Climate Policy Institute for Just Transition(ECPI)
Contact : Mr. Lee Jinwoo(purevil@naver.com)