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AFRO-ASIAN PEOPLES’ SOLIDARITY ORGANISATION
(AAPSO)
8th Congress
Hyderabad, India, 14-16 December 2008
Draft Final Communiqué
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The 8th Congress of the Afro-Asian Peoples’ Solidarity Organisation
(AAPSO) held in Hyderabad, India, from 14th to 16th December 2008,
hosted by the All India Peace and Solidarity organization (AIPSO) was
attended by delegates from 25 countries after a gap of 20 years. Having
entered the 51st year of its founding in 2008 as one of the oldest and
broadest peoples’ organization that has played a historic role in
mobilizing peoples of Asia and Africa to tackle the problems that
confronts the Third World nations in the second half of the 20th
century, the AAPSO Congress affirmed its intention to reinvent itself to
meet the new challenges posed by imperialism for the peoples of Africa,
Asia and Latin America in the 21st century.
The 8th Congress of AAPSO deliberated on various issues including:
(a)
Financial Crises and its Impact on Developing Countries;
(b) Against the
Policy of Aggression, for Peace and A Nuclear Weapon Free World;
(c)
NAM, South-South Cooperation and Solidarity with the People of the
South;
(d) Climate Change; and
(e) Organizational Issues.
After due
deliberations on the above issues, the 8th Congress of AAPSO has
resolved as follows:
Financial Crises and its Impact on Developing
Countries:
The Congress notes the unprecedented magnitude of the global financial
crisis triggered by the bursting of the real estate bubble in the US
economy and the subsequent economic recession. The Conference while
welcoming the possible roll back of the Wall Street model of neo-liberal
globalization and weakening of the hegemony of international finance
capital, also expresses its deep concern over the adverse impact of the
global economic crisis on the working people across the world. The
Conference however, recognizes that unless there is a strong and united
movement of the people in the developing countries together with the
progressive forces in the developed world, the burden of this crisis
will be imposed disproportionately on the poor, vulnerable and
disadvantaged sections of the people.
These events, which are being compared to the Great Depression of the
1930s is engulfing the financial sector of the US and other advanced
economies, highlights the destabilising character of international
finance. The Congress notes that a key aspect of imperialist
globalisation has been financial liberalization, With the financial
crisis and the consequent downturn in the US economy, the sustainability
of the global growth process has also become questionable.
The global financial crisis is a result of the financialisation of the
global economy and at the expense of real production, is now affecting
the real economy. The crisis is a serious setback to the neo-liberal
dogma, which has dominated the world since the 1980s. The effects of the
crisis on the people in different countries should provide the basis for
the working class and all sections of the working people to organise and
fight back to reverse the neo-liberal policies.
The world credit crunch following the financial crisis, coupled with a
protracted recession in the US and other advanced economies and decline
in the US economy will lead to efforts by other advanced and developing
countries to find a way out of the crisis can strengthen the trend
towards multi-polarity. With faith in the “free market” getting eroded
considerably following the financial meltdown, the hegemony of
neoliberal policies will be challenged.
The structure of centralising the production and distribution system
with global MNCs at the helm helped to fracture and roll back national
development projects across the globe. With the debt crisis of the
1980s, export-oriented models of development were imposed by the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other financial institutions on
most countries in the South.
The Congress notes that this unfolding social crisis resulting from the
economic recession has triggered the threat of mass unemployment,
inflations and melt down of their currencies in the countries of the
South. Countries facing potential collapse will be forced to approach
the IMF and which in return will demand the fulfillment of stringent
economic conditions. The most likely immediate outcome is a hardened,
more authoritarian state that seeks to restore profitability through
ratcheting up repression and forcing people to accept the loss of jobs,
housing, and any kind of social support. In the South, this will
inevitably mean more war and military repression and sinister attempts
to bolster sectarian divides.
The Congress believes that If this is not prevented then the system will
utilize this crisis to restructure and continue business as usual. This
is why resistance-both at home and abroad-will be the single most
important determinant of how this crisis, eventually plays out. Here in
the South, we will have to resist every attempt of the respective
governments to capitulate before designs to offload the effects of the
crisis on these countries. On the one hand, we have to force our
respective governments to make public investment in social sector and
public works to generate domestic demand. On the other, loan packages
for poor countries with no strings attached will have to be created and
greater degree of autonomy to all nations will have to be provided.
Against the Policy of Aggression, for Peace and
A Nuclear Weapon Free World:
The 8th Congress of the AAPSO notes with grave concern the brazen
imperialist aggression in Iraq where, during the last five years, over
one million Iraqis – primarily unarmed civilians – have been brutally
killed by the armed forces of the U.S. and its allies.
The mindless devastation of the social, economic, political and cultural
fabric of Iraq, and, as well as, of the widespread destruction of its
natural environment, has heaped untold misery on its hapless 28 million
people. Today Iraq, which is the seat of the world’s oldest civilization
and which developed into a relatively modern secular nation among the
countries of West Asia, finds itself divided on ethnic and sectarian
lines.
The ongoing occupation of Afghanistan by the US and NATO forces not only
failed to contain the terrorist outfits but actually giving more space
for Taliban to stage a comeback in the political and social scene of
Afghanistan. In fact, this is spilling over across the Pakistan border
causing the turmoil and uncertainty destabilising the entire South Asian
region.
The developments in Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan are symptomatic of
the present aggressive phase of U.S.-led imperialism. Until and unless
the concerned sections of humanity rise in unison to oppose and stop
this outrage, the victims of naked imperialist aggression in Palestine,
Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere can never be emancipated.
The US strategy in Africa is also matter of great concern. In
Africa in order to expand its aggression to other places, the United
States is now pressurising African countries to grant it a place where
the US can place its AFRICOM Headquarters.
In Iran also US is building up its pressures. The Congress demands that
pressure must cease on Iran and the IAEA be allowed to ascertain that
Iran wants to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes only. US must
also desist from forcing Gulf States to seek nuclear shield from the US
on the pretext of Iranian nuclear threat. In this respect Congress
demands that Israel must be forced to dismantle its nuclear arsenals.
The Congress expresses it concern on the growing build up of nuclear
arsenal in Asia-Pacific region. The disastrous fate of the atomic bomb
victims of Hiroshima & Nagasaki and the dreadful legacy of the Agent
Orange victims in Vietnam are chilling examples for all of us and all
these tragic incidents reminds the members of the Afro-Asian Solidarity
movements its duty to take bold initiative in mobilising world opinion
and to build up strong movement with all fraternal peace movements the
world over against imperialist aggression; for a non-violent world order
and Nuclear Weapons Free World.
NAM, South-South Cooperation and Solidarity with the People of the
South
The Congress is of the view that in the post cold war era the NAM is
faced with a
challenging circumstance and has got considerably weakened. The single
superpower the US in its overdrive to secure an aggressive hegemony over
the rest of the world is undermining the sovereignty of nations which
constitute the NAM. The aggressive of US imperialism is manifested
through the attempt to establish a complete domination of international
finance capital driven global financial and economic system which is
intensifying inequalities between the rich and the poor both within and
across the nations. This US dominated paradigm of neo liberal
globalisation is also exacerbating unemployment and other untold
miseries. But in contrast to the capitulation of the ruling elite in
most of the countries of the NAM, peoples’ solidarity movements have
forced progressive changes across many countries of Latin America with
Venezuela and Bolivia leading the pack. These changes have opened up new
vistas for south-south cooperation so significantly manifested in the
ALBA process. The Congress recognises the possibility of developing
similar positive models of South –South cooperation across other
continents.
The Congress is concerned with the growing menace of religious
fundamentalism and its expression in the form of grotesque terrorism
killing thousands of innocent people. The Congress firmly believes that
the growing sense of insecurity and challenges to their livelihood, the
poor in the developing countries frustrated by oppressive policies of
imperialism can not achieve any thing meaningful by pursuing sectarian
violence.
The Congress call upon its member organisation to unite the people
against the forces of religious fundamentalism, obscurantism and as well
as against terrorism.
The Congress emphasises the need for better cooperation among the
south to build-up strong solidarity movements with the people of
Palestine for their homeland and to end the Israeli occupation, with the
people of Syria to free the Golan Height from the Israeli occupation,
with the Saharawi people for their independent home land and the people
of Korea for their just struggles for peaceful reunification of Korean
peninsula.
The Congress believes that continue economic blocked against Cuba
tantamount to aggression. It demands that the US must comply with the UN
resolution calling for the dismantling of embargo and economic blockade
against Cuba.
The congress calls on the cessation of hostilities in the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC), and to allow the Congolese to find a lasting
solution to their problems based on justice, national reconciliation and
peace.
The Congress firmly believes that unity of the people and their
solidarity is the only course to forge ahead to ameliorate the
conditions of the people particularly the poor in the countries of the
South.
Climate Change:
The Congress recognises that the earth is on the brink of a climate
change catastrophe, caused by human actions. Humans need to start acting
immediately to avert planetary ruin and loss of species, including
themselves.
The Congress takes particular note of the fact that world peace is
gravely threatened by climate change induced food riots, water wars,
displacements, migrations and depleting natural resources.
The Congress notes the gross inequality that exists in sharing the
atmospheric space – with developed countries historically occupying it
with their GHG emissions far in excess of their share of world
population, depriving the developing countries of their present
development needs. The latter face the most damage from climate change
and have the least capability to adapt to it.
The Congress holds the view that equity – based on per capita emission
rights, is the only practicable principle on which an international
accord can be based. We hold that equitable development is the best
adaptation method.
The Congress observes that more human-centred and community based
development is the need of the day and profit–motivated instruments
should not be trusted to deliver core solutions on climate Change.
Organisational issues
The Congress having taken cognisance of the changed environment of the
contemporary world, the AAPSO will have to take up the challenge of
reinventing itself in facing the pressing concerns of our people. The
Congress believes that with a new and vibrant dynamism and more pro
active style of functioning of the Permanent Secretariat can live up to
the expectations of our movement and our people. The Congress therefore
mandates the new leadership to act necessary and appropriate measures
for addressing these goals.
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