[discuss-dan] Eyewitness Report on Davos Protests Against the World Economic Forum

[Doc Rosen <drdrdoc@dr.com>]

The World Economic Forum is an association of private
corporations,
world-wide, which convenes yearly in Davos,
Switzerland.  Attendence is by
invitation only, of the founder of the WEF, Klaus
Schwab.  The problem with
this group is that it also invites influential
politicians and
rep[resentatives of large institutions to its events
and thus becomes yet
another tool for the strengthening of the private
sector's influence in
international politics.

Past Forum meetings have led to the lauch of trade
negotiations such as the
Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade (GATT) or the
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)--agreements
which have furthered
the cause of world rule by business and the associated
worsening of social
and human rights conditions as well as massive
environmental destruction.

Private institutions like the WEF have no legitimate
role in setting the
agenda of global public affairs.  Yet its agenda
unabashedly announces that
it "seeks to move from its traditional role as a
facilitator to a more active
role as a catalyst for the global agenda."  The WEF
represents the essence of
privatized public agenda as it seeks to create, as its
motto says "a roadmap
for the global future."

NGO's, in an international coalition called, "The
Public Eye on Davos" are
holding analternative forum in Davos at the same time. 
They have developed a
platform putting forth specific proposals calling for
binding environmental
and human rights standards to be integrated into
international trade,
financial and investment policies and agreements.  Also
included in the
platform are specific recommendations for international
controls on
corporations' rights.  The NGO's have no way at this
point to enforce their
platform.

A demonstration was planned for today (Jan 27) in front
of the WEF meeting.
Many busloads of protesters were expected to converge
in Davos.  However, the
location of this town makes it possible to guard all
ways up to it from the
lower valleys and Swiss police and army have been out
in force all week.
They have effectively blocked all "suspicious-looking
types" (people aged
20-30, long hair, piercings, jeans, etc.) from coming
up to Davos.  They are
checking people in trains; they are checking every car,
every bus.
Helicopters are flying overhead throughout the day and
night over the valley.
They are either turning people around back to their
point of origin, or even
taking them in to photograph them, search them, and
take down their
identification and all identification of others which
they might be carrying
in their wallets.  All protest materials are being
confiscated.  Even
Indymedia was prevented from coming up to Davos.  No
arrests are being made
because these people have broken no laws.  What the
police are doing is
completely illegal and will surely be challenged in
court.

Yesterday several panel members from the alternative
forum tried to hand out
materials to people going in to the WEF.  They were
detained at length,
photographed, searched, etc.  They were not told
whether they were under
arrest.  They were not told whether they had broken a
law.  Finally they were
told that they had entered a "no man's zone."

Public Eye on Davos has written the following
statement:

On Friday, 26th, Adam Ma'anit, member of the
organization Corporate Europe
Observatory, was prevented from giving his talk on the
role of corporations
in policy-making at the "Public Eye on Davos"
Conference which challenges the
role and policies of the World Economic Forum.

Mr. Ma'anit was detained by the Swiss police in
Landquart and sent back to
Basel to be deported back to the Netherlands.  The
decision of the police to
send him back seems to have been based purely on his
appearance.  Mr. Ma'anit
has long hair.  He was stopped when changing trains in
Landquart, searched,
photographed, and questioned at great length.  This is
not the first incident
of the kind:  Students distributing "Public Eye"
programs were detained in
Davos, visitors and even journalists wanting to attend
the conference were
stopped, and many of them were sent back.

The "Public Eye on Davos" is an NGO coaltion organizing
a public forum which
questions the legitimacy of the WEF and challenges the
Forum's role of
promoting economic globalisation.  It does not support
violence from any
side.  The actions of the Police prevent the
participants of the "Public Eye"
to express their views freely and therefore denies the
public access to
alternative information.  They expose the arbitrary
double standards of the
police and the Forum:  While people carrying WEF
programs and invitations
have privileged access to Davos, visitors of the
"Public Eye" are treated as
if they were criminals.  These police state methods are
clearly unacceptable.

The "Public Eye on Davos" protests against the Swiss
police actions because
they violate the UN Convention on Humqan Rights which
guantees the freedom of
assembly, of movement and expression.  The Police and
the state authorities
must ensure that all visitors and participants of the
Conference, including
Mr. Ma'anit, are granted free access to Davos and that
freedom of movement
and speech is re-established in Switzerland.

The President of Switzerland dropped by the Eye on
Davos meeting to speak
about his belief in democractic values.  He was met by
the cries of a
distraught young woman whose companions were sent back
down the hill.  He was
also given a copy of the above statement.  It is quite
possible that there
will be no large protest today and that you will hear
nothing in the news.
Now you know the reason why.  The Swiss police have
been even more oppressive
than the American police, in their own "civilized" way.

Thanks for asking to be kept informed.
Sharon Alexander Dreyfus

Somos la misma familia,
Doc
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