BY LISA MACDONALD
SYDNEY — The thirst for information, discussion and debate about issues facing the world's people and ecology in the era of neo-liberal globalisation was strongly evident at a "Fighting for the Future" conference held in Sydney on March 24.
One hundred and seventy activists participated in the day-long conference at the University of Technology, organised as part of the preparations for the M1 protest which will shut down corporate Sydney on May 1.
The conference agenda included a wide range of workshops, 17 in all, covering everything from global warming to independent media, and the role of trade unions to alternatives to neo- liberalism. Plenary sessions examined the possibilities for reforming capitalism's major financial institutions (it was agreed by almost everyone present that this was not possible and that we now need to deal with the question of what alternative system), and "Which way forward?" for the movement and society.
The common thread in almost all of the discussions, and what made the conference particularly useful, was the genuine search for unity in building the movement against capitalism that was born in Seattle in 1999. There were lively discussions in many sessions about the best methods of organisation for the new movement, the importance of internationalism, participants' visions for a new society and how to get there, and how best to link a diversity of issues and campaigns into the new global movement.
In this context, the formation of the Socialist Alliance by the Democratic Socialist Party, the International Socialist Organisation and a range of smaller radial left groups attracted a lot of interest. Quite a few activists joined the Socialist Alliance during the conference, and the importance of this initiative for strengthening the anti-capitalist movement in Australia was noted by many others.
Participants took full advantage of the opportunity the conference provided for a diversity of Sydney activists to discuss in detail the experiences and lessons of the S11 blockade of the World Economic Forum meeting in Melbourne last year. While there was much debate about the details of that action and its significance, these discussions underlined the importance of stepping up the outreach and building for M1 in order to continue the momentum generated at S11 and further strengthen, ideologically and organisationally, the anti-corporate tyranny movement to take on other actions and ongoing campaigns after May 1.
The spirit of common cause and the commitment to radical activism that characterised the conference was a big boost for the confidence and organisation of the Sydney left. It bodes well, both for the short term building of M1, but also for the longer term building of a movement which must work to "nix" rather than "fix" the capitalist system.
The M1 Sydney meetings are held at 7pm every Thursday at UTS, Broadway. Phone (02) 9690 1977 for more information.