Message of the Hungarian Social Forum-Social Roundtable to the Members of the ESF-FSE list

The Hungarian Social Forum – Social Roundtable (HSF-SR) regrets the unilateral decision taken by the ESF Assembly in Paris without any preliminary consultation with the Hungarian Social Forum – Social Roundtable to authorize ATTAC-Hungary to organize the next EPA in Budapest. We consider, that this step has been taken on the pressure of some definite political groups in the ESF allied with the far leftist organisation ATTAC-Hungary, leaving out of consideration the opinion of the democratic progressive forces of the hungarian social movement. By his openly political step ESF has prioritized the political interests of a restricted group on the common social interests of all of us and has made a bad service to the carryng into effect of the goals of Porto Alegre. These goals, the overcoming of neoliberalism and the building up of a new human centered society are unachievable without a large democratic joining and consensus of ideologically and politically different social forces. HSF-SR considers unfollowable the sectarian way prevailing in the ESF. We prefered to call the attention of the Paris meeting to the dangers coming from this policy of self-isolation, but the representative of HSF-SR was not given the opportunity to take part at that meeting. The hungarian far left has been authorized to organize the next EPA in our absence, behind our back. In Hungary two delegates of the HSF-SR have recently contacted the President of ATTAC-Hungary, Mr. Matyas Benyik to clarify in these circumstances the aim and the sense of the Budapest meeting. They have been told by Mr. Benyik that he would not give the word at the planned EPA in Budapest to the Hungarian Social Forum founder, Endre Simó because he was not agreeing with his and our views. Because of this unecceptable discrimination, in opposition with all democratic requirements of the social movement, the HSF-SR has decided not to participate at the organisation of the Budapest meeting, and he will no mobilise the Trade Unions, Social Organisations, Political Groups working together in the open and free space HSF-SR offers for the solution of the social problems. HSF-SR propose to the Members of this List to review the decision taken in Paris, and to seek for an other place which organizers are ready to grant equal rights to the participants, to assure the democratic dialogue and create the necessary atmosphere of mutual respect of the different opinions caracterising our movement. In the case of ESF would not review his decision, HSF-SR would try the necessary conclusions, and will limit his presence exclusively for expose his strategy of large democratic alliances he considers necessary to implement the social transformation urged by the Porto Alegre Charter. We are firms on our position of democratic social alternative to neoliberalism instead of the sectarian leftism hindering the implementation of our common goal. We have been also informed by Peter Damo, that because of similar reasons and considerations, the Romanian Social Forum would also be absent from the planned Budapest EPA. HSF-SR confirms his detailed position distributed in this list on10th October 2010 which text is available in Hungarian, English and French by the following link:

http://partfuggetlen.hu/Civil/Magyar_Szocialis_Forum/Az_ESzF_haldoklik_SE.html

                        The Organizers of the Hungarian Social Forum – Social Roundtable

Budapest, 28th December 2010