We say No to neo-liberal policy in Russia and in the world!

Russian social movements and organizations address to the people of Russia and the world in view of the G8 summit in St.-Petersburg, Russia.

The G8 countries’ ruling circles intensify the attempts to monopolize the decision making process in the sphere of global problems. Their governments carry out a policy of aggressive market fundamentalism, cutting on social and civic rights. Under the pretext of fighting against terrorism the G8 governments denounce democratic institutes both in their foreign and domestic policy.

Russia is one of the countries where neo-liberalism has led to the most negative consequences. 15 years of reforms have led to the 50% decrease in production. Millions of Russians have found themselves below the poverty line. A favorable situation on the raw materials market has given an illusion of economic growth. But even the easy-to-get oil money is not spent on public needs or ecology; it is used to help concentrating the capital in the hands of oligarchs and bureaucracy. An antisocial policy is being implemented in the country: having managed to impose a bourgeois Labor code, Russian authorities substitute social benefits by payments, privatize municipal economies and education, and turn the country into an ecologic dump. All of this contradicts most Russian people’s interests. Free election and self-government is done away with. The authorities create civic institutes for appearance while haunting independent social organizations and political opposition. An actual attack on human rights is accompanied by a silent approval of international conflicts. All these steps taken by the Russian government go in line with the G8 imperial policy called globalization. Its aim is to establish the rule of transnational capital preventing the socially oppressed people from solidarization.

The Russian social movement is, however, growing stronger, people protest against benefits substitution, workers go on strikes, there is much disapproval of the community economies and education privatization programs. Tens of protest coordination councils carrying the germ of real self-government are created. An important step in the direction was the Russian Social Forum in April 2005 which gathered about 200 organizations from all over the country.

We, the participants of the Russian social protest movement together with the opponents of the imperialist globalization of the whole world claim that a different type of unification and cooperation of nations, a different, humane world is possible!

Our organizations had worked out the principles highlighted in the World, European and Russian Social Forums: the principles of a different economy and policy. These principles are oriented at the rise of morality, at humane solutions of global problems (poverty, war and ecologic issues in the first place), at the social sphere priority, at democracy consolidation and an absolute respect of human rights.

We are advocating the priority of the international community in resolving global problems, we believe that all the problems of the humanity should be resolved within the framework of democratic institutes enjoying the confidence of the people of the world. We have an intention to introduce our programs and to demonstrate our desire to build a different, more humane and democratic world at the summit in Russia to be held in June 2006 parallel to the G8 summit. We fear, however, that the authorities would not tolerate an independent protest forum. There have been many cases of cruel suppression of the left activity in many Russian towns and especially in St.-Petersburg. Apart from this, the bureaucracy in power is already trying to imitate civic initiatives by planning a conference of a pseudo-civic G8. We call for all the social movements and organizations sharing the principles of peace, democracy and social justice to resist the manipulations of the ruling class and to support our initiatives by participating in the Counter Summit in July 2006.

The Russian Counter Summit Organization Committee.

Appeal was supported by more then 100 participants of the WSF-2006, among whom S.Amin (Senegal), F.Houtart (Belgium), M.Berlinguer (Italy), E.Gothier (France), R.Stone (USA) and so on