THE ROAD TO JOHANNESBURG AFTER SEPTEMBER 11
ONLINE FORUM -- NOVEMBER 2001
[ Summary ] +  [ download
documentation ]
The online forum was held in November 2001 and is now closed. We have
compiled the "Think Pieces" and key contributions into a documentation
that is available for download
here.
"One is tempted to say that we must now focus all our energies
on the struggle against terrorism, and on directly related issues. Yet
if we should do so, we will be giving the terrorists a victory of a kind.
Let us remember that none of the issues that faced us on 10 September
has become less urgent. The number of people living on less than one dollar
a day has not decreased. The numbers dying of HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis,
and other preventable diseases have not decreased. The factors that cause
the desert to advance, biodiversity to be lost, and the Earth's atmosphere
to warm have not decreased." UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan
to the UN General Assembly, November 2001. [ Complete
text of Annan's statement ]
The terrorist attacks of September 11 seem to have changed world politics
dramatically. New and unexpected alliances are forged, the priorities
of governments are reassessed, public attention is focused on the threat
of terrorism. A global "war against terrorism" seems to be unleashed,
that is geared to stay with us the coming years.
What do these developments mean for the road to the World Summit on Sustainable
Development? September 11 and its aftermath pose a whole set of new questions:
+ Will the shock create a new climate of international co-operation
between North and South, East and West, thus creating a fertile ground
for a new, "global deal"?
+ Will the terrorist attacks shift media attention, and priorities
of governments away from the issues of poverty, environmental degradation
and globalisation that are the centre of the Johannesburg agenda? Will
the climate of an unfolding "global civil war" ultimately lead to the
failure of Johannesburg 2002, symbol of global co-operation?
+ Does the Johannesburg agenda need a re-framing, for example in terms
of (environmental) security or the provision of global common goods,
peace being one of them?
+ Johannesburg was partly conceived as a global response to the challenges
of globalisation. How will the globalisation debate and the anti-globalisation
movement be affected by the recent developments?
+ How can civil society engaged in the preparations towards Johannesburg
2002 react on the new developments? What are strategies to make the
World Summit a success under these new circumstances?
The Heinrich-Böll-Foundation and Stakeholder
Form, both organisations active in the Johannesburg process, joined
forces to create a space for a global debate on these questions. We wished
to contribute to create a common understanding on the significance of
the recent developments for the Johannesburg process. During six days
in November 2001, the forum was held here to discuss the implications
of September 11 on the Johannesburg process. We had invited eminent intellectuals
from all over the globe to contribute short opinion articles as Think
Pieces to start the debate.
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