Report on the start of the ACP by Gotson Pierre, AlterPresse.

The Third ACP opened in the presence several hundred of delegates and observers from 12 countries and territories of the Caribbean, and six Latin American, North American and European countries, including Adolfo Perez Esquivel, the Argentinian Nobel Peace Prize winner.

Camille Chalmers was flanked by the 13 members of the Regional Executive Committee representing eight Caribbean countries as he declared: "We do not want this system (capitalism) and we have decided to build another way of life". According to the Haitian delegate, the revolutions in Haiti (1804), Cuba (1959), Nicaragua (1979) and the Zapatista uprising in Mexico in 1994, are testimony of this will "to make freedom reign across the whole Caribbean region".

Camille Chalmers also stressed the influence of the anti-slavery revolt which began in 1791 in Haiti with the ceremony of Bois Kayiman a few kilometers to the south of the city of Cap-Haitien. Bois Kayiman represents "the unity between all the exploited", said the Haitian anti-neo-liberal militant, who interpreted the policies of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the debt owed by poor countries as a continuation of slavery. "We must fight to break these chains", said Chalmers.

Chalmers also addressed the process of realising the Third ACP, which he described as "rich". Evoking the follow-up to the resolutions which will be adopted in Haiti, he declared that "most important work is after the Assembly".

For the Nobel Peace Prize winner, Adolfo Perez Esquivel, the holding of the Third ACP is "a concrete demonstration that when people unite together they can change history".

In a short speech focusing primarily on the need "to build alternatives", Perez Esquivel contrasted "autonomous thinking" (pensamiento propio) with the "single thought" imposed, according to him, by imperialism. Esquivel criticised the external debt which he called the "eternal debt" and the Free Trade Area of Americas (FTAA) which supports "an increase in poverty" and militarisation.

In connection with Haiti, Perez Esquivel took up the call "to break the chains" of the poverty and the domination which followed the Haitian revolution of 1804.

The Dominican Ivan Rodriguez and the Trinidadien David Abdullah, founder members of the ACP, both hailed the Haitian Revolution. They also pointed out the historical course of the process of the ACP, that was launched in 1992 and which was concretised with a first assembly in 1994 in Trinidad and a second in 2001.

The inauguration of the Third ACP took place in an emotionally charged atmosphere and on several occasions the speeches were interrupted by applause. Cuban and Dominican flags were raised in the room that was decorated with posters, placards bearing slogans, streamers and artisanal objects. One banner read, "Our strength is our unity".

A young US American militant from the peace and human rights movement in the USA told AlterPresse that the preliminary forums and the opening of the Third ACP had enabled him to understand the way that the US is perceived in the region.

Cultural events: theatre, choreography and music closed the evening. The director, the singer and composer, Bob Bovano, was given a standing ovation.

(translated from French by Charles Arthur for the Haiti Support Group)

Report of the Caribbean Youth Forum by Gotson Pierre, AlterPresse.

More than 350 people attended the Youth Forum and listened to resolutions presented by the Haitian, Dominican, Cuban, Trinidadian, and St. Lucian delegations.

The Haitian delegate, Hérode Thurin, drew a powerful picture of the situation in Haiti which is producing broken youth "without vision, and which hates its country". The only hope left for Haitian youth are "emigration, drugs or demagogic politics".

Thurin called for the building of youth movement that is "democratic, participatory, representative, autonomous, combative, pluralistic and patriotic".

"The great challenge for Caribbean youth is to know and assume the responsibilities of an active citizenship", asserted the Dominican delegate, Jaime Rodriguez, who stressed that "more than 60% of the population of Caribbean is less than 30 years old". He said that Caribbean youth is "the prime target" of campaigns which promote "consumerism and alienation".

Rodriguez called for the unification of the student and youth movements. With regard to other sectors, he said that young people can "play a fundamental role" in the heart of community organisations, in the "revival of the labour movement", in the Christian base communities, and "in the great cultural battle that we are engaged in today".

Calixto Ruiz and Nancy Coro from Cuba raised various regional problems such as illiteracy and the process of acculturation. They highlighted the achievements of Cuba, in particular, in education and health, and called for "unity in order to succeed". The representatives of Cuban youth took up the slogan of the World Social Forum - "Another world is possible", adding that "Another Caribbean can be built".

The Trinidadian delegate, Svenn Miki Grant, stressed the significant changes at the level of Caribbean reality where "young people are forced into silence". Among the challenges he underlined is the crucial problem of AIDS. "To organise ourselves as young people" is a primary objective for the Trinidadian representative, who suggested the establishment of Caribbean Youth Assembly.

Lastly, Melissa Zephirin of St. Lucia stressed the environmental degradation in the countries of the Caribbean. Among the causes, she underlined the unrestrained cutting down of trees, which is itself a consequence of the increased poverty now found in the region.

These contributions stirred an animated debate during which many questions were put and various comments made. "Can one arrive at a sovereign Caribbean when one takes into account the current situation of the region?", asked one Haitian youth. "Where is the discussion of the question of gender?", demanded a youth from Trinidad. It is necessary, she suggested, to pose the problems by considering "the way in which they affect each gender".

Questions related to cultural and media problems, the difficulty of organising itself, the challenge of unity, the question of the Caribbean Economic Community (CARICOM), and discrimination against Haitians in Dominican Republic were also raised.

The day of August 19 was marked by serious organisational problems. Logistical difficulties arose in particular at the level of transport, reception, and accommodation. It was very difficult, on arrival at the site of the Forum, to find the person in charge in order to introduce yourself. The general atmosphere left a strong impression of improvisation.

translated from French by Charles Arthur for the Haiti Support Group

Preparations for the Third Assembly of Caribbean People by Gotson Pierre, AlterPresse.

All the resolutions discussed at this forum addressed the desirability of continuing the regional mobilisation after the Assembly in order to maintain the dynamic created during the process of organising the event. Youth and women advocated that both sectors should have a greater involvement in decision-making and actions against all forms of discrimination.

Among the other main points raised in the resolutions were the questions of national integration, Caribbean unity and the need to fight against neo-liberal globalisation. The resolutions called for a 'united front' against neo-liberalism.

Evoking the image of a hanging, one speaker said that "neo-liberal globalisation is a rope around our neck. If we give them time to tie it and pull away the support keeping us standing, we are all going to die." At the same time, he questioned Western traditions, and called for popular knowledge and practices, as well as ancestral cultural heritage, to be "taken into account".

Another speaker said it is necessary "to fight the image of ourselves that white people give us, making us feel ashamed and leading us to imitate the whites."

The Haitian resolutions will be presented at the ACP at the same time as those from various other Caribbean countries, said William Jeanty, member of the National Executive Committee (CEN). In general, he specified, these resolutions "will be based on the specific situation of each country and the efforts agreed by dynamic national forces to find solutions to their problems".

The national forum began on August 14, the date marking the 212th anniversary of Bois Kayiman ceremony, the first attempt to unify the slaves in order to carrry out the war of liberation from slavery. "It has a very strong symbolism", stated Alzy Henrillot, another member of the CEN.

"In the same way that in 1791 our ancestors could find an area of agreement, we think that today this type of agreement is possible between new sectors, carried by a new vision", declared Alzy Henrillot.

translated from French by Charles Arthur for the Haiti Support Group

ENFOFANM recognises the tremendous work done by feminist and women's organisations in organising the Women's Forum as part of the Third Assembly of Caribbean People. ENFOFANM knows what a challenge this represents at both national and international levels in today's reality. The success of the Women's Forum is a big challenge for women's organisations and for the whole country in order to establish a social movement based on autonomy, equality, equity, justice and peace. The success of the Third Assembly is a tremendous challenge in order to consolidate solidarity among and the sovereignty of the Haitian people, and among Caribbean peoples free of demagogy and co-optation!

ENFOFANM salutes this initiative. The realisation of the Women's Forum is yet another effort towards establishing co-ordination between all women's organisations, and among all Haitian women in order to put a stop to women's issues being side-lined. We all know that, from the outset, Haitian society with it's patriarchal system coupled to its socio-economic system, has exploited and side-lined various sections of the population. ENFOFANM is aware that the marginalisation of women, workers, and peasant farmers is based itself on this patriarchal system. ENFOFANM realises that another way of life is not possible in Haiti and in the Caribbean unless we put our hands together to bring down this patriarchal system. That is why ENFOFANM and other feminist organisations established the CONAP - National Co-ordination for Women's Rights - which is composed of Fanm Desise of Jacmel, ENFOFANM, Fanm Yo La, Kay Fanm and SOFA. We hope that the Forum take on board the work of the CONAP since its founding in October 2002. The Women's Forum must be established on a strategy which addresses the imbalance between men and women because this is fundamental to the setting up of a real social movement for a better life!

The Third Assembly is taking place at a very difficult time for the Haitian people. 2004 will mark 200 years since the birth of the Haitian State. Despite such a long time passing, this society continues to ignore many sections of the population. On top of this, the Third Assembly of Caribbean People (ACP) is happening at a very difficult political juncture, where a small group who have seized power have fallen back on a dead system which is mistreating the population and crushing the main aspirations of the people.

The APC must provide a forum where progressive movements struggling within the region have an opportunity to make a contribution to the commitment to an alternative society, which is working, acting and reflecting in the Caribbean islands. And it must take into account and build on the integration and solidarity proclaimed at the Second Assembly. In this sense, a much greater awareness-raising and motivational work needs to be done within the country among those who claim to be progressive, and those who understand the importance of national and regional solidarity for the country, and the need to respect cultural diversity and identity of the various populations. All this, without any demagogy or co-optation.

In order for this to be done as it should, organisations which will take part in the Third ACP must be able to formulate their ideas and have political legitimacy, and be able to take a clear position on our national issues without confusion, faced as we are with the political ineptitude of the Lavalas government with regard to questions such as the 2004 celebrations; the 'reparation/restitution' dossier; the role of political parties and organisations of civil society vis a vis the State and the private sector; women's issues; youth issues and other deprived sectors.

Similarly, the ACP must be crystal clear on the political situation of other island nations struggling against US imperialist domination, such as Cuba and Puerto Rico, the French imperialist domination in Martinique and Guadeloupe, and the occupation of Grenada since the assassination of Prime Minister Maurice Bishop. The ACP is not there to impose a single identity and culture on the nations of the Caribbean.

For this to happen, the interventions that should take place in ACP must rest on the actual practises of the organisations themselves in relation to the actual knowledge of their respective populations within the islands. This work cannot be done haphazardly. We, women's organisations, who are members of the Latin American and Caribbean network and of RSMALC, and who have links through our own work with other organisations, can contribute in this way to the ACP by keeping the issues on the agenda and taking every opportunity to represent national issues for the Haitian people, it's struggle, and that of women's organisations in Haiti. The Third ACP must be able to carry forward all these fundamental issues if 2004 is to truly regain its significance in human history.

Myriam Merlet, Executive Director, ENFOFANM, Port-au-Prince.

translated from Creole by Anne McConnell for the Haiti Support Group

Caribbean People, Let's Build Our Sovereign, Democratic, Just, Fair, and Peaceful Caribbean!

THE MAIN GOALS OF THE ACP ARE TO:

Unify, organise, and strengthen Caribbean social movements.
Promote a Caribbean identity based on mutual respect and rejection of foreign domination in all of its forms.
Defend the Caribbean against the threats of globalisation.

HAITI: SYMBOL OF FREEDOM, LOCATION FOR THE 3RD ACP
In December 2001 in Havana, Cuba, the Regional Executive Committee of the ACP, comprised of seven countries (Dominican Republic, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, Martinique, Barbados, Guyana and Haiti), selected Haiti as host for the Third Assembly of Caribbean People to be held August 20-24, 2003 in Cap-Haitien. This date and location commemorates:
Two-hundred and twelve years since the slave uprising in the northern plain of Haiti that launched the Haitian Revolution (22-23 August 1791). The bicentennial of the first successful black revolution against slavery, which resulted in the independence of Haiti on January 1st, 1804.

The first Assembly took place in Trinidad and Tobago from 17-21 August, 1994. The second was held in Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republic, from 19-22 April 2001 with the theme, "Globalising solidarity and integrating people".

The theme of this year's assembly is:
Caribbean People, Let's Build Our Sovereign, Democratic, Just, Fair, and Peaceful Caribbean!

Workshops and discussions will focus on the following areas:
The fight against the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and the construction of alternatives (led by Haiti and Cuba).
Power, ethics, and democracy (led by Trinidad and Tobago and Curacao).
Current social movements in the Caribbean (led by the Dominican Republic).
Youth Issues (led by Barbados and Cuba).