Participants (see Annex
1 for more details): Adel Al-Soiedi (AA), Ahmed Mansour (AM), Abbas Hassan Rahi
Al-Shamari (AR), Ana Sugranyes (AS), Bettina Koehler (BK), Basheer Sakr (BS),
Carmen González (CG), Charlotte Mathivet (CM), Claudio Pulgar (CP), Edi Escobar
(EE), Emily Mattheisen (EM), Fernando Peralta (FP), Giovanni Allegretti (GA), Gertrud
Marczinzik (GM), Issa Samander (IS), Jamal Talab Al-Amleh (JA), Joseph Schechla
(JS), Katherine Coit (KC), Knut Unger (KU), Lorena Zárate (LZ), Marcelo Waschl
(MW), Maria Silvia Emanuelli (SE), Marie Bailloux (MB), Michaela Brück Waschl
(MBW), Michael Kane (MK), Muhser Abu Ramadan (MR), Miguel Santibañez (MS),
Nelson Saule Jr (NS), Patrick Andrivet (PA), Pascale Thys (PT), Pauline Yao
(PY), Rajaa Al-Kassab (RK), Rabie Wahba (RW), Shelley Buckingham (SB), Sheruan
Hassan (SH), Saad El Nounou (SN), Sami Slatnia (SS), Vanessa Valiño (VV),
Yasser Abdelkader (YA).
Interpreters: Jihene Rihani Chaabane and Samia Ben Romdhane
Minutes taken by Shelley and Marie
1.
Welcome
LZ: This meeting is being
held during a special moment on a political level, considering the ongoing struggles
in this region and around the world. We talk a lot about the crisis and the
need for changes at the global level, but most discussions are on a theoretical
level. However social movements in this region are demonstrating real actions
and are forcing change on the streets. We are not only going through an
economic crisis, but a crisis of civilization. Everything has become a
commodity and the only way to access things is through money, even though all
people hold human rights. Being here for the Land Forum and the World Social
Forum has given us spaces to debate these issues. It is also an important
moment for us at an institutional level. HIC was formed in 1976 and has been
undergoing different changes. We need to undergo some internal changes so that
we can work better together. We need to improve democratic practices in the
Coalition, and this is the main purpose of the changes that are proposed in the
Constitution. We also need to deal with Ana Sugranyes ending her position as
General Secretary, and how to proceed in this transition to a new General
Secretariat.
RK: The Arab revolutions
began in Tunisia, but are unfortunately pending and incomplete and are being
held victim to the interests of certain parties which are acting against change
now that they are in power.
PY: Whether in Africa or
MENA, the difficulties, demands and processes are the same.
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