Participants

Democracy and Citizenship

    M. Carlos Arturi (UFRGS/Brésil)

    Mr. Guy Hermet

    Director of studies at the Institute of Political Studies in Paris, and recently appointed to the international chair at Brussels University, Guy Hermet previously taught at Lausanne University and at the Institut Universitaire des Hautes Etudes Internationales in Geneva. He created the Instituto de altos estudios para el desarollo in Bogota and was the vice-president in the NGO Doctors without borders. Specialised in the issues of the emergence of civic culture and transitions to democracy, particularly in Latin America, he has published a number of books in French, Spanich and other languages (Culture et Développement, Paris, Presses de Sciences Po/BID, 1999, and Le passage à la démocratie, Paris, Presses de Sciences Po, 1996).

    During this workshop open debates will be introduced and led by Mr Guy Hermet:
    A preliminary explanation is necessary concerning relations between the State, the IGOs and the NGOs in the case of emerging countries. In these countries, the States have only recently donned their democratic attire. It is therefore important that the large international agencies do not use this immaturity to practise a global governance which would weaken them even more. The democratisation of the emerging States has certainly only had limited effects. However, as the progress of all of them depends much more on their own resources than on the ever contentious intervention of external "development promoters", these outside agents cannot put their States in quarantine by delegating too many of their attributions to the NGOs or private institutions which are perceived to be more reliable. On the other hand, these States have to be brought to fulfil their functions, and if need be force them to assume their role as the State.


    Mrs. Saras Jagwanth

    She is a senior lecturer in Constitutional and Administrative law at the University of Cape town. She has a special interest in the relationship between law and democracy and the way these can be enhanced in a constitutional state. She has published in this area and most recently co-edited a volume on equality law in South Africa and elsewhere.

    Presentation: Democracy, civil society and the South African Constitution: some challenges (PDF file, 62 KB)

    Abstract:
    When South Africa adopted its post-apartheid Constitution in 1996, it was remarkable for both the inclusive and consultative process by which it was adopted as well as for its content. The process involved a massive public participation campaign in which the role of civil society was paramount. In relation to content, the South African Constitution is manifestly transformative and declares itself committed to the continued inclusion of civil society in governance. In the light of the provisions of the Constitution, this paper looks at the extent to which civic society meaningfully participates in structures of governance in post-apartheid South Africa. In particular it examines this question in the light of the global shift towards entrenched rights discourse and the consequent transfer of power to the judiciary to determine matters of social policy. In doing so it looks at the extent to which these new institutions of power assist the project of social democracy and redistributive justice.

    Elle analysera le rôle des citoyennetés dans le système constitutionnel en Afrique du Sud. Elle partira des questions de base, telles que: Comment considérer la citoyenneté en tant que propriété privée, individuelle et collective d'une société ? La citoyenneté et sa structuration constituent des vecteurs qui sont souvent à la base de la formation des agents de la société civile : la reconnaissance de certains droits qui ne sont pas respectés en tant que droits universels sert fréquemment de fondement à la lutte, par exemple, des associations de femmes. La citoyenneté est affectée par les processus de globalisation et d'autre part le fractionnement et la «glocalisation ». De nouvelles formes d’allégeances citoyennes peuvent donc se constituer selon deux processus différents : la reconnaissance des identités complexes et croisées qui ne sont plus les identités nationales ; et les identités cosmopolites qui ont la parole. Ces deux types de citoyenneté qui font référence à des droits humains différents.


    Mr. Ayitégan Godfry Kouevi

    Avocat au Barreau de Marseille (Cabinet BELLAIS) ; auteur d'une thèse sur les droits des populations autochtones ; expert Indépendant auprès des Nations Unies sur les questions touchant aux droits des populations autochtones; a contribué, à ce titre, à la rédaction de plusieurs ouvrages, notamment : "Operationalizing the Right of Indigenous peoples to Self determination", Institute for Human Rights, Abo Akademi University, 2000 (Finland) ; "L'avenir des Peuples Autochtones: Le sort des "Premières Nations", L'Harmattan, Paris-Montréal, Vol. VII, 2000-2.

    Presentation: Etat et autochtonie : le paradigme de la citoyenneté (PDF file, 54 KB)


    Mr. Julio Ruiz Murrieta

    Former Secretary General of the Fund for the Development of Indigenous Peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean. In the past he worked for the European Commission in Brussels dealing with environmental issues al the world level. He also worked for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in Gland, Switzerland, where he was responsible for the World Programme on Forests. He is native of the the peruvian Amazon, belonging to the Cocama people, one of the 60 ethnic groups living in this region. He studied Forestry at the University of Toronto in Canada, then he made a Master Degree in International Relations at the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague and finaly he finished a doctorate in Political Sciences in the University of La Sorbonne in Paris. His major fields of expertise are Indigenous peoples, culture and development, human rigths and democracy and environment and natural resources. He publised a number of books in spanish, portuguese, and english.

    Presentation: Pueblos indígenas, participación política y democracia en America Latina (PDF file, 45 KB)


    Mr. Jaime Preciado Coronado

    Jaime Preciado is Professor and Researcher at the Department of Ibero-Latin American Studies at the University of Guadalajara. E mail: japreco@megared.com.mx Main research themes: political geography, local governance, decentralisation, social policies, poverty, geopolitics in Mexico and Latin America. He is a member of the Scientific Committee College of the Social Sciences PhD Programme, and the National Research System. Former director of the "Centro de Estudios Ibéricos y Latinoamericanos", and the "División de Estudios de Estado y Sociedad".

    Presentation: Ni globalifílicos ni globalifóbicos, sino globalicríticos (PDF file, 65 KB)

    Abstract:
    His intervention will be focusing on the approach to globalization: the critical one and enthusiastic/a-critical one. From this perspective he will review the most recent sociological literature on the subject (Bourdieu, Castel) and try to answer to some key questions such as how to solve the lack of ethic within social relations? What are the alternatives to neoliberal policies and how shall we promote a social agenda that will allow us to build a sustainable society on the principles of social justice, solidarity, and equitys.


Urban Governance

    Mr. Yves Cabannes

    M. Cabannes, économiste urbaniste, a travaillé en Asie, Afrique, Pays Arabes et surtout en Amérique latine, au Brésil et Mexique, avec des organisations sociales des ongs et des gouvernements locaux dans le domaine du logement, de l’emploi, de la formation et du micro crédit. . Il a été directeur de programmes de recherche urbaine et professeur invité de plusieurs universités. Depuis 1997, il coordonne le PGU (Habitat) en Amérique Latine et Caraïbe

    Presentation: Que Planes para la Ciudad Gobernanza, Gestión y Políticas Urbanas. Respuestas Latino-americanas a los desafíos colocados por la planificación urbana participativa. (PDF file, 62 KB)

    Abstract:
    Les plans d’urbanismes participatifs, nécessaires pour une gestion démocratique de l’urbain posent sur les plans opérationnels et conceptuels au moins cinq défis d’inégale importance.

    Le premier est de concilier une planification à long terme et stratégique avec les impératifs et les besoins immédiats qui ne manquent pas d’émerger avec force lors de processus participatifs. Le second sera de concilier la planification du quartier où l’on vit avec la planification de la ville dans son ensemble. Le troisième défi concerne l’articulation de la planification locale dans un contexte de globalisation et d’exclusion. Le quatrième concerne la légitimité des plans conçus par une petite partie de la population dont les intérêts sont en plus souvent divergents. Enfin le passage d’une planification participative à une gestion urbaine démocratique pose également plusieurs défis.

    Certaines villes latino américaines répondent de manière créative à un ou à plusieurs de ces défis. Leur expérience accumulée, brièvement présentée, permet de mieux saisir comment l ‘élaboration de plans d’urbanisme et leur mise en application peut contribuer à consolider une gouvernance urbaine démocratique. Les processus que connaissent ces villes permettent aussi de mesurer comment les citadins construisent et conquièrent le droit à la ville, le droit de devenir citoyen.


    Mr. Guy Hermet


    Mr. Davinder Lamba

    Executive Director of Mazingira Institute, an NGO founded in 1978 in Kenya. Its voice is for the realization of human dignity – the essence of universal human rights – of all, rather than the few and for sustaining ecological integrity. A human rights activist, engaged in constitutional and governance reforms in Kenya. Treasurer of Habitat International Coalition and member of the International Coalition on Human Rights and Trade and Investment (INCHRITI). He served on the Scientific Steering Committee of MOST Programme of UNESCO. Contributed to the "Social sustainability of cities: diversity and management of change" book (University of Toronto Press, 2000) and the research project, developed with the support of MOST Programme.

    Presentation: Post-colonial Municipal Governance: A Time for real Change Now

    Abstract:
    This presentation reflects the African situation generally in the historical and contemporary context. It looks at the partition of Africa by the European powers during the imperial or coercive epoch of globalization. Among many colonial interventions, towns were established as sub-stations and communication complexes of the imperial system. They were the first colonial global localities or "glocalities", such as Nairobi and Windhoek among many others. It was also the emergence of the ‘town and country’ episode and conflict which remains unresolved.

    Cities without citizens and citizens without towns is the scene now. The post-colonial municipal governance thought and praxis embodies the colonial core. The municipal councils are the colonies of the state whose institutional frameworks do not give the citizens and their councils, the power to govern.

    Citizens must now create a new relationship with the local state and demand the establishment of mechanisms for democratic governance and assume the responsibility for it. This is a human rights obligation of the state and the councils.


    Mr. Enrique Ortiz Flores

    Arquitecto egresado de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Dentro de su trayectoria en las ONG y en el sector público destacan sus responsabilidades como: director de la ONG mexicana COPEVI (1965-1976); responsable de la formulación y conducción del primer Programa Nacional de Vivienda Mexicano (1977-1982); presidente del comité de Acción sobre Vivienda y Edificaciones de Interés Social del Sistema Económico Latinoamericano, SELA (1979-1982); gerente de operación y posteriormente director general del Fondo Nacional de Habitaciones Populares FONAHPO (1983-1987). Secretario General de la Coalición Internacional para el Hábitat (HIC), que agrupa más de 300 organizaciones sociales y no gubernamentales que operan en el campo del hábitat en 80 países (1988-1998). Entre 1998 y 2000 fue asesor del Instituto de Vivienda del Distrito Federal (Ciudad de México). Actualmente coordina el establecimiento de la oficina para América Latina de la Coalición Internacional para el Hábitat (HIC-AL) y sustenta la cátedra "Sergio Chiapa Catto" en la Unidad Xochimilco de la Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, que cubre docencia e investigación en temas de planeación participativa y producción social del hábitat. Es miembro de la Junta Directiva de la Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana y del Consejo Académico del Departamento de Arquitectura, Urbanismo y Diseño de la Universidad Iberoamericana.

    Presentation: Participación en espacios institucionales y políticas públicas

    Abstract:
    Las grandes expectativas sociales abiertas por los primeros gobiernos elegidos democráticamente en la Ciudad de México permiten evaluar y dar seguimiento a los procesos orientados a construir una nueva relación entre gobierno y sociedad civil organizada. Hoy como nunca antes se incluyen las palabras participación social, participación democrática o democracia participativa en todo discurso político o documento que hable de gestión pública. Asimismo, no hay organización scial o no gubernamental que no reclame estos conceptos en sus propuestas e interacciones con el Estado. Sin embargo, son pocos aún los actores que orientan su trabajo a construir espacios, instrumentos, programas y proyectos que avancen hacia estadios más altos de ejercicio de la participación -esto es, aquella capaz de incidir en las decisiones, en la gestión y en el control mismo de los procesos. La experiencia vivida recientemente en la Ciudad de México permite constatar que la voluntad política del Estado y el legítimo reclamo de las organizaciones de la sociedad civil para abrir espacios más amplios a la participación social en la gestión de lo público no son suficientes. Se requiere de instrumentos pertinentes, cambio de mentalidades en ambos actores, acceso a información completa y oportuna, capacitación y desarrollo de nuevas destrezas que contribuyan a dar mayor consistencia a los procesos conjuntos que se emprendan. Tres casos diferentes en los que participara el autor en los tres primeros años de gobierno democrático de la ciudad, ilustran el peso de estas condicionantes y permiten reflexionar sobre el potencial transformador de los diversos espacios participativos y su eficiacia en la confrontación de las tendencias actuales a la exclusión, la expropiación de activos y saberes populares, la desarticulación social y las nuevas formas de dominación que conllevan los procesos de globalización económica.

    Coalición Internacional para el Hábitat-América Latina (HIC-AL)
    Habitat International Coalition-Latin America Regional Office (HIC-AL)
    Tacuba #53, 1er. Piso - Colonia Centro. 06000 México D.F. México
    Tel: +52 (55) 55121586 y 55126726
    Fax: +52 (55) 55123842
    E-mail: chm@laneta.apc.org Web: www.laneta.apc.org/hic-al


    Mrs. Annik Osmont

    Annik OSMONT, social anthropologist: Laboratory of Urban Change, France. Email address: osmont@msh-paris.fr. Mrs Osmont is co-director of La recherche urbaine pour le développement (Urban research for development), a research programme which the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs has entrusted to the scientific research group, GEMDEV (Economie mondiale et développement), France.Her publications include: La Banque mondiale et les villes (1995); La "gouvernance", concept mou, politique ferme (1998), Is small so beautiful? (2000).

    Presentation: Les villes, la gouvernance, la démocratie locale: Réflexions sur l’expertise

    Abstract :
    Elle se concentrera sur les effets du processus de mondialisation sur l’urbanisation autant dans pays du Sud que dans ceux du Nord tout en essayant de voir comment elle s’accompagne de l'entrée en scène d'acteurs nouveaux : investisseurs privés (grandes firmes multinationales...) et opérateurs privés (grandes sociétés de services...), disposant de moyens financiers considérables, auxquels ni les pouvoirs politiques nationaux (gouvernements, ministères techniques) ni les acteurs "classiques" de l'urbanisation à l'échelle nationale (services déconcentrés de l'Etat, grandes entreprises publiques, opérateurs de services...).


    Mr. Pierre Sané (UNESCO)

    Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences

    Sous-Directeur général pour les sciences sociales et humaines


    Mr. Paulo Vizentini (UFRGS/Brésil)


Education and Citizenship

    Ms. Nydia Gonzalez

    Nydia González Rodríguez is a popular educator who, for more than twenty years, has been working with teachers, community educators, social movements and NGOs in Cuba and greater Latin America as a post-graduate professor, instructor and advisor. She has served as the Coordinator of Adult Education in Cuba and as a member of the National Council on Education. In her role as director of the Graciela Bustillos Collective on Educational Research (CIE), Nydia imparts community and post-graduate training for trainers in Popular Education and coordinates Participatory Research and Action initiatives with over 600 Cuban educators. Her areas of specialty include popular education, adult education, systematization, communication and planning, leadership and evaluation for NGOs. Nydia currently serves as Vice President of the Cuban Association of Pedagogy (APC) and as the Oversight Trustee of the Latin American Council on Adult Education (CEAAL).

    Presentation: Transformando el mundo del aprendizaje a traves de la educación popular:
    "una experiencia desde la sociedad civil en cuba"
    (PDF file, 30 KB)


    Ms. B. Jamil

    Director of NGO, Idaara-e-Taaleem-e-Aagahi, Lahore, Pakistan and Advisor to the Minister of Education, Government of Pakistan, will make a presentation on "Transforming education through community based governance: An experience from Pakistan".

    Présentation / Presentation : Transforming Education through community based governance: Experiences from Pakistan (PDF file, 98 KB)

    Abstract:
    The presentation will address the question: How can communities and civil society organizations participate more actively and meaningfully in educational governance, and hence meet the challenges of creating learning societies towards Education for All? The presentation will explore current forms and practices of civil society participation in transforming contents, processes and systems of education in Pakistan with a view to promote policy dialogue in a perspective of renewed citizenship.


    Ms. Mwatumu Malale

    Presentation: Promoting education and learning through civil societey participation: the tanzanian experience (PDF file, 40 KB)

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