Online at: http://politicalaffairs.net/article/view/7835

Women and International Solidarity: An Interview with Marcia Campos

By Political Affairs
Archives - Dates and Topics 2008 – online December 1– 31, 2008 click here for related stories: women's equality and liberation

12-06-08, 11:54 am


(WIDF President Marcia Campos. Courtesy WIDF)
Editor's note: Marcia Campos is president of the Women's International Democratic Federation.

PA: Please describe the history of the WIDF.

WIDF: WIDF was founded in 1945, December, during the post-war against the fascism, in a Congress held in Paris and the first president was the humanist and scientist Eugenie Cotton. Since then, WIDF fights against fascism, neo-liberalism and imperialism. Against the robbery wars, invasions and blockades caused by the North American government and its supporters around the world.

WIDF has overcome many difficulties between 1989 and 1995, after the fall of the Berlin wall and when the progressive and left-wing forces that acted in WIDF saw that, at the moment, their efforts to organize and to act were not finding answers among the mass and women movement. Many misguided proposals were made during that period, trying to displace women from the revolutionary and emancipation fight, pointing to the “feminism”, the fight against men as the option for the fight of women.

Today this is past, WIDF has followed its path, became strong, has faced the mistaken policies for the women’s movement, coordinated by the imperialism, and is today the biggest and most expressive international organization of women.

PA: What are the three main aims of the WIDF in the current period?

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WIDF: WIDF main goals are:

1. Fight for peace, for cooperation among people and nations, against robbery wars and systematic aggressions to people that do not submit to the North American empire, to fight for the withdraw of the North American troops from Iraq, for a Free Palestine, for the immediate release of the 5 Cuban Heroes prisoners in the US, for the withdraw of the military bases and against the missiles installation around Russia, for the reunification of Korea and for an humanitarian treaty in Colombia.
2. To fight for equal rights, against all forms of violence, against the traffic in women, for the full access to Education for women, against AIDS and for the defense of the environment.
3. To fight for access to work to women in all areas, with access to laundry facilities, public restaurants, daycares and schools. Motherhood is not only a woman responsibility, or of the mother, not even just a family responsibility, but is also a State responsibility and of all the society to take care of the future.

PA: Can tell us about the main activities of the WIDF South America?

WIDF: Participation at international, continental, regional and national forums that are connected the WIDF priority goals, as defined in our congresses.

Participation at the MERCOSUL and UNASUL Presidents Summits, at the Regional and World Social Forums, carrying the voice of the woman and trying to approve at the final resolutions of those forums, banners of interest of women and concerning the international solidarity, bearing in mind the conjuncture of each moment of those events.

Participation at the meetings of regional and international organisms such as the UN, UNESCO, LIO, FAO, UNIFEM, and all that can debate and approve proposals that are the interest of women of all the world.

In Brazil we support the national organizations that are affiliate to WIDF; we promote initiatives defined at our Steering Committee such as the meeting for the women of the MERCOSUL, the meeting of countries of Portuguese language, and so on.

PA: The WIDF has representatives across the world, in 130 countries as you stated, where is the WIDF strongest?

WIDF: WIDF is the strongest international organization of women nowadays. We have five vice-presidents, five regional offices, and we have seats at all the international organisms, WIDF has 209 affiliate national organizations of women and 609 friend national organizations. Our organization is today recognized by all the segments of the social movement that act for the defense of peace and Humanity and mainly by our international entities sisters such as WFTU, the World Peace Council, WFDY, among others. WIDF is represented at the UN by our comrade Vinnie Borrows, from the Women for Racial and Economic Equality organization.

PA: What is the position of the WIDF in the current international financial crisis?

WIDF: WIDF considers that we are living in a serious conjuncture of an international financial crisis that is check-mating the neo-liberal, imperialist policy, of uncontrolled financial speculation and greed. The euphoria of the speculators has become an agony to people after a succession of financial wrecks that are threatening the world economy. In 1990, there were $3.4 trillion at the international financial casino. In 2006, they have become $286 trillion. Today, is estimated to more than $500 trillion, totally detached from the real economy, from those that cannot enter the production because their salaries were tightened and workers were placed at the unemployment or informality state. Today, in 54 countries the per capita income is lower than tem years ago. In 34 countries, the life expectation has decreased. In 14 countris, there are more children starving to death. The conditions of advancing in our fight were amplified thanks to a perspective of a new world order, where the speculative capital and the shipping of profits of monopolies can be controlled, basic rates of interest can be cut, therefore, fomenting credit to production, to agriculture, to intern consume, to exportation and to amplify rights and access to work.

Several governments of Europe, Latin America, China and Russia, among others, countries and nations that have not submitted to Bush’s politics, are taking measures to face this crisis and to prevent that this threat carry their people economy to bankruptcy.

In China, an economical package of US$ 292 billion to construct railways, will create jobs for Chinese workers and facilitate the flow of the agro business production reducing the costs.

In Brazil, where the crisis is faced with more production, using the public money to irrigate the civil construction, sanitation, agriculture, car industry and also the median and small Brazilian companies.

The American people were the spokesman of the biggest NO to an inhuman degree of exploitation of the feminine working force, of immigrants, of their humiliation, and social devaluation. As Roosevelt in 1933, Obama can use the force of the American State to contain the fury of the private monopolies, to elevate the public investment, to protect the intern market and to get over it. Or to submit to them, maintaining the State as a mere agency destined to transfer to them resources and to support their intentions of despoil the world, even it means the need of using arms to subjugate them.

It is time to increase the mobilization and our unity of action, adding ourselves to other mass organizations all over the world that fight for better salaries, access to work, defense of production, of sovereignty, of development and peace.

PA: With respect in the struggle against Neoliberalism and neofascism as stated in the last Congress of the WIDF how is the continuing struggle taking place so we all can build a strong worldwide international women’s movement.

WIDF: At the last WIDF Steering Committee we reaffirmed the importance of being in all forums that are going to happen, bringing our denounces on neo-fascism and neo-liberalism, facing the financial crisis, emphasizing the access to work and the increase of salaries, placing the worker in the center of the investments that are need to face this crisis, increasing the intern consume. Women, more than half of the population, will have a decisive role at those fights for promoting workers and in order to that, we must add our actions to those that are being prepared by the trade union leaders and WFTU.

PA: When does WIDF have its congresses; and can anyone attend?

WIDF: WIDF holds its congresses every four years when the international board is elected. The delegates to the Congress are women indicated by the WIDF friends and affiliate organizations, and the international board also defines the special guests to the Congress. Women that are interested in taking part of the Congress as observers must apply to the WIDF affiliate entities in their countries or to the international board so that the application can be approved.

PA: Does the WIDF have a newsletter that interested people can read?

WIDF: WIDF website is: www.fdim-widf.com.br and we also have an e-newsletter which is send to all our data base.


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