Activists and civil society groups are preparing to protest capitalist and neo-liberal economic systems represented and promoted by G8, a group of the eight richest nations in the world. The rally and the Alternative Summit will take place simultaneously with the G8 summit in Germany in June 2007. Find out how you can participate in the protests.

As the eight richest states gear up for the G8 summit that will take place on June 6-8, 2007 in  Heiligendamm, Germany, activists are also preparing an international protest and an Alternative Summit.
 
The Alternative Summit, to be held in Rostock on June 5-7, will be a platform for all G8 protesters and will include numerous workshops and roundtable discussions featuring prominent activists. With support from a wide range of sponsors, alternatives to the policies of the G8 will be presented and developed at the conference. Up-to-date information can be found at the Alternative Summit website: <www.g8-alternative-summit.org>.  Contact Florian Butollo at telephone +49 (0)30-280418-11 or     This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information.

Among the topics to be discussed in the summit include:
- Climate justice, but how?
- Precarious work and growing poverty in a rich society?
- Economisation of education and the future of labour
- Connect social struggles—for global justice
- The return of war (the relation between war and globalisation in different world regions)
- The altermondialist movement: balance and outlook
- “We are here because you are there...” (structural backgrounds of flight and migration)

Prior to the Alternative Summit, international organisations will launch an international protest rally on June 2. For details, go to <www.heiligendamm2007.de>, or contact telephone number 0228-692904, fax number 0228-692906, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The politics of the G8 have triggered criticism and worldwide protest as it continue to advance and support globalisation. Activists claim that globalisation has produced poverty and social polarisation. The number of people fighting starvation has risen from 840 million to 854 million over the last ten years as poverty and social insecurity are also on the rise. Racism, fundamentalism, violence, terror, and war are once again being promoted, leading to an increasing militarisation of international politics. With all these, women are especially affected.

As such, civil society groups opposing the neo-liberal economic system calls for:
- Equal social rights and standards worldwide (oppose the sale of public goods and services);
- Speedy and radical transfer to renewable energies;
- Immediate and permanent abandonment of nuclear energy and for complete worldwide nuclear disarmament;
- Solidarity with, and the living together with equal rights, of all people; and
- End the military imposition of economic and power-political interests through the G8 states.

The Group of Eight (G8) is an international forum for the governments of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States. Together, the eight countries represent about 65% of the world economy.

The group’s activities include year-round conferences and policy research, culminating with an annual summit meeting attended by the heads of government of the member states. Each year, member states of the G8 take turns assuming the presidency of the group. The holder of the presidency sets the group’s annual agenda and hosts the summit for that year. The presidency for 2007 belongs to Germany, which will host the 33rd G8 summit.

Sources:
“G8 Alternative Summit - Rostock, June 5 -7” from International Gender and Trade Network, posted on April 3, 3007, <http://www.igtn.org/page/723>.
“G8-Summit in Heiligendamm/Germay: Call to International Demonstration in Rostock, Saturday, June 2nd 2007” <http://www.heiligendamm2007.de/Demo_en/Demo_call.html>.                                                                                                     “G8 2007 – There are alternatives!” from G8-alternative-summit.org, <http://www.g8-alternative-summit.org/en/pages/start/call-of-the-initiators.php>.