(Images from left to right): USAS protestors outside the forum; Kofi Anan; co-chairs of the forum with President Jacob Zuma and WEF President Klaus Schwab
It is impossible to let one moment during this trip to define a complete personal transformation. As everyone who has been on such trips is aware, there are many such times. But there is one incident that stands out in my mind in particular and which I have chosen for this entry.
During one of the interviews I arranged for Sakhisizwe, a guest mentioned something about a World Economic Forum on Africa 2009. It was apparently a congregation of global political and economic world leaders. After hearing that the forum was going to be held in Cape Town, I immediately started working on getting a media pass. I kept thinking to myself that this will be such a big event. Leaders and diplomats like former Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Anan and President Jacob Zuma would be there. I had to get in no matter what. The next day I came into the offices, filled with anticipation that the staff would be keen about this event as well. But I was tremendously surprised that the response I received was lukewarm. While they encouraged me to attend the event and report on it for news section (something I had wanted to do), it was mostly a “go-and-see” feeling. The other interns shared my excitement and gave me ideas and instructions in terms of what to do there. At that point I wondered why such little importance was being given to it. Was there something they knew that I did not?
Shalini, one of the other members of our group was also covering the event for the Cape Times and so the two off us set off early in the morning to register. When we reached we were in awe by the size of the city’s convention center and the venue layout. We saw several journalists walking in and out. Security was tight and we were scanned at certain points in the building. The media center was even more impressive. Internet connection was provided free of costs and if we did not have computers, those were available as well. In the corner a small snack bar was present for all media personnel. We were served lunch and dinner. Every journalist present received a laptop bag with the stamp of the World Economic Forum and all documents pertaining to the event. Clearly, the organizers were leaving no stone unturned in terms of satisfying the press. I then went to the introductory meeting where the co-chairs of the forum, Kofi Anan, Executive Chairman of the Dubai Group of the United Arab Emirates, Soud Ba'alawy, Chairman of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of the People's Republic of China, Jiang Jianqing, Cheif Executive of SABMiller, Graham Mackay and Managing Director of the World Bank, Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, were present.
The first session mostly expanded on the aims of the conference and the forum’s end goal. Tackling the economic crisis was of course, the co-chairs assured us, their top priority. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, talked about the forum also being an opportunity to discuss the economic possibilities for the African continent. Sessions following that concentrated on topics like development in Africa and provisions being made in terms of crisis. It was only later during the day that things became interesting. I received a tip-off from Shalini that there would be protestors outside the building. I had read about criticism on the forum and rallies being held opposing the conference. But this would indeed be news that Bush Radio would want to hear about and broadcast. Both of us sprinted to the end of the building and tried to locate the group. Eventually we found a couple of them, singing, dancing and chanting. It was the United Struggle Against Starvation (USAS) and from the signs on the banners they were holding, they were clearly a communist organization. Nevertheless I interviewed two or three people, took photographs and filed a second voice report. The staff later at Bush Radio told me that they found that interesting and even published the pictures I took on their blog. The forum then returned to its sleepy demeanor and as the day passed, the more I began to realize that there were many problems with what the sessions had said so far. For one thing it was mostly reports and statistics that were being stated and even the basis of them were questionable. Secondly, while there was no supposition or stated intention of getting to the bottom of global problems, the general atmosphere was that of networking between business individuals. Then there was the constant pampering of the press which raised my suspicions about the motive of the forum. Finally, the cause for globalization was indeed put to the forefront and fully supported, no questions asked. During one session, a panelist said that the only way certain African countries can expect economic growth is if they pulled down their trade barriers. One reporter immediately raised an objection and said that local businesses would diminish. Globalization may have done a lot of good things like better access and reduced physical and cultural barriers, but it has also brought about many environmental problems and increased inequality. I think at that point I became slightly disillusioned with what was going on. My voice reports became less frequent up till a point when my supervisor texted me asking if anything was wrong. He also said this, “Remember you are representing the voice of the people so keep that in mind when you cover the story.” That statement immediately jogged me out of my gloom and I began filing me reports with tidbits from the session that might seem interesting to our listeners. I stayed till the last session when President Jacob Zuma, the founder of the WEF Klaus Schwab and Kofi Annan came to address the gathering. I expected Zuma to be wordy, but surprisingly his speech was determined and focused in terms of the government’s goals. He even made an announcement of a new plan to help the South African economy, which had been officially declared to be in a recession. But as I left the complex, lugging my bags and trying to hail a cab, I thought about the hype raised by such organizations. Having worked with a magazine back in Dubai, I had had experience dealing with the kind of PR that companies tend to do. But I had never experienced it on such a large scale and that too from an organization that claims to be non-profit. I had also studied about transnational companies and their tendency to use world bodies like the United Nations as their shield against criticism. Agreed, the WEF’s responsibilities and aims are not like that of the UN. At least on that day there was no confrontation of important issues and no resolutions were made. Everything seemed to be up in the air.
Somehow if I had been in Dubai it would have seemed somewhat acceptable and I would have not been that alarmed. But this was the World Economic Forum on Africa. An economic boost of some sort is needed here. In South Africa, the promises of freedom and progress made by the government have not reached all the areas of society and I thought the forum would address that. Maybe my expectations were raised a bit high and again, I had only attended day one of all the three days.
There are two ways of looking at the situation. That day made me more conscious of my role as a journalist. My supervisor’s text also made me realize that every statement made at any forum must be looked at with intense scrutiny. And any world meeting between important leaders does not automatically mean that No wonder the staff members at Bush Radio were not exuberant about the forum. They knew the kind of bureaucracy I would encounter and I believe that was an important lesson to learn. In a way, I finally understood what my sociology professor was talking about during our Global Change class. Globalization has forced us all to become closer and co-exist. It also means intervening when there is something wrong. But there is a fine line between helping and interfering and I guess for organizations such as the World Economic Forum, the fear of stepping on other countries’ toes and not being diplomatic can hinder any definite steps. The fact is many of the members of the forum are only in South Africa for a very short time and may feel like there is not much impact they can have, so no tong-time effort is taken. In some ways, I now know what Roxanne in our reading, “Hanging Out With The Help” by Marlon Burgess, meant. She said that even though many of the people in the group were keen to take quick action, after meeting people in the community for a few seconds, who were we to expect them to start spilling out personal information, what she deemed as save-the-world-for-four-weeks mentality. I think I displayed a little of that attitude at the forum and maybe it was partly influenced by the group.
On that point, it also made me think about our current attitude towards discussions and talks. With technology making our life easier and quicker, we have become more impatient if things take too long. I think part of my frustration stemmed from the fact that no action was being taken. I expected maybe some resolution and found myself getting annoyed when I did not see it. In a world facing a crisis, I thought, we are here just debating. Yes the term forum indicates discussion but after going around with our group and seeing so much in and around Cape Town, it was such a dramatic change in scenery for me.
I do not claim to be innocent or naïve about such transnational economic bodies. I have heard and read enough to know that there are many aspects that have to be considered. So while I would not say that this came as a complete shock, the reality of such meetings truly sunk in. No matter who may be attending or on the delegation, I feel I am going to become more wary and cynical of them as a journalist. I know I am not going to display as much enthusiasm for such forums in the future, even though I admit that discussions are a step towards an end result. At least, now I know.
Link to my coverage of World Economic Forum on Africa 2009 for the Bush Radio Newsroom:
