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On the fourth day of the World Social Forum 2011 in Dakar, the forum starts to take shape. All the stalls are set up. Many tents have been built very fast to replace the classrooms that are occupied by students and the athmosphere becomes vibrant and exciting as we know it from previous world social forums.

In the many stalls, organisations are giving information and selling products from their respective countries and organsations. Many incomgenerating women's projects are selling processed and preserved food, handicrafts, beautiful African clothes, dresses, sandals, jouweleries and many more it is a huge fair of ideas, socio-ecnomic projects and souvenirs. The 7500 participants and studens of the university are roaming around talking here and there.

Restaurants have been installed under tents where Senegalese women's organisation offer delecious African food made of local products at affordable prices and in the many newly established tents discussions, debates, filmshowing, workshops and conferences are going on. If you do not find the event you wanted to attend you will find plenty of other interesting happenings.

Students

The senegalese students take the opportunity of going from tent to tent to protest against the Senegalese government and the Administration of the University. Because even they have the Bacalorat which entitles them to enter University they are not allowed to enroll. They are deprived from the right to education and might end up as agressors in the streets, as they explained. They demand quality edcation, because without good education in the South another world is not possible? The student announced as neither the University administration nor the President of Senegal have not responded to their demands, they enter into hunger strike starting February 10.

Students

Rallies

Smaller and larger rallies are taking place around the forum: by the multisectoral people's organisation of Senegal called „enough is enough“, women calling for Peace, Indian delegations and many many more.

Rallies

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And everywhere there is music, traditional African drums, African Rap, Senegalese songs and people are carried away by the beautiful rythms and start dancing in the street.

The organisers really did a huge effort to come up for the shortcoming at the start of the forum and they were successful. People are much more enthusiastic about the forum than on the first days.

Saharaouis

Unfortunately there is violence happening at the World Social Forum here in Dakar. A place were we advocate Peace, non-violent conflict management and most importantly freedom of speech.

The Saharaoui Delegation who condemn the occupation of the West Sahara by Marocco have not been able to hold any forum because some Maroccan participants to the forum have been disrupting any attempt to hold a forum, they even attacked physicalle the speakers of the Saharoui Women's organisation, hitting them with the wooden sticks and suffocating them with the flags. On February 10 the Saharoui did a silent protest march with masking tapes on their mouths because they were not allowed to speak freely.

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O-Ton Paronlen

After I did not find the forum in impunity of rape that I wanted to attend, I attended another very interesting women's forum in the Women's village. Women of Casamance are demanding peace in their place and talk about the implementation of the UN-Resolution 1325 .
Another Senegal ist possible. Women mobilize for Peace and sustainable development in Canamance.

Have you ever heard of the conflict in Casamance? I haven't, but it is an armed conflict that is already 20 years old and killed over 5000 people. The women of Casamance take the opportunity of the World Social Forum to inform the world about their sturggle for Peace in their place.

O-Ton Parole

Casamance is a region in the South of Senegal with boarders to Guinee Bissau in the South and Gambia in the North. It is a very fertil region with agricultural production and logging. The people of Casamance are not Wolof as the majority in Senegal but belong to the Diola tribe. Already against the French colonisers they lead a sturggle for independence. Today the movement of the democratic forces of Casamance with different armed groups are fighting for independence from Senegal.

The women's organistion of Casamance say the people are tired of the armed conflict, they are demanding negociations and peaceful conflict management. They ask for the full participation of women in the peace process, as mentioned in the UNSCR 1325 on women, Peace and Security.

O-Ton Our fils

We want peace in Casamance. We want that our sons come back from the forests. Instead of studying they took up arms. They should come home, study, find a job and get married and have children explained Amsatou Sow Sidibe, who is professor for human rights at the University of Dakar.

O-Ton

She further said that the UNSCR 1325 has not at all been implemented in the Casamance conflict. Despite the fact that they had a meeting in Dakar where they came up with an action plan, which indludes the strengthening of women's organisation, the promotion of a culture of peace based on human rights. The creation of peace clubs at schools and universities, Research, gender training for armed forces and to train women in mediation so that they become expertes in the peace process. The plan is good but nothing has been in implemented. If we want that the 1325 does not just remain in a drawer. Women need to be in decision making positions in the prevention, conflict resolutin and in the consolidation of Peace.

O-Ton

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At the forum on Peace and sustainable development in Casamance I met Diatou Cisse. She is the director of the community radio Fogny FM 105.6 in Casamance.

She told me that The broadcasters of her radio station are all community people, majority of them women. In the first place they take up the issue of peace in Casamance but also topics such as health, sustainable development, sanitation and education.
Everyone in the community has a voice at her radio station even the most marginalised such as differently abled people.

When I asked her what was impressed her most at this world social forum? She said, that there seems to be armed conflict all over the world. Everywhere the women are fighting for Peace.
O-Ton
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