Global Apartheid and the new global settlement: Lessons, dangers and opportunities for global governance
This workshop will explore the potential role of Charter 99 in creating a democratic constitution for global governance, addressing issues of climate change, finance, trade, human rights, international law and exclusion. Western governments have led a piecemeal reform of the post war system of global governance. The post-war settlement included the UN, World Bank, IMF, GATT, NATO and other institutions based on minority rule in international affairs. Reforms over the past 30 years include the creation of the G7, the World Trade Organisation and changes in the role of the World Bank and other institutions. The end of the cold war creates real opportunities to develop an accountable, equitable and democratic system of global governance, but economic instability and narrow national interests could lead the Western Alliance to entrench minority rule.
The Charter for Global Democracy (Charter99) aims to put democratic reform of global governance on the agenda of the UN Millennium Summit in September 2000. Charter 99 sets out four principles for reform and 12 areas for urgentaction. In less than six months it has supporters in over 90 countries and 30 parliaments world-wide. It is a tool for dialogue, political education and action.
The workshop will also consider lessons from the European Union_s historyfor the creation of a new global constitution, the role of international trade negotiations and the critical importance of climate change. The climate crisis is the most serious threat faced by humanity since the ice age. In many respects international agreement on global warming is the cornerstone of a new global constitution..