Event Details

What is the WSFM

The World Social Forum on Migrations (WFSM) is one of the thematic processes of the World Social Forum. The WSFM, like WSF, is a space for democratic debate of ideas, reflection, formulation of proposals, exchange of experiences; for articulation of social movements, networks, NGOs and other civil society organizations opposed to neoliberal globalization. WSFM is a space to discourse and discuss mobility-focused topics, e.g. the political, economic, social and cultural rights of migrants, displaced, refugees and stateless persons, issues of restrictions on citizenship and civil rights.

The WSFM is a global process that seeks what is possible to build an alternate world order; a society directed towards fruitful relationships between humans and with the land, thus consolidating a globalization of solidarity. At the WSFM critical issues concerning migration, globalization and the human rights of migrants will be discussed.

The WSF became a place for social movements to get involved in agreeing on broad areas of consensus to bring about a better world, not just geared towards profits. The first WSF was held in Puerto Alegre and International Committee was set up to coordinate the process. After the second WSF, an evaluation was conducted and it became clear that there were two short comings in the global event: 1.) the need to have thematic focus on specific issues 2.) the need to reflect regional realities.

As a result of these deliberations, two processes were created: thematic social forums and regional social forums. Several thematic social forums were created among them: on water, Migration, Education, Youth, theology and liberation. Regional and national social forums also started. Among these include the South Asia Social Forum, the Pan Amazon Social Forum and the US Social Forum. For more information visit Forum Social Mundial.

The WSFM aims to strengthen the process protest movements and organizations around the world fighting for integration and full exercise of rights of men, women, youth, children and girls who migrate after the hope of a dignified and just under one full human development.

Previous WSFM's

Since it started in 2005, there have already been four WSFM’s that were organized:

Porto Alegre, Brazil (2005). “Journeys in the global disorder”
Rivas Viciamadrid, Spain (2006). “Universal citizenship and human rights – another world is possible, necessary and urgent”
Rivas (2008). “Our voices, our rights, a world without walls”
Quito, Ecuador (2010). “People’s Movement for Universal Citizenship: Collapsing the model building actors”

5th WSFM

The 5th World Social Forum on Migration (WSFM) will be held in Manila, Philippines on 26-30 November 2012. This would be the first WFSM that will take place in an Asian country as previous WSFMs were held in Europe and Latin America.. The overall theme of the 2012 WSFM is “Mobility, Rights and Global Models: Looking for Alternatives” and the following are the sub- thematic areas:

Crisis, Critique and Consequences of Global Migration
Migrants Rights are Human Rights
Re-imagining migration proposing alternatives, exploring models
Resistance, Organization, Action