BRICS from Below – For Social, Environmental and Economic Development

BRICS from Below – For Social, Environmental and Economic Development

South Africa is one of the emerging countries of the future. It received a privilege to be the first African country to host the Fifth Brics Summit on the 26-27 March 2013. Alternative to the Hegemonic Summit, South African Civil Society led by groundwork, Centre for Civil Society and South Durban Community Environmental Alliance to scrutinise claims and the process. Many people have heard about BRICS about we cannot begin to relate this process with our daily struggles. People asked themselves the following questions:

-          Does South Africa match up with Brazil, Russia, India and China Economic? We can make the generalisations from the study that was conduct by Trade Law Centre and the National Agricultural Marketing Council that South Africa does not measure up in terms of economic size, also it does not measure up in terms of trade levels and its performance has been below that of the other members. South Africa has a significant smaller economy than BRICs, with a GDP around one quarter of the India and Russian economies.

-          What does BRICS mean for the people

-          What is in the agenda

We know that many countries sees the alliance as an opportunity to enhance  cooperation with other developing or developed countries, playing a significant role in the economic and social development of the region. It is important for countries to assist each but we want to move away from the hegemony leadership. South African protagonist invasion brings only destruction because it does not service the need s of the people and the African continent has been overwhelmed by Bric corporations using South Africa as a gate way.
In this democratically South Africa there are people who don’t access to housing and have denied the right to access land, there is also a price on the air we breathe. We have people don’t have access to proper water and sanitation. Behind closed doors leader are not discussion how to distribute wealth equally but how to make other countries richer and make more profit.  Somebody must make them understand that all is not well. We have voted so that they must start negotiating on our fate. We refuse this democracy of being represented, we want to be there.  We must find a way to organise and mobilise. We must come out without fear and we must have a strategy. We must arise and come with the alternatives. Do we choose life of Profit? Profit can only determine how life is destroyed and live can determine how profit is made.  We want economy that is inclusive and we want justice for all.  We must say no to the greed of BRICS and Betrayal. The power belongs to us. Brics paid little attention to environment, job creation, poverty reduction, poor infrastructure, climate change, how to stop mining from lotting mineral resources, energy and the local resource of water that has been destroyed both in terms of quality and quantity because of mining activities.


Caroline Ntaopane leading March during BRICS

We have been talking up to a point where some people frustrations lead into taking matters into the own hand. People are still fighting to be recognition and fighting to belong and be part of decision making. When we say no to unsuitable development, when we say no to land degradation, when we say no to toxic chemical that affects our water and our air, our government is saying we don’t understand the benefit and we are ignorant. People can no longer make a distinction between democracy and democrazy.