Catholic delegates among 200,000 attending World Social Forum

Published: 2004-01-20

MUMBAI, India (CNS) -- Delegates representing Caritas Internationalis, Asian Catholic justice and peace commissions and Pax Christi were among 200,000 participants in the World Social Forum in Mumbai. Caritas Internationalis Secretary-General Duncan MacLaren and Father Yvon Ambroise, Caritas Asia coordinator, led a delegation from 15 countries to the Jan. 16-21 forum with the theme "Another World Is Possible." While some delegates attended the 300 workshops and seminars held each day at the sprawling forum venue, action and advocacy groups' marches turned the forum into a carnival of social activists. Some protested human rights violations in Tibet and the Palestinian territories; other protested the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Japanese and Korean protesters in colorful attire opposed their governments' plans to send troops to Iraq.

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