Nairobi to host WSF 2007

New Delhi, Nov 10 (UNI) The waves of inspiration for the first World Social Forum (WSF) to be held in Africa has begun from India.

A group of poets, artists and storytellers have arrived from Nairobi in Kenya, the venue of WSF 2007 in January, to announce the arrival of the African continent.

At a training session for their performance on the final day at the ISF, the lead man in the Kenyan group had a picture of Mahatma Gandhi on his T-shirt.

''We will be singing songs for our heroes,'' says group member Chagala Wichllffe, a percussionist from Nairobi. ''We will be telling the people here about our struggle against slavery.'' The performance begins with an introduction to the once 'Dark Continent'. ''Our story begins in the heart of the continent Africa,'' speaks another team member as the others take over from there chanting anti-Bush and pro-Cuba songs.

Another song starts with the sentence ''Remember the resistance of Africans' as the 15-member troupe enacts pages from the continent's colonial history of misery and oppression.

Women's emancipation and empowerment will be high on the agenda of the Kenya WSF, says the troupe. ''A woman's place is in the struggle,'' reads a slogan on the T-shirt of another group member.

Eradication of poverty from the continent, however, remains the biggest slogan: ''Poverty is growing, so is inequality,'' says the message on another T-shirt.

At the inauguration of ISF last evening, a Kenayan woman leader took the mike telling the dispersing audience that the dream of 'Another World is Possible' is becoming a reality.

''We can build this other world. It is no longer a dream,'' said Wahu Kara, a human rights campaigner and member of the organising committee of WSF Kenya.

India had organised the WSF 2004 in Mumbai.

UNI FZ VD RK1531