Salud everybody, excruciatingly painful and undemocratic meeting last night et the GLA, the crowning point was when a Brazilian speaker from the WSF Organising Committee was invited to speak. Amongst other things, he spelt out very clearly that for example that the GLA shouldn`t be in attendance, or we shouldn`t even be holding the meetings at their premises. He finished speaking, big round of applause, O`neil looks a bit sheepish, says something and then that w*&^*er Johnathon Neale GR/SWPspeaks up and suggests a vote of confidence for the GLA, agreed said the chair (Natfhe/RMT) before anybody has any chance to speak or object. Plus ca Change plus c`est le ...

Any way here`s a small text you can start sending round, Personally I can`t have any more to do with Them until after the European Assembly and will be organising on France to help get either the ESF postponed or held elsewhere in Europe. Britain isn`t ready and it would be a travesty for the movements taking us back years. Sorry.

Yesterday I attended probably the most distressing meeting I have ever attended at the Greater London Assembly, the ESF Organising Committee. The process has now been completely hijacked by the GLA, SWP and certain Unions with the acquiescence of others some from quite respectable NGOs. Only The Continental Europeans can save the ESF now. Please use the alternative web site www.esf2004.net

and the democratise mailing list which is available from the site to help organise with the "horizontals" and save the ESF.

Here`s a short explanation in French as well that you could start using to alert colleagues in Europe.

We should start organising the alternative but real ESF from now.

Alun Griffiths