Across Africa, members of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP) alliance today welcomed the prioritization of poverty reduction in President Mbeki’s State of the Nation address but warned that there needed to be follow through.

“President Mbeki needs to be mindful of the gap between policy pronouncements and actions on the ground so this is not just more empty hype. He signed onto the Millennium Development Goals in 2000, and so far his obligations to the people of South Africa have not been fulfilled. Current levels of poverty and inequality in South Africa are unacceptable and we want to see a delivery plan to match the rhetoric.” Said Christophe Zoungrana, GCAP Africa Coordinator on behalf of the GCAP African Facilitation Team President Mbeki’s call for a "national war room for a war against poverty”, bringing together government departments, provincial and local administrations as well as NGOs and business, is a step in the right direction.

Bali is beautiful. This small tropical island, part of the Indonesian archipelago and perched off the East coast of Java is, for the next two weeks, playing host to a major UN climate change conference.

I am here for the first week of the conference with colleagues from the Global Call to Action Against Poverty – the world’s largest anti-poverty movement, with national platforms in more than 100 countries. I will try to send updates from the conference looking at both what is being discussed – but also to give a flavour of the conference itself.

There is no longer serious debate that humans are causing significant climatic changes, and that the poorest nations and people in the world are being hit first and hardest by these changes. So can Bali be the moment when negotiations truly begin on a crucial follow up to the Kyoto Protocol as well as on other vital areas including adaptation and deforestation.

My initial impression is, perhaps unhelpful, maybe. Let me explain.

First the conference itself. Planes carrying delegates (the irony is lost on few) come down low over the narrow strip of water that separates the island from Java, and land at Denpasar on the South tip of Bali. Those delegates are whisked away in gas-guzzling people carriers to the exclusive resort of Nusa Dua, home to countless five star hotels and to the main convention centre where the meeting will take place.
 
In luxurious surroundings, and under the hot Balinese sun, delegates waft from hotel to conference centre in taxis, bell boys carry suitcases into air-conditioned rooms, talk is of clause 4 of this and article 15 of that, Balinese security guards and police patrol the boundaries, and locals are kept firmly out. In such surroundings I fear the emergency of climate change is lost. Radical action suppressed by freshly fluffed pillows.
 
And yet, around 12,000 government officials, civil society activists, UN staff, private sector representatives and others are arriving over the weekend for the 13th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and there are, perhaps, a few important features that distinguish this meeting from its predecessors and give hope that decisions can be made.

The unity of dialogue, the role of civil society, and the timing of the conference are all playing a role to ensure that this conference is definitive in shaping global decisions.
 
Having recently been at the World Bank and IMF annual meetings, it is already clear that civil society is far more integrated into the process here than at the Bank and Fund. Here the negotiation halls are open to all accredited delegates, the civil society forum is running parallel to the main conference and dialogue is free and open between all sides.  This is highly significant as it means that decisions reached will have been done so in a relatively transparent manner and are therefore more likely to have the support of all key actors.
 
Not unrelated is the fact that this conference is historic in the unity role players are facing in the debate.  While in many areas of economics and politics, different interest groups are brought to the discussion table largely to protect their own interests in a largely zero sum game, with climate change, business, government, and civil society stand to lose, and lose in a drastic way, if there is not unified, quick action.
 
Finally, the timing of this conference is working in its favour.  The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has become a widely accepted body for scientific evidence on climate change allowing a vital agreed basis for dialogue on agreements and future treaties. It’s fourth assessment report released this year highlights the need for drastic action in the most startling terms yet.
The ravages of climate change are already being felt, from Bangladesh to New Orleans. There is now widespread public awareness about climate change, and the more it is affecting the lives of citizens, the more they are demanding action from decision makers.  With a political incentive to act together against climate change, Bali could just be the place where promises are finally turned into action.

For the sake of all of us, let’s hope so.

The case of anti-poverty activists Daniel Bekele and Netsanet Demissie was today not heard again as one of the three Judges in Ethiopia’s High Court was absent due to ill health. The case hearing is now postponed until November 30th, leaving Daniel and Netsanet in jail for at least another 8 days, as they were refused bail.

“Given that in April a senior judge said there was no case to answer, and that both men have been imprisoned for over 2 years, they should have been granted bail in the circumstances.’ said Kumi Naidoo, Secretary General of CIVICUS and Chair of Global Call Against Poverty sitting in the Addis Ababa court this morning. ‘Ethiopia is being deprived of the two people most committed to its progress, and in the context their skills and participation are very much needed.”

After more than 2 years of imprisonment Daniel and Netsanet, both coordinators of the Global Call to Action against Poverty in Ethiopia, are the last two accused in the high profile Ethiopian treason trial that originally charged 131 politicians, journalists, organisations and civil society leaders. They were due to hear the final verdict this morning at 9am GMT in Addis Ababa. They face charges of conspiracy to overthrow the government, specifically, “outrage against the constitution and constitutional order”.

Fellow GCAP campaigners in over 110 countries have been calling for their immediate release and sent messages of solidarity to the men. Amnesty International has declared both men prisoners of conscience.

On October 17th more than 40 million people spoke out against poverty. This is remarkable global call to action and one that will become louder and stronger in coming years, and more and more difficult for political leaders to ignore.

This week I have had the privilege of leading a fantastic team on behalf of GCAP working on bringing the voices of so many people to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund whose annual meetings are taking place now in Washington DC. The team has been working together for the last few weeks to put on a series of events and meetings to bring the global call directly to these two institutions whose policies and loan conditions often have horrendous consequences for the poorest people in the world.

“We sing poverty goodbye,” a young African girl in a school uniform says. Then, the choir sets in. Men and women dressed in white sing to tell the story of injustice and poverty – and the need to change—in the Poverty Requiem, a new musical piece for choir and percussion.

The Poverty Requiem is a musical manifestation asking for international attention to the Millennium Development Goals. Internationally the Poverty Requiem is performed in the context of the Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP).

The song is written by the Dutch composer Peter Maissan and lyrics are by Sylvia Borren, executive director Oxfam Novib Netherlands.  In a collaboration with the music department of Kunst Factor, International Foundation for Choir Music and Europa Cantat the Requiem is distributed among international choirs, umbrella organizations of choirs, and individual singers.

Around July 7th, the midway point for the 2015 Deadline for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), 70 cities hosted events of one kind or another. By coming out in large numbers, members of the showed there is motivation to push governments to achieve MDG targets. Recognizing that some progress has been made in some countries, most people are still sorely disappointed with the poor performance of states that signed the Millennium Declaration and made promises to their citizens. Millions of impoverished people continue to live in socially dismal and sub-human conditions without solution or hope.

Our friend Kel Currah from GCAP (the world movement to make poverty history) was lucky enough to go to Merkel and Blair’s meeting yesterday, where they accepted our Voices Against Poverty petition. Here’s his firsthand account of what happened…

”Sunday morning and I thought it was time to head south back to Berlin. But it seemed that Tony Blair had planned a surprise visit to see Chancellor Merkel prior to the G8 and they agreed to meet with GCAP in Germany for a symbolic presentation of the Voices Against Poverty petition. This led to a hectic 24 hours for us GCAP campaigners preparing two large ’speech bubbles’ to give to Blair and Merkel when they arrived.

My colleagues at work may be pleased to hear that I have lost my voice!  But it was for a good cause and hopefully it won’t be for very long.

I guess I got a bit carried away on Saturday at the London pre-G8 rally (organized by the major UK churches, NGOs and trade unions) chanting G8, The World Can’t Wait!

I was put behind bars yesterday my friends, and I can tell you that even for those few minutes while photographers snapped, it didn't feel very pleasant. I sat in my 'cell' with youth delegates and Socialist International President and former foreign minister of Greece, George Papandreou. In our hands, placards depicting the images of our friends, imprisoned civil society activists from around the world. As I mentioned yesterday in my column, this was part of a wider campaign to remind the Assembly and the wider world of the plight faced by our colleagues and calling for their immediate release.

Not known for my musical talents, I found myself carried along last night on the crest of a choral wave. At the end of another long but highly stimulating day of discussion, debate and dialogue at the World Assembly, the words of a new piece of music rang especially true. As I sang the lyrics about hope in the requiem penned by my colleague Sylvia Borren from Oxfam Novib, I felt rejuvenated by the energy one gets from joint action, from acting together. The performance has been captured on video, just like our plenaries and some other events.