The United Nations world summits and civil society activism

Abstract

Noting that UN summits are the most auspicious venue for non-state actors to popularize worldwide issues of concern, writings on international relations have emphasized the rise of a global civil society and its growing ability to use these events for influencing transnational politics. Based on findings of empirical research from six developing countries that hosted UN summits or important preparatory meetings (PrepComs), we suggest that national settings remain fundamental for civil society activism. We examine the outcome of UN summits on civil society in three dimensions: creation of political space, implementation of the summit’s agenda and alliance building. This study suggests that in each of these countries, the national processes of democratization and liberal economic reforms heavily influenced the outcome of these international conferences. In particular, the results reveal the paramount centrality of the state in the organization of the summit and in setting up parameters for civil society engagement during the follow-up process. While heterogeneity was an important trait of civil society, the UN bodies organizing the summits remained nearly absent in the post-summit period. A main conclusion emerging from the research is that, in addition to international connections, any major attempt on the part of civil society organizations (CSOs) to significantly participate in the political process, whether in the form of support or opposition, inescapably entails working with relation to the state in order to take advantage of the political opportunities available in the national context. Overall, the study results suggest that discussion on the rise of global civil society and international activism occurring in part thanks to UN summits needs to be supplemented by approaches that take into account national dynamics.