The old spirit of non-alignment is not in retreat, NAM has simply changed with the times writes Gamal Nkrumah With the collapse of the former Soviet Union there were fears that the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), a colossal and at times cumbersome organisation that groups 116 developing countries of the South, would soon become redundant. But the pressing need to have an international organisation that groups states of different and often conflicting ideological and political persuasions that lobbies for the interests of the developing world soon put the fears to rest. Far from being superfluous, NAM has came to play a vital role in formulating an audible voice for the South in the international arena. There are many who hanker for the movement as it was at the height of the Cold War era: as a virulent anti- imperialism forum. Officially established in September 1961, NAM was actually conceived as a concept at a summit meeting of newly independent mainly African and Asian countries in the Indonesian city of Bandung in 1955. NAM's founders, while insisting on an official policy of guarded neutrality in the Cold War between the two rival superpowers, nevertheless adopted a virulent anti-imperialist posture. Indonesia's then leader Sukarno, Gamal Abdel-Nasser of Egypt, Jawaharal Nehru of India and Josip Broz Tito of Yugoslavia, the only European founding member state of NAM, were all invariably perceived as anti-Western. However, in the 1970s and 1980s, with the influx of a large number of African, Asian and South American nations into NAM, and with the intensification of the Cold War, the anti-Western stance was tempered and watered down considerably. With the demise of the Soviet Union matters took on a new turn. The historical rapprochement between India and the United States played a pivotal role in moulding the new moderate NAM of the 1990s. The more militant NAM member states like Cuba and North Korea were reined in. The NAM summit meeting was convened in the Cuban capital Havana in April 2000, but the focus was primarily economic and development concerns. Lurking in the background, but looming large is India with a host of smaller developing nations in tow. India's quiet and moderating influence, conducted largely behind the scenes, largely determines the political direction of NAM today. Nevertheless, smaller states such as South Africa and Malaysia -- the outgoing and incoming chairs of NAM -- today play an increasingly vital and high profile role. Coalitions of convenience are all very well in theory. They are desperately difficult to hold together in practice. But in Kuala Lumpur, member states reiterated their committment to the "fundamental principle of the non-use of force and respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity, political independence and security" of all UN member states -- a thinly-veiled reference to Iraq. NAM leaders also stressed the promotion of a "multipolar world" -- a rebuke of US unilateralism. At this particular historical juncture, trade and aid contracts are being bandied about by the powers of the wealthy and industrially advanced North. NAM is urgently seeking a new role in the post-Cold War world. All told, NAM looks much more like the United Nations than a vigorous regional political and economic grouping. NAM's problems are twofold and both are serious: one economic; the other political. And the two are inextricably intertwined. On the political front is the unpleasantly conspicuous lack of organisational cohesiveness. Sadly, not enough funds are poured into the loose organisational structures of NAM to make it a more effective body. Still, there is much enthusiasm for NAM. An unprecedented 63 heads of state and government attended the 13th NAM summit meeting in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur on 24-25 February. And, powerful voices urging world peace were heard. "No single nation should be allowed to police the world, least of all to decide what action to take when," warned Malaysian Prime Minister and NAM Chairman Mahathir Mohamed "It is no longer just a war against terrorism. It is in fact a war to dominate the world," he added. The sentiments expressed by the Malaysian prime minister were echoed by other African, Asian and South American leaders who took to the podium. In Kuala Lumpur, NAM joined in a worldwide resistance to an American strike against Iraq. The NAM summit in Kuala Lumpur metamorphosed into yet another anti-war forum, but a few heavyweights counseled restrain. India's Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee warned that Iraq must comply with UN Resolution 1441 and unequivocally disarm and rid itself of all weapons of mass destruction. Vajpayee's views were reflected in the final communique. South African President and outgoing NAM Chairman Thabo Mbeki concurred with the Malaysian leader. Extensively, quoting the Irish poet WB Yeats, Mbeki warned that, "The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere the ceremony of innocence is drowned." "War must be outlawed," the Malaysian prime minister declared. "We must struggle for justice and freedom from oppression, from economic hegemony. But we must remove the threat of war first," he stressed. War, Mbeki said "will increase instability in the Middle East and the world. It will deliver a deadly blow to the poor of the world, who will have to bear the additional pain of growing impoverishment." Mbeki, urging the UN peace inspectors to be given a chance to complete their job of inspecting the Iraqi military facilities. War, Mbeki warned, "will entrench the tendency towards the exclusion of those who are poor and weak, such as ourselves, from participation in the formulation of a world agenda and programme of action, that relate to the central question whether we are considered human enough to decide what our own future shall be." In Kuala Lumpur, the NAM leaders on the whole agreed that UN Resolution 1441 was sufficient to disarm Iraq peacefully and that there should not be a second resolution as proposed by the US, Britain and Spain. Characteristically, the Cuban leader Fidel Castro took a strong anti-war position, denouncing US imperialism and calling for an end to sanctions against Cuba and other countries embargoed by the US. The Iraq crisis topped the agenda, but North Korea's decision to end its membership of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty featured prominently as well. Both Iraq and North Korea have traditionally been and still are politically assertive NAM member states, wielding much influence within the organisation. The South Korean strongman Kim Jong Il did not show up in Kuala Lumpur, but he did send his number two -- Kim Yong Nam, the North Korean ceremonial head of state, to Kuala Lumpur. The North Koreans, who fired a land-to- sea missile to coincide with the opening of the NAM summit in Kuala Lumpur on Monday, said that the Americans were creating a crisis in order to "isolate and stifle" North Korea. The three countries branded by the US as the "axis of evil" -- Iraq, Iran and North Korea -- are long-standing NAM member states. Yugoslavia's membership of NAM was suspended and the organisation did not come to Belgrade's defence when Yugoslavia was being bombarded by the punitive US-led NATO strike. This time round, NAM member states are lobbying for peace and working hard not to let Iraq be similarly chastised by the Americans. In Kuala Lumpur it was acknowledged that NAM has some relevance with regard to Iraq. The Iraqis were especially pleased with the overwhelming anti-war posturing of NAM leaders. Delegates warmed to the theme of the Kuala Lumpur NAM summit "Continuing the Revitalisation of NAM". Nevertheless, some delegates felt that NAM should focus on wider, common interests and not be bogged down in bilateral relations and problems between member states. India's Vajpayee warned that "NAM will die before it can revitalise itself if it gets involved in bilateral issues." His statement was a rejoinder to the plea made by the Pakistani leader Pervez Musharraf for NAM to mediate in the Indian-Pakistani dispute over Kashmir. India's viewpoint was acknowledged as delegates felt that issues of wider interests and concerns were all the more pressing. "The Havana South Summit," Mbeki said, referring to the 11th NAM summit in the Cuban capital, "formulated a comprehensive and focus agenda, which formed the basis of interaction with the developed countries of the North." In Kuala Lumpur, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo warned that NAM, like the UN and the Group of 77 grouping, must "remain platforms from which developing countries can cooperate to advocate their objectives of a fair, just and equitable world order." Obasanjo said that one of the main objectives of NAM since its inception was to usher in a just global economic and political order. "We must remain true to the vision of the founders of our movement, for a new and equitable world order." The economically-oriented Asian-African conference took place on the fringe of the NAM conference. The focus of the NAM Business Forum this year was on closer South-South cooperation and the expansion of trade links and joint ventures between African and Asian economies. Participants also called for better cooperation in skills development and the transfer of technologies between Asia and Africa. This brings us to the economic problems facing NAM member states. The overwhelming majority of people in NAM member states suffer from the deplorable social and economic degradations that accompany rampant poverty and underdevelopment -- illiteracy, disease, hunger and destitution. With 55 per cent of the world's population, NAM member states collectively account for only 26 per cent of the world gross domestic product (GDP). The Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong put it succinctly. "Currently NAM lacks clout because we are economically underweight," the Singaporean leader explained. "In fact the combined GDP of the 116 NAM member states is only about 90 per cent of the US economy," he said.
