[CIMC-working] Fw: [Imc-finance] Re: Funding Nigeria-imc: 3 items to consider/ letter from Winters

Wed, 27 Nov 2002 16:10:37 -0600

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----- Original Message -----
From: Petros Evdokas <petros_cyprus@burleehost.net>
To: winters <winters@nigeria.indymedia.org>
Cc: <imc-finance@lists.indymedia.org>; <imc-nigeria@indymedia.org>;
<imc-ambazonia-contact@lists.indymedia.org>; Sheri Herndon
<sheri@indymedia.org>; Jay <jay@tao.ca>; Luis
<corporatecrackdown@yahoo.com.br>; joseph <joseph@nigeria.indymedia.org>;
Mrs.Tabe <eyongtj@yahoo.com>; valentine V eben <vally_x@mailcity.com>;
valentine V eben <vally_x@lycos.com>
Sent: Tuesday, November 26, 2002 3:35 AM
Subject: [Imc-finance] Re: Funding Nigeria-imc: 3 items to consider/ letter
from Winters

>
>
>
> To:
> Winters, friends at imc-Nigeria, and imc-finance
> co-workers,
> on the occasion of the letter from Winters
>
> Hello,
>
> I would like to thank you for your thoughts regarding
> the funding which the imc-Nigeria group has requested
> from the imc-finance working group.  Your thoughts and
> the information you sent us,  will certainly help us
> make a better decision!
> (Below is a copy of your letter. The imc-Nigeria
> funding application is somehow linked to the
> imc-Ambazonia application, so I'm including a copy of
> this letter to imc-Ambazonia as well.)
>
> Here is the most important part of what you wrote:
>
> "Nigeria IMC this year got funding from our partner
> UCIMC and we did have a good understanding between us
> before the funding came through. it was  approx.
> $3,000. Which i Winters received for IMC Nigeria while
> i was on a  visit to England. what we know and we are
> used to is when you are funded by a group you at the
> end of your organisation's accounting year send a copy
> of  your account to the funding group or send account
> of funds sent to your  group to the donor when they
> request for it. We have never at anytime  recieved
> funding from IMC global . Or if we may ask , when we
> get  independent funding from any source do we send our
> account to IMC global or send it to IMC lists? These
> issues are quite confusing. I hope there is a  balance
> treatment in handling IMCs affairs globally."
>
> This information should have been shared with all of us
> from the very beginning of this application, and the
> primary responsibility for this should be shouldered by
> Sacha and Winters who were aware of the events; it is
> not only a matter of courtesy, but also a matter of
> transparency among political co-workers, and it goes
> beyond just propriety, it involves a basic respect for
> one’s fellow colleagues.
>
> Furthermore, there is still no reply on the issues
> raised in the past regarding imc-Nigeria’s work- group
> procedures, which are  essentially political concerns
> and can not be dismissed by vague references to
> poverty, North-South division, access to resources etc.
> The questions and issues raised (I will not repeat them
> here) have to do with group organization, the mission,
> languages, and productivity (output). They are
> political, and have political, not finacial solutions.
> There is also still no reply to the proposals on how to
> help imc-Nigeria without money.
>
> Instead, your reply pretends that there has been a
> "direct attack against" your "personality and
> integrity". Please remember that I wrote:
> "I do not believe that Winters would have been so crude
> or crass, even if we had an apparent difference of
> opinion - so far, Winters sounds like a reasonable
> person who simply had questionable ally". How is this
> an attack on your personality?
>
> Also, your letter pretends that our questions amount to
> "tagging some IMC BAD". All we are asking for, is a
> dialogue as colleagues, on procedures and perceptions
> toward a shared goal. How else can we make decisions
> about funding imc-Nigeria?
>
> The clever lever which many thirld world activists have
> found for dealing with the machinery of the liberation
> movement is  to push the "white guilt button" found
> embedded within the psychological structure of most
> NorthAmerican and NorthEuropean activists in order to
> get allocations of funding, equipment, and leadership
> status. This needs to be eradicated from imc
> operations, and for that, we need your help Winters,
> and the help of the global North people who are aware
> of it and who either tend to fall for it, or tend to
> cultivate it in others. It’s most often found the
> closer one gets to "liberal" political and financial
> institutions of the ruling class, and it is not a
> coincidence that a cultivation of this approach keeps
> surfacing from colleagues who have associations in that
> direction.
>
> Please help us to remove these minefields (mindfields)
> from our dialogue, so that we can clarify our
> co-operation on a better basis. Please help us look at
> our shared mission and political values with a fresh
> eye, and help us understand better the "why" and "how"
> when it comes to approving funds to imc-Nigeria in this
> period.
>
> Rome was not burnt in one day.
>
> Looking forward to more co-operation with you,
> Petros
> ---------------
>
>
>
> winters wrote:
> >
> > Hi all,
> >
> > I am very happy to respond to the mail below.
> > I also highly appreciate the networking systems of our dear indymedia
and
> > above all the special commitments of different people from all over the
> > globe irrespective of age, colour, knowledge, standards, religion etc.
> >
> > I hardly respond to mails like this especially when it directly attack
> > persons' personality and integrity, I mean when such mails  breaks what
i
> > may refer to as official conducts.
> >
> > we are all bonded together as one big family through our collective
believe
> > 'indymedia's mission'. Hence we all volunteer to give our time and
knowledge
> > to it. Some of us have lost our jobs, gave all our savings and even our
> > security  for this mission. Some of us have travelled from one continent
to
> > the other exchanging ideas and building co-operation between people of
same
> > minds , all to make indymedia  globally and locally work and reach
people.
> > Most time people that can go this far may be able to sacrifice all they
have
> > to the mission , but not their last asset- ' their integrity'.  Also, a
new
> > IMC  like Nigeria , working from global south may be able to  give all
it
> > takes to be strong , effective, reliable and also meeting global network
> > demands , but may also not be ready to be rumoured around the globe as
> > unreliable and non existing in any capacity. I have been opportune to
travel
> > to many continents of the globe and with my work in environment, social
and
> > community development , i have come to realise that just like all
fingers
> > are not equal , so also economic, social, and environmental standards
> > varies from pole to pole. I have also come to realise that what is
> > obtainable in the north may not be obtainable in the south due to
different
> > problems and  constrains like poverty, people priorities, societal
values,
> > resource availability etc.  I have always tried to to give equal
measurement
> > to all people especially when they are all not in same conditions. I
also
> > believe that tagging some IMC BAD or so even when they are doing their
best
> > may not be the best way to helping IMCs improve. I am sure no IMC in the
> > globe can boast that they have reached perfection.... we are all working
to
> > achieve that. That i know is our goal. I advise we should be careful in
the
> > way we attack IMCs especially when you actually sit in one part of the
globe
> > and shot punches to another group on the other end. Most times  it
doesn't
> > help their growth . This kind of mails often kill projects and ideas
even
> > before they are conceived. We all need encouragements rather than
> > condemnations to help us all volunteer more time and strength to achieve
> > indymedia goals.
> >
> > Nigeria IMC this year got funding from our partner  UCIMC and we did
have a
> > good understanding between us before the funding came through. it was
> > approx. $3,000. Which i Winters received for IMC Nigeria while i was on
a
> > visit to England. what we know and we are used to is when you are funded
by
> > a group you at the end of your organisation's accounting year send a
copy of
> > your account to the funding group or send account of funds sent to your
> > group to the donor when they request for it. We have never at anytime
> > recieved funding from IMC global . Or if we may ask , when we get
> > independent funding from any source do we send our account to IMC global
or
> > send it to IMC lists? These issues are quite confusing. I hope there is
a
> > balance treatment in handling IMCs affairs globally. This draws our
> > attention to the issue of question mark appearing in front of IMC
Nigeria
> > link in the listing pages of IMC Document website. Same question mark
also
> > appears for IMC South Africa. This page ( IMC Document
> > website)http://docs.indymedia.org/view/Local/WebHome#_Africa_  there are
> > links to all other IMC , but non to Nigeria and South Africa. Can some
one
> > answer this questions?
> >
> > As we all work to make indymedia reach out to all , we will be glad if
> > volunteers and local IMCs are allow to do there work instead of getting
> > condemnation for every little work done. little drop of water makes a
great
> > ocean. Rome was never built in one day.
> >
> > Best wishes,
> >
> > Winters
> > Nigeria IMC
> >
> >
> >
> > Petros Evdokas writes:
> >
> > >
> > >
> > > Funding Nigeria-imc: 3 items to consider
> > >
> > > In this article:
> > > o - the 3 items
> > > o - some further thoughts, and Alternatives
> > > ------------------------------
>
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