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ARGENTINA: A Pause for Thought

Marcela Valente

BUENOS AIRES, Jul 6 2007 (IPS) - Academics from every continent will be meeting next week in Argentina for the Second Extraordinary World Congress of Philosophy, where they will ponder the shape of the future in a context of free-market economics and globalisation.

Latin American intellectuals will predominate at the meeting, which will be held from Jul. 9 to 12 under the heading of “The Human Project and its Future: Different Alternatives,” in the western province of San Juan, in the foothills of the Andes mountain chain.

Participants will be able to attend lectures by foreign experts, round table discussions, about 30 forums, and workshops for students.

The programme includes a social science symposium on “Globalisation and Inequality”, with expert social science speakers like Fernando Calderón from Bolivia, Manuel Garretón from Chile, Julio Boltvinik Kalinka from Mexico, and the Argentine Secretary of Culture, lawyer José “Pepe” Nun.

“Social scientists, humanists and philosophers should analyse the future of the human project, in the context of globalisation and an aggressive free-market economic model that decides what our place is to be, without taking our wishes into account,” Cristina Genovese, a member of the academic committee of the congress and a researcher at the San Juan National University, told IPS.

“This is a time for taking thought. We need to discuss where we want to be in the future, and that’s why this congress is open to dialogue with science and the arts, and although Hegel may come up in the debate, it will be from the starting-point of our own historical and social context,” said Genovese.


The German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831) is regarded as the “father” of the dialectical method, and his ideas had a major influence on the development of Karl Marx’s theory of historical materialism.

The response has been far beyond the expectations of San Juan University, the main organiser of the event, which is also sponsored by other higher education establishments and national and provincial government authorities.

“Three thousand people have registered, and there is no room to accommodate any more,” Genovese said.

The organisers are expecting philosophers from Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, the Democratic Republic of Congo, France, Germany, Hungary, Mexico, Peru, Spain, Thailand, Venezuela and other countries.

The round table discussions will address topics such as “The Human Project,” “Philosophy and Analysis,” “Philosophy and the Nation,” “Gender and Citizenship,” and “Memory and the Human Project.” There will also be lectures and forums on education, politics and social sciences.

This is the third congress of its kind to be held in Argentina. The first was organised in 1949 during the first administration of Juan Perón, who was president three times (1946-1952, 1952-1955, 1973-1974). It was held in the province of Mendoza, which is also in the foothills of the Andes, sharing borders with Chile and San Juan.

It was a National Congress of Philosophy, attended by academics from all over the country.

The second was the First Extraordinary World Congress of Philosophy, the direct predecessor of the upcoming congress in San Juan. This congress was held in 1987 in the central province of Córdoba, during the government of Raúl Alfonsín (1983-1989), to reflect on the recent restoration of democracy.

This time, the congress is receiving strong support from Senator Cristina Fernández, the wife of President Néstor Kirchner, who has just been selected by the governing Justicialista Party as their presidential candidate for the elections on Oct. 28. Senator Fernández will preside the congress and deliver the closing speech on Jul. 12.

 
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