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Where angels fear to tread
Let’s face it: Daily Summit was a pretty presumptuous
idea.
One reporter, plus small back-up team, takes on the
largest political gathering the world has ever seen.
To be frank, we were surprised when the project got the
green light and amazed when the UN issued media credentials without crying
fraud.
So, by way of farewell, and just to push our luck a
little further, read on for the World Summit Awards, which we're dishing out
to those who contributed to the summit's seminal
moments.
Contribution to a successful outcome
Lest anyone think these awards are not entirely
serious, our first category celebrates important achievements in the summit
negotiations. All three awards were, of course, keenly contested.
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Best charade: to EU and US delegations for
sterling denial of the sanitation/renewable energy horse-trade.
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Best use of physical contact: to the world's
down-trodden environment ministers for the group hug with which they
celebrated a rare victory against the WTO.
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Finest use of obfuscation: to
Ambassador Ashe for ensuring that, to this day, no-one really knows what
was agreed on corporate responsibility
The superpower-only category
An important category - even in this unipolar world…
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Most out of its depth superpower: to the
United States, who seemed to have forgotten that you need to win friends
if you're to influence people
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Smartest move by the leader of a superpower:
to George Bush, for putting Colin Powell in the firing
line.
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Saddest comment from the citizen of a superpower:
to the protestor who described heckling Colin Powell as "the best
day of my life."
Services to public relations
With 4000 hacks in attendance, this category recognises
that feeding stories to the media was surely the summit's most important
task.
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Best PR stunt: to the Green Oscars,
where NGOs ridiculed corporate PR stunts.
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Worst
PR stunt: to Tony Blair and Jacques Chirac's over-stage managed but
strangely shambolic press conference.
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Most quotable: to Friends of the Earth's Charles
Secrett who was prepared to comment on anything at any time to even the
lowliest journalist
The media matters
And the journalists win prizes too…
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Most professional moment: to those journalists
who applauded and cheered Robert Mugabe.
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Most creative use of alcohol: to the British
journalist whose summit accreditation was stolen one night as he slid into a
stupor.
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Best display of bigotry: to Matthew
Parris, who showed that
the fate of a continent can be divined from a queue at Heathrow Airport.
Protest prizes
Joburg didn't see protests to rival Seattle, but there were
some notable moments…
Summit personalities
And, finally, Daily Summit salutes the people who made the
summit tick…
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Survivor award: to South African Ministers Moosa,
Erwin and Zuma as President Mbeki refused to let the final press conference
die.
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Kindest
offer: to the inebriated young policeman who, late one night, promised
every journalist he met that he'd arrange a personal interview for them with
Nelson Mandela at 8 o'clock the next morning.
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Unsung heroes: to the legion of organisers (paid
and volunteer) who forestalled nearly all the chaos the cynics predicted,
dealt patiently with delegates and their impossible demands, and said things
like "we want to make South Africa proud" - and meant it.
David
Steven | 16/09/02
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