Blackwell Reference Online

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The protests against the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank in Prague, Czech Republic, in September 2000 were a pivotal moment in the history of the post-socialist Czech Republic's alter-globalization movement. As an expression of radical politics in an era of relative social peace and political stability, following the so-called Velvet Revolution of 1989, the protests left a deeper imprint on Czech collective memory than have other ad hoc, single issue, or trade union mobilizations. The principal day of protest, September 26, became known as simply S26 and was called for as a Global Day of Action against the IMF and World Bank by the Peoples' Global Action (PGA) network . The protests in Prague were certainly not the first time international financial institutions had been the object of protest. For over twenty years, demonstrations had been held, primarily in the global South, as a response to the IMF and World Bank's imposition of neoliberal Structural Adjustment Programs. In Prague, criticism focused on the institutions' promotion of a form of economic globalization which involved the opening of markets, privatization, and the cutting of social spending. The first public meeting to discuss holding a protest against the anticipated summit took place in Prague in September 1999. It attracted representatives of anarchist, socialist, and environmental groups and ... log in or subscribe to read full text