The delay in publication was not chosen, but it allows us to incorporate into our analysis of the international context the “Trump factor”, the major new development compared to ESSF’s activity report for 2023. His re-election represents a geopolitical tipping point whose short and long-term consequences are difficult to measure today, except for one certainty: they are already catastrophic and will accelerate all facets of the global polycrisis caused by the unbridled development of contemporary capitalism. This polycrisis was already causing a considerable number of victims (due, for example, to heat waves, floods, wildfires, and the resurgence of diseases affecting vulnerable social environments). From the beginning of his term, Trump brutally worsened the situation by cutting funds for health and social aid associations, dismissing a large portion of the staff concerned, and blocking the continuation of monitoring and research programmes in the United States itself.

We have tried to address as broadly as possible the regime crisis in the United States, the positioning of the left in the USA and elsewhere, and the international shockwave, drawing on very diverse sources to provide both analytical elements and reliable basic information. We have multiplied articles concerning Palestine and Ukraine, without sacrificing other substantive or current issues. We have been jostled by the speed, violence and scale of ongoing developments that we need to assimilate, which partly explains the delay in drafting this annual report.

 The twentieth anniversary of the launch of our website

Our website was born in September 2005, with some 400 articles online. It has since changed considerably, in many ways, whilst remaining faithful to the objective set at its origin: to make it “a useful tool for all those who fight for a world of solidarity”. Today it contains more than 72,800 pages, distributed, rather curiously, almost equally between English (more than 36,200) and French (more than 36,500).

Its audience has increased considerably, as shown in the following table (the tables and figures are provided by our host using Spip software).

If the current trend continues, the annual number of visits should increase further in 2025, but this will depend particularly on events and their coverage on the site.

Its audience has increased considerably over time, especially during the crises already mentioned. The monthly unique visits chart below shows for example the impact on readership of the COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020, the Ukraine effect, the Gaza effect and especially the Trump effect. We are pleased to have been able to retain a portion of each new wave of readers.

Monthly unique visits

The readership of our English pages comes mainly from Europe, North America, and South and Southeast Asia. With the war in Ukraine, we have welcomed an increasing number of readers in Central and Eastern Europe, including Ukrainians and anti-war Russians. Our French readership remains largely European, Québécois and North African, as shown in the following table.

Distribution of visits by language and section

	EN	FR	Total %
---	---	---	---
Movements	3.5	2.7	2.7
Themes	3	4.4	7.4
World	1	0.7	1.7
Sub-Saharan Africa	1.5	1.5	3
Americas	5.4	4.4	9.8
Asia	21.9	6.2	28.1
Europe	9.7	21.2	30.9
MENA*	4.9	7	11.9
Poles	0.3	0.1	0.4
South Pacific	0.5	0.1	0.6
Total	51.7	48.3	100

*MENA = Middle East and North Africa

Some figures – growth and change

Monthly visits in 2006: 6,894, monthly visits January-March 2025: 1,077,587

The growth in audience also responds to a progressive change in the site and its tools:

• a broader international coverage (although still uneven),

• a more varied thematic coverage (although still incomplete),

• the diversification of geographical and thematic newsletters (Create or modify a subscription on the page https://facebook.us8.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=5c732dd5ee65845cf20fd724a&id=f9557c45ce),

• entry on Facebook, X (Twitter) and Mastodon (with, for the past two years, a succession of abusive denunciations of our pages to Facebook managers in particular, in order to block or modify our Ukraine and Palestine coverage),

• upgrading the space dedicated to us on our host to speed up response and reduce service outages.

Where do we stand?

From the outset, the site gave space to social themes, women, ecology, experiences of struggle and Marxism(s) (and co.), gradually broadening the range of issues systematically addressed, from globalisation (then its crisis) to gender and LGBT+ issues. Major shifts have occurred during major shocks. We did not truly tackle health issues in all their dimensions until the Covid pandemic. The same applies to the climatic-ecological crisis and the realisation that we had fully entered the era of the “polycrisis” (a new concept). Added to this today is the brutal geopolitical tipping point caused by Trump 2’s rise to power.

In this unprecedented moment, our site must help to think through the complexity of the present times without drowning in it, to feed a collective reflection without which it will be impossible to decipher the dynamics at work or to perceive when our analyses become obsolete. We are increasingly entering unknown territories and we must be aware of this. Let’s say that the lifespan of prospective analyses, even based on ongoing dynamics, is uncertain. Developments must be understood step by step. ESSF is not one of the places where this collective reflection can and must be conducted; we simply hope that our website will be one of the tools that will help.

We have our own guiding principles, against masculinism, for example, and for internationalism, namely the defence of all exploited and all oppressed people, regardless of the country where they live. In these uncertain times, there is at least one certainty: the established powers want to destroy old progressive solidarities and prevent the birth of new solidarities arising from resistance to wars of invasion, the climatic-ecological shock, health inequalities, social aggressions, the trampling of civil and democratic rights, the almost general authoritarian drift of political regimes, the rise of multiple extreme rights...

We hope that among all those who side with and engage in strengthening these old or new solidarities, the will to stand together will prevail over the factors of division, real or supposed.

Exchanging viewpoints

The spontaneous “point of view” of a movement reflects (among other factors) its national realities. To understand how specific they are (or not), it is useful to take into account “foreign” perspectives. The ESSF website can contribute to this, as well as to debunking false assumptions. The term “Europe”, for example, is massively used instead of European Union or Western Europe. Let us remember that by geography, history and present issues, Europe extends to the west of the Urals – at the end of the vast Eurasian continent. With rare and commendable exceptions, the (radical) Western European left has long ignored Eastern European lefts.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has placed Eastern Europe at the heart of current events. Yet, the West Europeocentric vocabulary persists. Can the war reach Europe, we hear people ask, but the war is already there, of a scale and geopolitical scope unprecedented since the Second World War. In the middle of Europe.

To understand, but also to express our solidarity with the populations at the borders of the Russian Empire and with the Eastern European lefts, we need to decentre our perspective. Analyse events seen from the East and enrich our political-national perceptions and orientations accordingly. The point of view (obviously diverse) of those primarily concerned matters!

In general, decentring one’s perspective is an essential exercise. Travel helps! Let’s hope the ESSF site does too.

The ESSF team

We have always benefited from a wide support network that suggests articles to us that could be put online. This counts a lot for the internationalisation and collectivisation of our activity. Unfortunately, we can only respond imperfectly to these invitations. We must deal with “hot” current events highlighted by the mainstream media (Ukraine, Palestine), as well as those rarely mentioned (Burma/Myanmar being a good example). Major issues, from the climate crisis to oppressions. Theoretical analyses, such as on contemporary imperialisms. Political and activist news, such as alliances and united fronts. Countries and emancipatory causes that struggle to become known... the first 100 days of the left-wing government in Sri Lanka; the movements of women and LGBT military personnel in Ukraine; the preparation for the anti-Trump general strike in Panama... Responding to all these imperatives is obviously an impossible mission. So, we do what we can.

Nevertheless, we try to develop certain themes that are too marginal or to introduce new ones. The “Media” sections are gaining centrality as far-right billionaires take control of communication networks, publishing houses, television channels... Scientific information - and the defence of the scientific approach - is acquiring ever greater importance with the international offensive of the advocates of obscurantism, of which Trump has become the standard-bearer.

The members of our (small) association are scattered across several European countries. The “core” that runs the site has remained stable lately. Arnaud, without whom we would be nothing, still ensures the functioning of the site. There are three of us who post articles: Alain Baron, Adam Novak and Pierre Rousset. We all do translations (especially Adam). For his part, Pierre Vandevoorde, our designated translator, makes an impressive contribution in this field, he has also written many activist biographies and provides valuable monitoring of German current affairs.

This core is entirely male. As the “sample” is very small, this may be due to chance. Women (and other men) have carried out administrative tasks in the past.

In terms of translations, we collaborate closely with the (very rich) blog “Entre les lignes, entre les mots” and we benefit particularly from those published by sites and online journals such as A l’Encontre, Inprecor or International Viewpoint, Contretemps and Presse-toi à gauche, The Conversation... Regarding “hot spots”, we can rely on ERSU (the European Network for Solidarity with Ukraine) or ad hoc committees such as AFPS, Agence Média Palestine, AURDIP...

Interconnections and solidarities

Numerous interconnections have been established with websites and online journals that develop an approach similar to ours. This is particularly true of various European, Asian, North American, but also Latin American or African countries (although more marginally). We republish their articles, translate them into English or French, and thus contribute to their international distribution. Our articles may be translated into Spanish, Dutch, Portuguese, Greek, Urdu (Pakistan), Chinese, Japanese...

In doing so, a genuine informal international network has been established, which contributes to feeding a collective reflection (a mutual enrichment) and solidarities that can be activated in convergent campaigns. We continue all the partnerships we mentioned in our report last year.

 FINANCIAL SOLIDARITY

Our traditional end-of-year appeal was launched on 20 November 2024, from which date all donations received were reserved for the Asia Solidarity Fund 2025, with transfers to our Asian partners suspended until January. For various reasons, the sending of many donations specifically intended for the ASF 2025, and not the least, extended well beyond January.

We started the year with €14,487.75 (the balance as of 31 December 2024, higher than the previous year), which allowed us to ensure the first transfers of funds to the movements whose action we support in good conditions. Thus, from January to March 2025, we were able to transfer €15,300 to Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan and the Philippines.

Taking into account donations specifically dedicated to the ASF 2025, but received late, we received a total of €26,121.66, which is better than the minimum we were counting on in mid-January, but which nevertheless constitutes a notable decrease in our receipts compared to recent years. We know there is a trend towards erosion, understandable in view of the socio-economic situation. However, we also know that a group of very loyal donors had to respond, in the recent period, to other appeals, one-off, particularly urgent, than ours (they informed us of this).

 Overall financial report for the year 2024

In 2024, we transferred €41,400 to our partners (€43,020 in 2023). Another slight decrease.

Summary reports by country
Reminder: the donations we receive can be dedicated to a country or an organisation, or paid into the permanent Solidarity Fund which allows us to send aid immediately after a disaster (the solidarity campaign subsequently allowing this fund to be reconstituted); to balance the balance of specific solidarity campaigns in case it is not balanced; to ensure follow-up of prolonged aid; to provide aid when the conditions for a specific solidarity campaign are not met.

Our partners in Asia must face the violence of established powers, which can take several forms depending on the moment, region and country: dictatorial regimes, landowners, extremist fundamentalist movements..., violence that can go as far as total war (Burma). We must take this into account so as not to put them in even more danger, and we do not publish certain sensitive data.

The figures below concern the amounts transferred, not taking into account bank charges (an international transfer generally costs us €28.60). In principle, we cover all costs (some may be deducted in the destination country according to rules that vary by country).

BANGLADESH

Contributions sent via the BKF (peasants), BKS (peasant women), BAS (indigenous) movements and the BSF trade union federation. These movements are mainly established in the southwest of the country. The majority of their members are peasants who occupy public lands (large sandbanks that appear in estuaries), cultivate them and demand legal recognition of their usage rights. BKF-BKS members must face violence from landowners’ henchmen. In the event of a humanitarian disaster, they can provide aid in other places. Associated with a union and an indigenous peoples’ organisation, they participate in united activities, especially in Dhaka, where their national headquarters is located, on a wide range of issues.

Total for the year 2024: €11,500

Total Bangladesh (2011-2023): €91,1229

INDONESIA

While participating in collective initiatives on various issues and collaborating closely with trade unions, the “Free Women” movement, based in the industrial zones of Jakarta and Sukabumi (West Java), intervenes with women workers in the clothing sector to defend their social and reproductive rights (not respected by employers), against gender violence in the domestic sphere as well as in the workplace. It simultaneously conducts educational campaigns, conferences, help with self-organisation, support for women’s demonstrations...

As “Free Women”’s geographical and social field of intervention is more “focused” than those of our other partners, we have sent them more limited aid. However, since last year we have increased their allocation, given the national context, which is deteriorating, and the quality of their activities, stabilised at €5,000.

Total for the year 2024: €5,000

Total Free Women (2016-2024): €34,200

Total Indonesia (2006-2024): €33,200

PAKISTAN

We are in partnership with the Crofter Foundation (CF), the PKRC and the Labour Education Foundation (LEF). For practical reasons, we now send all “Pakistani” funds to the Crofter Foundation, whose priority is to defend the interests of peasants. Since 2017, the Pakistan Kissan Rabita Committee has been a network of 27 small farmers’ organisations and the only member organisation of La Via Campesina in Pakistan. The Labour Education Foundation has, moreover, a very broad scope of action and receives significant international associative support. It helps workers in the formal and informal sectors to organise, train and claim their social, economic and political rights with a view to profoundly transforming power relations. It provides special programmes for children. It collaborates with the Crofter Foundation in joint initiatives, particularly in the face of natural disasters.

Part of the aid we provide to Pakistan is intended for the Himalayan territories under Pakistani administration (Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir) – that is, three territories.

Total 2024: €11,000

Total Pakistan (2005-2024): €127,605

PHILIPPINES

Our partner in the Philippines is the Mihands coalition, which networks about fifty associations with varied specialities – they respond together to humanitarian emergencies, combining their skills as close as possible to the needs. These crisis situations have multiple causes: military conflicts, so-called natural disasters, epidemics, questioning of the rights of mountain populations (Lumad)... Mihands operates in a large part of the island of Mindanao, in the south of the archipelago, but occasionally “projects” beyond. It helps local communities to self-organise and adapt their socio-economic activities (including agricultural production) so that they better resist climatic chaos.

Mihands benefits from significant social roots which allow it, in particular, to promote solidarity between Christian, Muslim and mountain populations. Mindanao being one of the most militarised territories of the archipelago, the members of this network (and other progressive movements) must assume their multiple responsibilities in a context of permanent insecurity. Given the scope of these responsibilities and the regional context, the annual allocation to the Philippines has (almost) always been the most significant.

Total for the year 2024: €13,900

Total Philippines (2007-2024): €172,489.27

* * *

All countries combined.

ESSF GENERAL TOTAL FOR 2024: €41,400

ESSF general total (2005-2023): €521,613.04

We warmly thank all those who contributed to this year of solidarity.

We must do our best to consolidate and continue to expand in 2025 the base of donors that perpetuates our financial solidarity.

As we all know, maintaining “Asia” solidarity in the present international conditions is not self-evident, but this is the specific responsibility of our association. Thank you a thousand times for helping us to fulfil it.

ESSF
Mark Johnson, Pierre Rousset

For people who pay their taxes in France and who can benefit from a tax deduction, we are already preparing the tax receipts which should be sent by the end of April.

 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Regular and one-off donations

Monthly contributions (via bank transfers, HelloAsso or PayPal) are very useful to us.

They can of course be supplemented by one-off donations, particularly in response to specific appeals.

Small donations count!

It seems that that some people give up sending a donation, judging that it would be too small to “count”, given the needs. This is a mistake; even small donations “count”.

Fifteen donations of €30 make €450 and allow us to “complete” a bank transfer of €1,000.

Even donations of €10 make sense. The cumulative value of these “minor” contributions hould never be neglected, they demonstrate political solidarity – and the extent of this solidarity is meaningful for our partners in Asia (as well as for the ESSF team that runs this campaign).

Addresses

It is important to provide us with:

An email address.

A postal address. If it is not the one written on the cheque (for this payment method), don’t forget to indicate it!

Similarly, make sure your contact details are indicated in bank transfers. Sometimes we receive donations without knowing from whom, or from which country...

Tax receipts

For people who pay their taxes in France and who can benefit from a tax deduction, we will send tax receipts at the beginning of March.

Some clarifications on this subject:

• For people whose donations are made via HelloAsso: it is we who prepare the receipts, not this association.

• In the case of donations made by cheque, it is the date of the cheque that counts: up to 31 December, it is counted in the receipt for 2024, beyond that it will be counted next year for the receipts for 2025.

• In the case of transfers, it is the date on which the transfer was made that counts.

Cheques are regularly deposited in the bank. If yours has not been cashed, contact us. Mail does not always reach its destination.

Let us remember that our association operates without any form of remuneration, on an entirely activist basis. Thus, 100% of the donations received are transferred to their recipients. The costs associated with these transfers are mainly banking costs and reduced to a minimum (less than 5%). We do not “export” our own projects. We help movements to respond to humanitarian, social and democratic emergencies based on their involvement in the field and their own perception of priorities.

Extracts from the minutes of the ESSF general assembly of 17 February 2024

The following points were reaffirmed or emphasised:

• We maintain our fundamental conception of solidarity. Each power chooses the victims that suit it and abandons the others. We refuse to enter into this type of “campist” logic. We defend all victims and we do not abandon them in the name of geopolitical considerations. We support their right to freely decide their future and, when that is the question, their right to self-determination.

We find ourselves with progressive movements that, around the world, reject the logic of the “main enemy”. We are not in the camp of any great power, whether Nippo-Western, Russian or Chinese.

• The soaring global climate and ecological crisis is becoming all the more dramatically worse as established powers reduce rather than strengthen the meagre measures (already very insufficient) that had been taken to limit temperature rises. The irresponsibility of contemporary capitalism has no limits.

It is to be hoped that under the brutal impact of the polycrisis (health, geopolitical, democratic, militaristic, social...), popular resistances will coordinate in adversity, offering a perspective for the defence of old solidarities and the emergence of new solidarities.

• The battle for the right to information takes on a new dimension. Money powers are increasingly taking control of the means of information. Yet, in all areas, popular resistances need reliable and critical information. We are committed, like all independent media, to this battle which is gaining in centrality. On our (very) modest scale, we continue a policy combining “basic” (let’s say scientific) and critical information on the capitalist order that constitutes the common background to all specific crises. The development of the “Media” sections (in “Themes” or by country) must promote alternative media, defend the independence of editorial offices, journalists, their unions and build criticism of current drifts.

• The audience of our website is growing significantly. This is a precious encouragement! It confirms that we have probably passed a milestone and that this tool has shown its “multi-utility”: pluralistic but committed information; framework of solidarity links and campaigns with numerous movements; monitoring of current events and constitution of in-depth dossiers...

We reaffirm our commitments:

• The functioning of the association is entirely based on volunteerism and the policy of minimum costs so that the funds collected are effectively entirely devoted to solidarity. The only costs deducted concern the cost of transfers and account maintenance (around 5%). Our association has no funds of its own and its bank account only receives solidarity donations.

We ourselves cover other operating expenses, such as those concerning the website (domain name, host) or the distribution of newsletters.

• Our action is generally inscribed in the long term. We do not “export” our own projects. We prefer to support movements that are socially rooted in their countries, able to respond to emergencies based on their involvement in the field and their own perceptions of priorities. We help our partners to ensure the development of their solidarity activities and to favour the self-organisation of the populations to whom our financial support is intended.

• Given our limited resources and the quality of our relationships with local associations and networks, we will continue to devote regular solidarity to the Philippines, Pakistan, Indonesia and Bangladesh. Any other solidarity initiatives will, at least initially, be more punctual.

We wish to work, in France and in Europe, in concert with other associations for the development of a “Solidarity Europe”.

How to send donations

All donations we receive are transmitted to their recipients. The small team of ESSF coordinators covers the operating costs of the association and the website.

Donations can be made in the form of cheques (in euros only and payable in France), by bank transfers directly to our association’s account, and via Helloasso or PayPal. Access to all payment methods is indicated on the homepage of our site.

Cheques
Cheques in euros only and payable in France to the order of ESSF should be sent to:
ESSF
2, rue Richard-Lenoir
93100 Montreuil
France

Bank:
Crédit lyonnais
Agence de la Croix-de-Chavaux (00525)
10 boulevard Chanzy
93100 Montreuil
France
ESSF, account No. 445757C

National bank references (RIB):
Bank: 30002
Indicator: 00525
Account No.: 0000445757C
Key: 12
Account in the name of: ESSF

International bank details:
IBAN: FR85 3000 2005 2500 0044 5757 C12
BIC / SWIFT: CRLYFRPP
Account in the name of: ESSF

Paypal: you can also transfer your donations via Paypal: on the homepage of our site, click on the PapyPal command at the top right.

HelloAsso: you can also transfer your donations via HelloAsso (see the command placed on the homepage):
https://www.helloasso.com/associations/europe-solidaire-sans-frontieres/formulaires/1/widget

In France, these donations give entitlement to tax deductions. We need your address to send you a tax receipt (address generally indicated on cheques).