[E-rundbrief] Info 321 - Movements condemn WTO text.
Matthias Reichl
mareichl at ping.at
Sa Dez 3 14:08:01 CET 2005
E-Rundbrief - Info 321: Movements unite in Hong Kong to condemn WTO text.
Ten Years is Enough! Brett Solomon (Focus on Global South/ Tahiland): Press
conference of movement-delegates, Hongkong, 1.12.2005. Relatively hostile
media environment in Hong Kong. Österreichische NGO-Vertreter während des
WTO-Summit in Hongkong v. 13. - 19.12.2005 (vorläufige Liste, red. M.R.)
Bad Ischl, 3.12.2005
Begegnungszentrum für aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
www.begegnungszentrum.at
===========================================================
Movements unite in Hong Kong to condemn WTO text.
Ten Years is Enough!
Pascal Lamy's draft text released for the upcoming Ministerial Meeting of
the World Trade Organization (WTO), if agreed in Hong Kong, will destroy
the livelihoods of peasants, small farmers, landless and indigenous
peoples, fisherfolk and workers the world over.
Where is the promise of development?
The current round of talks is called the Doha Development Round but the
draft Ministerial text makes it clear that there is nothing developmental
about this round. The text focuses on opening up developing country markets
and sidelines the main demand of developing countries for special and
differential treatment (S&D).
The so-called "development package" that Lamy is offering to
least-developed countries (LDCs) is little more than a public relations
stunt. While stating they will live up to promises made to LDCs on
development, the text waters down the S&D provisions and resurrects other
valueless provisions which were rejected 2 years ago in Cancun. Lamy tries
to cover this up with the offer of 'Aid for Trade'. This is a ploy to
confuse and weaken the resistance of developing countries as the program
only goes towards building the capacity of developing countries to
implement agreements that they were forced to accept in the first place.
"No one is fooled by Lamy's attempt to pass this off as a development
package. Ten years of broken promises and now this". Nothing more than an
empty and miserly package," said Mary Lou Malig of Focus on the Global South.
Development for Agri-business not for small farmers
The text on Agriculture reflects the positions of exporting countries and
the interests of their agri-business. Despite long standing demands to cut
their direct and indirect export subsidies, the tabled proposals are
"paper-cuts" that do not change the status quo in favour of developing
countries. Instead, what the EU and the US have done is reinforce the
imbalance by expanding the Blue Box, which will allow an additional US $
5billion of farm support for the US and the maintenance of the
undisciplined Green Box which the European Commission will use for its
other subsidies.
The text also does not give any date for an end to export subsidies. Such
subsidies, which are largely provided to the biggest producers and their
agri-business as opposed to family farm based agriculture, will be allowed
to continue unabated.
In return for this, developing countries are expected to fully open their
markets through drastic tariff reduction and to cut their remaining, if
any, domestic supports. It is impossible to see how this Agreement, which
threatens to wipe out peasants and small farmers, can be classified as
constituting a 'development round'.
As Henry Saragih of La Via Campesina, an international peasants and small
farmers movement said, "This text will continue and worsen dumping. It will
destroy peasants and small farmers livelihoods all over the world. La Via
Campesina and other movements have launched their demand "People's Food
Sovereignty Now!"
Deindustrialization and loss of livelihood
The Non-Agricultural Market Access text has been strongly criticized for
its bias towards developed countries as it completely glosses over the wide
opposition from least developed and developing countries to the proposals.
The text is a threat to developing countries as the draconian formulas
proposed threaten to wipe out their industries and remove any future policy
space to determine their own development priorities. Proposals put forward
by Caribbean and African delegates have been ignored or sidelined in the
draft Ministerial text.
As Daniel Canada of Kilusang Mangingisda and Southeast Asia Fisheries Trade
for Justice network states, "The NAMA prescription of blanket trade
liberalization, contrary to the aims set forth in the Doha Ministerial, is
a disastrous recipe for food insecurity and the loss of livelihoods of
small scale, artisanal fishers and communities."
The take-over of services
Of all the proposals, however, the services text proves to be the greatest
threat of all. It not only glosses over the opposition to this text, it has
completely ignored any of the developing countries strong refusals to it.
If endorsed, negotiations in services will be intensified along the path of
the "plurilateral approach" which subverts the original flexibilities of
the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). Countries will no longer
be able to choose which sectors and how fast they will be liberalized but
rather they will be all but forced to enter into sectoral negotiations and
give foreign companies equal rights to local suppliers.
"This will be a take-over by transnational corporations of our services,
severely limiting access to it to those who can afford it" states Rex
Varona of Asian Migrant Center.
Movements unite in opposition
Movements are one in voicing their opposition to this threat to the world's
peoples and are intensifying their struggle in order to prevent this deal
from going through in the coming WTO Ministerial in Hong Kong this December.
"The Ministerial text is not representative of all Members countries of the
WTO. We can see that the organization is once again in internal crisis. We
are demanding an end to the WTO!" said Revitriyoso Husodo from the
Institute of Global Justice.
"Movements from all over the world will be coming here to Hong Kong, and
flooding the capitals of their own countries, to ensure that there is no
deal in Hong Kong," said Kwok Kam Lam of the HKCTU.
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Dear Friends,
Quick report on the media conference held here today (1.12.2005) in Hong
Kong under the banner:
Movements unite in Hong Kong to condemn WTO text. Ten Years is Enough!
The conference was held in response to the release of Lamy's text last
weekend - and focused on a range of issues relating to services, NAMA,
agriculture and the so-called 'development package'. It was also billed as
an opportunity for the media to meet with NGOs and social movements who
have already arrived in Hong Kong.
Speakers included:
Indra Lubis, La Via Campesina
Daniel Canada, Kilusang Mangingisda (Fisherfolk Movement) and Southeast
Asia Fisherfolk Movement
Mia Sumiati, the Hong Kong Coalition of Indonesian Migrant Workers
Organizations / KOTKIHO
Kwok Kam Lam, Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions
Mary Lou Malig, Focus on the Global South
Rex Varona, Asian Migrant Centre
22 media outlets turned up - including BBC, South China Morning Post, Hong
Kong Cable TV, the Financial Times, Star TV, TVB, Television of Spain
(TVE) and Radio Television HK.
The conference took place at the Asian Migrant Centre office - which ended
up being too small to accommodate the numbers.
The next media conference will be held on the 4th or 5th to announce the
program of events in Central Lawn, Victoria Park (HK) which will take place
during the Ministerial.
Brett Solomon
Media Officer
Focus on the Global South
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2.12. 2005
Dear friends,
Judging from the reporting of yesterday's press conference, there is a
relatively hostile media environment in Hong Kong.
A couple of things to note:
- there appears to be an obsession with protests, violence and the ensuing
threat to the people of Hong Kong
- the actual substantive concerns and reasons for opposition to the WTO are
not being widely or accurately reported
- there is a tendency for some journalists to skew what people are saying
in order to make the story (what's new eh?)
Organisations should perhaps consider strategies to respond to this
environment. It may also be worth having a meeting when more organisations
arrive to discuss a collective response and to compile a list of media we
should be wary of.
On a brighter note, there are also some supportive journalists and media
outlets here. And within the week there should be hundreds of international
journalists ready to carry our messages.
Brett Solomon
Media Officer
Focus on the Global South
www.focusweb.org
Office: + 66 2 218 7363, 64 & 65
Email: brett at focusweb.org
Österreichische NGO-Vertreter während des WTO-Summit in Hongkong v. 13. -
19.12.2005
(soweit bis jetzt bekannt. Matth. Reichl):
In der österreichischen Regierungsdelegation:
Bernhard Obermayr (Greenpeace)
Ernst Tüchler (ÖGB)
In den Basisbewegungen:
Heike Schiebeck (für Österr. Bergbauern u. Bäuerinnenvereinigung/ Via
Campesina)
Judith Zimmermann (Koordinierungsstelle für Entwicklungshilfe)
(Red.: M.R.)
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Matthias Reichl, Pressesprecher/ press speaker,
Begegnungszentrum fuer aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
Center for Encounter and active Non-Violence
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