[E-rundbrief] Info 341 - WTO Hongkong - NGO-Texte
Matthias Reichl
mareichl at ping.at
Mo Dez 19 00:03:24 CET 2005
E-Rundbrief - Info 341: WTO-Conference Hong Kong, 18.12.2005 - The
Assembly of the Poor and allied organizations (Bangkok, Thailand): The
Governor of Hong Kong and the WTO Must Stop All Violent Suppression and
Releases All Detainees!; Kim Bizzarri (Friends of the Earth Europe): Letter
to NGOs; Friends of the Earth Europe: Appaling deal in HongKong. EU and US
push corporate interests against environment and development.
Bad Ischl, 19.12.2005
Begegnungszentrum für aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
www.begegnungszentrum.at
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Wegen Problemen mit dem E-mail-Programm muss ich versuchen, wenigstens drei
Texte zur WTO-Konferenz in Hongkong zu versenden, die wir heute (18.12.)
von kritischen NGOs erhalten haben.
Sie setzen sich sowohl solidarisch mit dem gewaltfreien Widerstand
auseinander als auch kritisch mit den faulen Kompromissen in der
WTO-Konferenz und den Anpassungszwängen jener NGOs, die sich von der WTO
und den offiziellen Delegationen vereinnahmen ließen.
Lg
Matthias Reichl
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Dear friends,
The Assembly of the Poor, Thailand, has organized a press conference
condemning the Hong Kong government and the Director of WTO for their
violence action to suppress the demonstrators. Please see below our statement.
In solidarity,
Lek.....
--For Immediate Release
The Governor of Hong Kong and the WTO Must Stop All Violent Suppression and
Releases All Detainees!
It is well know that the World Trade Organization (WTO) is a forum to
direct global economic policy that, in reality, is being used and
controlled by a few powerful nations and giant corporations to pressure and
direct developing and less developed countries around the world into
exploiting their citizens in order to satisfy the greed and meet the needs
of these neoimperial global actors in the age of globalization.
Even though the WTO nominally promotes free trade, the reality is that it
is a coercive trade block that uses its superior power to enforce its
unfair rules that exploit farmers, workers, the poor and small-scale
businesspeople around the world.
Thus, at every ministerial meeting of the WTO, people's movements from
around the world, such as the Via Campesina, global unions, environmental
activists, human rights activists, and women's organizations, have
organized campaigns and protests to call on the WTO to seriously listen to
the demands of the people who are adversely affected by WTO trade rules. At
the 6th WTO Ministerial Meeting in Hong Kong, many people's movements from
around the world have gathered since December 11 to make their voices heard.
The Assembly of the Poor, together with many of their allies in Thailand,
including trade unions, urban poor groups, and women workers, have sent
over one hundred of their representatives to attend the WTO People's Forum
in Hong Kong and join with thousands of others from all over the world to
protest the WTO itself.
From 17-18 December 2005, the people's protests have been met with brutal
violent action on the part of the Hong Kong police. Over 70 people have
been injured and more than 900 people have been arrested, including 79 Thai
people from the Assembly of the Poor. At present, all of those arrested
remain in detention.
The Assembly of the Poor and its allied organizations condemn Mr, Donald
Tsang, the governor of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Police Bureau, and Pascal
Lamy, the Director of the WTO, for violating the people's right to
universal freedom of association. We therefore make the following demands:
* All detainees must be released immediately and unconditionally.
* The Hong Kong authorities must protect the safety and property of all
detainees, regardless of their nationality, religion, or the language they
speak.
* The member countries of the WTO must reconsider their trade policies and
involve their citizens in the decision making process regarding trade issues.
However, we reaffirm that at every WTO ministerial meeting, the people's
movements will continue to protest non-violently until our voice is heard
and the people are included in the decision making process regarding trade
policy and agreements that affect the fate of the poor around the entire world.
The Assembly of the Poor and allied organizations.
Bangkok, THAILAND
18 December 2005
Junya Lek Yimprasert
Thai Labour Campaign
P.O. Box 219, Ladprao Post Office
Bangkok 10310
Tel: + 66 1 617 5491
Fax: + 66 2 933 1951
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Dear friends,
I am aware that there appears to be a split between NGOs as to how we
should react to the present events and I would therefore like to voice my
opinion and feelings given the eye-opening experience I am having when
juxtaposing the two realities here present in Hong Kong: the ones outside
and inside this wall.
I am very concerned that many NGOs here present are slowly assuming a role
I am not sure has been assigned to them. Most accredited NGOs are
increasingly spending the majority of their time within the convention
center in a role that appears closer to policy analysts than grass-root
representatives.
I still fail to grasp the importance of amendments to the proposed text
given that most of us reject the text in its entirety (if not even the
whole forum under which they are drafted). Most of us have campaigns that
call for a complete STOP of many of the agreements and for the removal of
entire sectors, hence small amendments to single paragraph and articles of
the text will not change our overall message: OUR WORLD IS NOT FOR SALE!
I would be very disappointed both as an activist/campaigner and a member of
the general public if I learned that, given the seriousness of the
negotiations' outcome and the riots in the streets, accredited NGOs chose
to play a passive role limited to observers and respond to the challenge
with media releases as their only weapon.
You cannot judge a book by its cover, but birds of a feather flock
together, and I am concerned that ties and suits are causing a slow
metamorphosis of many NGOs into a product undistinguishable from business
lobbyist and bureaucrats.
It is important, in my view, that we take a step back and reflect on where
we have come from, where our (grass)roots lie.
After being peppered-sprayed and tier-gasses yesterday together with the
formidable Korean Farmers and being enlightened by their great sense of
unity and solidarity, I was struck by the intellectual and ironic approach
of many of the NGOs inside the convention center.
The first image that came to my mind was the concluding chapter of Orwell's
Animal Farm, when the animals arrive outside of the negotiating halls and
peer through the window and are no longer able to tell the difference
between the pigs, who claimed to represents their interests, and the
humans, against whom their were fighting
I sincerely hope we can get together in the course of the day to discuss in
more detail how we want to act. I would greatly appreciate if you could
inform me of any such meeting. I will not be checking my e-mails since I am
leaving now to join our friends in Victoria Park. I can be reached however
on the following number: + 852 6120 2448
Yours in solidarity,
Kim
Kim Bizzarri
Trade, Environment and Sustainability Programme
Friends of the Earth Europe
rue Blanche 15
1050 Brussels
Belgium
tel +32 02 5420189
fax +32 02 5375596
email: kim.bizzarri at foeeurope.org
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Friends of the Earth Europe
Appaling deal in HongKong
EU and US push corporate interests against environment and development
HONG KONG, CHINA, December 18, 2005 Although a face saving deal was reached
in Hong Kong today, the WTO and the global trade system remain in crisis.
Today's agreement contains proposals that will further threaten the global
environment and the livelihoods of the world's poorest people.
"The so called gains for developing countries are just little crumbs that
will not make up the price millions of farmers, fisherfolks, indigenous
people and others in the developing world will have to pay as a result of
todays's deal," said Friends of the Earth International chair Meena Raman
from Malaysia.
'The deal struck in Hong Kong is a dangerous one. The WTO's agenda driven
by the EU, the US and their corporations override people's needs and
environmental concerns' Alexandra Wandel, trade campaigner of Friends of
the Earth Europe said.
'The HongKong deal is a bad deal for the poor and the environment that has
been dressed up to look good. Empty promises on aid have been made to
entice countries into potential agreements that could devastate sustainable
development and biodiversity in years to come,' added Alexandra Wandel.
The EU, US and their allies completely ignored the demands of thousands of
farmers and fisher folks protesting outside the conference. Proposals to
open markets in farming and natural resource sectors, including forests,
fisheries and minerals, will benefit the world's largest corporations, but
are likely to have a devastasting impact on millions of the world's poorest
people, who rely on access to natural resources for their livelihoods, food
and medicine.
The most scandalous decisions taken at this week's meeting by the EU include
- Agreeing to make drastic tariff reductions including in
ecologically sensitive sectors, forestry, fisheries and minerals that will
threaten the global environment as well as developing countries;
- Committing to the acceleration of negotiations on non tariff
barriers that will chill and dismantle vital environmental regulations in
the EU as well as elsewhere;
- Reducing flexibility from developing countries who don't want to
negotiate away essential services such as water and energy to multinational
corporations;
- Failing to guarantee an immediate end to export subsidies and
continuing to entrench domestic supports that harm farming in developing
countries, while also forcing developing countries to open their markets;
- Rejecting attempts by a number of developing countries to retain
rights over their own traditional knowledge and genetic resources.
For more information contact:
Alexandra Wandel, Friends of the Earth Europe Trade Campaign:
email alexandra.wandel at foeeurope.org
Ronnie Hall, Friends of the Earth International Trade Campaign
ronnieh at foe.co.uk
For more information: 'tyranny of free trade' exposed in new report,
online here: http://www.foei.org/media/2005/1208.html
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Matthias Reichl, Pressesprecher/ press speaker,
Begegnungszentrum fuer aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
Center for Encounter and active Non-Violence
Wolfgangerstr. 26, A-4820 Bad Ischl, Austria,
fon: +43 6132 24590, Informationen/ informations,
Impressum in: http://www.begegnungszentrum.at
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