[E-rundbrief] Info 700 - WTO-mini-ministerial-meeting 07/08

[Matthias Reichl]

E-Rundbrief - Info 700 - La Via Campesina: Wrong doctor, wrong remedies. 
Release regarding the WTO bilateral and mini Ministerial Meeting 22. - 
25.7.2008, Geneva; IATP blog: Last Call for WTO's Doha Round?

Bad Ischl, 22.7.2008

Begegnungszentrum für aktive Gewaltlosigkeit

www.begegnungszentrum.at

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La Via Campesina release regarding the WTO bilateral and mini
Ministerial Meeting

Geneva, 22nd July 2008

Wrong doctor, wrong remedies

WTO pushes for more trade liberalisation to solve food crisis: more fuel
on the fire!

About 40 hand-selected trade ministers invited to Geneva do not have any
mandate to decide on the future of millions of people. La Via Campesina
demands an end to the WTO negotiations!

The policies of the WTO have de-regulated food and agricultural markets.
They have pushed for privatisation of services and natural resources
generating a speculative bubble out of control of national governments,
increasing hunger to up to a billion people. The current world food
crisis is a direct consequence of the liberalization of food and
agriculture markets and policies. This is not a crisis of production,
this is a crisis of policies. There has never been more food on the
planet but the inequalities of distribution of food are worsened by
price rises favouring Transnational Corporations (TNCs).

Trade liberalisation is the core of the problem. Using the same recipes
as remedies will only deepen the food and climate crises. Mr. Sago
Indra, a Via Campesina leader from Indonesia said: "Pretending to solve
the food crisis with the WTO is like calling the wrong doctor and taking
the wrong remedies".

Meanwhile, transnational corporations have taken over and increased
their control over the food market, production and retailing sectors.
This crisis is looked upon as an opportunity for further TNC business.
Consumers, small scale farmers and farm workers are the losers of
today's policies. Higher prices for consumers and low prices for small
scale farmers generate hunger both in rural and urban areas.

A cosmetic agreement will not hide the failure of a so called
"development" round that is in fact a "food crisis round". It will not
fool small scale farmers, food producers and agricultural workers of the
world. In support to the numerous struggles against the WTO around the
world, we demand the abolition of all trade negotiations within the WTO.


Food is not a commodity!

We defend the right to farm, the right to feed, the right to eat!

WTO out of agriculture!

Via Campesina spokespersons available for interviews in Geneva (July 20
- 25)

Sago Indra: Indonesian Farmer producing rice in West Sumatra.  He is one
of the leaders of the Indonesian Peasant Union (serikat petani
Indonesia/ SPI), Via Campesina member.

Jaime Tadeo: Rice farmer, leader of the Philippine farmers' organisation
PARAGOS, Via Campesina member.

Jose Luis Hernandez : Jose Luis Hernandez is the Vice President of the
National Union of Workers (UNT) and Secretary of the Union Affairs of
the Central Independent of Farm Workers and Peasants, Via Campesina member.

Media Contact in Geneva: Tejo Pramono : + 41 788760163

More on www.viacampesina.org

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International Operational Secretariat
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La Via Campesina - International Secretariat:
Jln. Mampang Prapatan XIV No. 5 Jakarta Selatan, Jakarta 12790  Indonesia
Phone : +62-21-7991890, Fax : +62-21-7993426
E-mail: viacampesina at viacampesina.org, Website: http://www.viacampesina.org

------------------------------

Last Call for WTO's Doha Round?

Trade ministers are in Geneva this week for a final push to complete the 
World Trade Organization's Doha Round of negotiations. After seven years 
of talks, the compromises required to reach agreement have effectively 
killed the Doha Agenda itself -- originally intended to help spur 
development in poor countries. But WTO members are not giving up. Will 
WTO Director General Pascal Lamy succeed in convincing countries that a 
bad deal is better than no deal? IATP's Anne Laure Constantin is 
blogging daily from Geneva on the latest twists and turns in the WTO 
negotiations at IATP's Think Forward blog.

  IATP's Think Forward blog - 
http://iatp.typepad.com/thinkforward/trade/index.html

Read the latest Geneva Update to find out what is at stake - 
http://www.tradeobservatory.org/genevaupdate.cfm

Ben Lilliston
Communications Director
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
612-870-3416
ben at iatp.org
www.iatp.org


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     Matthias Reichl, Pressesprecher/ press speaker,
Begegnungszentrum fuer aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
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