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tuesday 1 november 2001
our world is not for sale: wto
campaigners launch events across the
world
In the run up to the WTO's 4th Ministerial
conference, to be held in the Gulf State of
Qatar from 9-13 November 2001, citizens'
groups around the world are organising
hundreds of events around the world, between
the 3rd and 13th of December, to show
continued widespread opposition to the launch
of a new trade round.
Activities are planned across all
continents, including in the following
countries: Australia, Austria, Canada, the
Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany,
India, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, the
Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Philippines,
Qatar, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia and Turkey.
Activities will be diverse and colourful and
include public fora, teach-ins, trade
parades, demonstrations, street theatre etc.
[1]
In addition, a World Forum on the WTO will
start today in Beirut to bring together
labour unions, women's groups,
environmentalists, youth activists, and civil
society organizations for three days of
meetings, workshops, teach-ins, and cultural
events. [2] On Saturday, thousands of people
marched in the streets of London at the Trade
Justice Parade. [3]
Civil society groups have organised these
decentralised actions, bringing their
critique of the WTO home to their capitals
and local communities, in response to the
location of the WTO Ministerial in Doha,
Qatar, a venue that severely restricts civil
society access and public participation.
In Seattle, tens of thousands of citizens
from around the world protested against the
WTO and made a call of "No New Round,
Turnaround." [1] Since then the
anti-corporate globalization movement has
grown in depth, diversity and size, with
people across the world coming together to
call for a sustainable, equitable and
democratic trading system. [4]
Despite this public outcry, many governments
are pursuing a business as usual agenda. In
particular, the EU, US, Japan and Canada are
pushing hard to launch a new round, bringing
new and controversial issues into the WTO,
even those this is opposed by much of civil
society and many developing countries.
Contacts:
[1] To view a list and details of world wide
events and to view the statement go to
www.focusweb.org/our-world-is-not-for-sale/activities/doha_events.htm
[2] For details please go to
www.worldforumbeirut2001.org
[3] For details and photographs please go to
http://www.tradejusticemovement.org/
[4] Hundreds of groups are united in their
concerns and demands and have signed the
global 'Our World is Not for Sale: WTO:
Shrink or Sink" statement. The statement
calls for a rollback of the power of the WTO
and for a fundamental revision of trade
rules. The statement incorporates eleven
specific demands which include no expansion
of the WTO's agenda, protecting basic social
rights and needs from the WTO, stopping
corporate patent protection and ensuring
access to medicines and seeds, banning
patenting of life, recognising food as a
basic human right and stopping the
agriculture agreement fraud and calamity,
eliminating the investment measures
agreement, ensuring special and differential
treatment of developing countries,
prioritising social rights and the
environment and democratising
decision-making.
More and more people around the world are
living the negative consequences of a
corporate globalization agenda - already
today the implementation of WTO agreements is
leading to increasing inequalities, threats
to livelihoods of farmers, workers, women and
children, the survival of small farms and
enterprises, the erosion of democracy,
dangers to food security, misappropriation of
traditional knowledge of local communities
through 'biopiracy' and the undermining of
local, national and international social and
environmental regulations.
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