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News :: Miscellaneous |
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IMC Newshour Headline Report |
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by Omar Ricks and Peter Miller
Email: peterm (nospam) shout.net (unverified!) |
01 May 2001
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Report about the Summit of the Americas/FTAA, for the April 30 edition of the IMC Newshour, broadcast on WEFT 90.1 FM at 6 p.m. |
Solid information about the Free-Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) proposal is still hard to come by, in part because of the tight security that surrounded the April 20-22 meeting, and in part because of how tight-lipped the attendants of the meeting were. Much of the news released from Quebec City regarding the actual free trade arrangement has the distinct ring of spin.
The FTAA would end tariff barriers between 34 nations of South, Central, and North America, and would limit government subsidies for farmers and other domestic industries. It would encompass 15% of the world\'s population and create an annual output of $11 trillion.
U.S. president George W. Bush, along with other heads-of-state speaking to the press about the summit, said that the pact would foster an atmosphere of exchange and cooperation between American nations. He also said that the economic boost created by this agreement would benefit the poor.
Bush must now push Congress for what has been called \"fast-track authority,\" which would allow him to propose the trade pact on an \"as-is\" basis for approval by both houses of Congress. Congress must vote to grant him this authority, and in doing so Congress would surrender its right to make any changes to the arrangement. At present, the FTAA would not be voted on by member nations until 2005, although Bush at one time advocated a 2003 target date.
Dissenting voices to the FTAA were hard to find among the carefully screened participants in the summit meeting. The presidents of several South American countries, including Brazil and Venezuela, support the agreement on many points but think it will take more time to implement. They argue that they need time to close the gaps between their economies and those of the U.S. Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez also said that he may need more time to submit the proposal for a referendum. Cuba was not invited to participate.
However, outside of the 2-mile perimeter of steel fence, dissenting voices were corralled and tear-gassed, but not silenced. Opposition generally centered around two things: the extreme secrecy surrounding the actual goings-on of the meeting; and the lack of clear and enforceable protections for the rights of indigenous peoples, minorities, workers, and women, and for the environment.
Marta Ojeda of the Coalition for Justice says that maquiladora workers, workers in factories in Mexico near the U.S. border, have continued to be left behind by the already-implemented North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Though their earnings are above average for Mexican workers, many must live in cardboard shacks because the resources needed for a higher standard of living, like lights and running water, are provided only for the factories.
Opposition to the Free Trade Area of the Americas is widespread, and is often criticized for lacking a coherent statement, but there has been little they could work with. The heads-of-state attending the FTAA only publicized optimistic statements about the negotiations, responding to the accusations that the arrangement will harm poor people and help rich people. Official responses included summit leaders adopting a resolution stating that the FTAA will only work with democratic countries and will support the rights of all people. They pledge to reduce by 50% the percentage of people living in extreme poverty by the year 2015, although they offered no specifics on how this could be accomplished. Furthermore, they said, a detailed transcript of the proceedings of the FTAA meeting will be made available to the public in 2005--the year when they also expect to implement it.
Since the conclusion of the Summit of the Americas, the following FTAA-related items have occurred.
Canadian Government Holds Jaggi Singh, Political Prisoner
Of the 463 people arrested during the Free Trade of the Americas Protests, only one remains in jail. Global justice activist and organizer Jaggi Singh was abducted by three undercover police dressed as activists on the day the summit opened. The police kicked and beat Singh before taking him away. On Thursday last week, he was denied bail, meaning that he will be forced to stay in jail until his trial, which may be months away. A defiant Singh called the decision to deny him bail outrageous, pointing out that the Canadian government was treating him like a terrorist, not the activist and writer that he is. A lawyer providing assistance to the imprisoned activists said that Singh is a political prisoner. He was charged with two counts of breaching conditions of his release after another protest in Montreal a year ago, with taking part in a riot, and with possession of a dangerous weapon. The weapons charge involves a catapult that was a prop used to lob teddy bears at police. Supporters have launched a campaign to free Jaggi Singh from jail.
Quebec Reactions--not in our home town!
As soon as the Summit of the Americas was over, the Mayor of Quebec City declared that he would never hold such an even in his city, again. Mayor Jean-Paul L\'Allier praised his city\'s police force while criticizing the 2.4 mile chain-link fence that divided the St. Jean Baptiste neighborhood, separating heads of state from citizens in the streets. L\'Allier said that the disruption to peoples\' lives was not worth any benefits the summit may have brought to Quebec. Canadian officials estimate that the cost of providing security for the event exceeded one hundred million dollars.
Brazil
As trade talks got underway in Quebec, the US began addressing a critical relationship with a powerful counterpart in the southern hemisphere. In the midst of the Summit of the Americas, US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick made a statement that the US is prepared to negotiate on issues of concern to Brazil, including anti-dumping rules and leveling the playing field for Brazilian farmers. The previous day, Brazilian President Fernando Cardoso demanded that, quote, \"The north has to pay\" for a hemispheric deal by opening up to Brazilian farm exports. The Organization for Economic cooperation and Development noted that while the developed world subsidizes farmers at a rate of one billion dollars each day--or eleven thousand dollars per U.S. farmer each year--the per capita income of Brazil is just over three thousand dollars. Brazil also criticized the US tariffs on 15 of Brazil\'s main exports, including sugar, orange juice, and shoes. US congressional representatives, such as Republican Senator Charles Grassley, who are otherwise pro-\"free trade\" say such concessions are unthinkable. Nonetheless, President Bush\'s trade representative and agriculture secretary will continue trying to work on a deal.
Trade Officials announce Push for More Deals
Today, the official in charge of US trade policy said that obtaining fast track trade authority was the top goal for President Bush. The office of US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick released a report today, stating that without fast track--or \"trade promotion authority\" as Bush is trying to call it--Bush will not be able to complete the Free Trade Area of the Americas deal that he seeks. The report said that the US must respond to concerns that currently-styled trade bills undermine environmental protection and labor laws. The US Trade Representative\'s office said that it will push its trade agenda on multiple fronts, pursuing a number of two-country trade agreements and seeking a new round of World Trade Organization talks, in addition to pursuing the FTAA. Fast Track is needed for the President to negotiate these deals without input from Congress.
http://www.ustr.gov/releases/2001/04/exe.html
http://www.ustr.gov/speech-test/zoellick/rz_t1.pdf |
See also:
http://www.prairienet.org/weft/
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