Report on the World Development Movement (WDM www.wdm.org.uk) campaign launch against the General Agreement on Trade and Services (GATS) London, 9/11/00

The event was massively attended and oversubscribed. This event was to launch a campaign against the GATS agreement due to be introduced in 2002. GATS are the way the WTO is planning on opening up areas such as health, water and education to corporate interests.

First up was George Monbiot, author of ‘Captive State’ and Guardian Writer. He talked about the GATS, about how they are linked to the fuel protests. His point was that in a market economy, if the truckers found their costs higher they pass this increase on to their customers (supermarkets etc..). They can't because there is too much competition around, if they passed the costs on, another firm would snap up the contract. Why is there too much competition? Because the Road Haulage Association have been lobbying for bigger trucks on the roads (bad for environment & damage roads!) and so bigger trucks means less are needed, hence the smaller haulage firms are in trouble. Why would the Road Haulage Association lobby for big trucks if would damage it’s members interests? Because the association is dominated by a few Trans-national haulage firms and those connected to supermarkets etc..

Then Naomi Klein, author of ‘No Logo’ spoke. She talked of the GATS and of how they will effect us. To underline it she talked of assaults on the Canadian (and UK ideal) that everyone should be entitled to free healthcare, about how the Canadian national health service and open education system is under assault from the commercial sector. Under GATS this would get worse. She also talked of and I think it’s an important point, trying to build something positive out of the movement. It’s one thing to be against stuff, but we also need to be for something.

The final speaker was Jessica Woodfoffe. of the WDM. She gave 3 reasons why GATS suck:
1. The ‘trade and services’ definitions cover basic commodities that should not be subject to a free market such as healthcare, water and education.
2. They limit and countries attempts to block corporate programs. For example say you planned to build 3 hotels in a region, GATS could force the building of as many hotels as corporations wanted, regardless of Eco-tourism, local consent, community rights etc.
3. GATS is FOREVER. Once implemented, they cannot be reversed, no matter what subsequent governments/communities decide.

Then there were questions from the floor. I’ll only mention a couple. George Monbiot was asked why he attacked the Mayday protestors in a Guardian article. His response was that the issues this movement is dealing with are too important to be messed up and that part of what the movement is about is free speech, thus it’s his right to criticise what he disagrees with.

One other point that was raised is that what’s happening in Hackney (www.indymedia.org.uk) is going to be happening here soon.

A lady asked, about developing countries and expressed her fear that in attacking things like GATS/WTO stuff could we not be hampering the development of the third world. Naomi Klien responded by saying that GATS served corporate interests only. Other speakers gave relevant examples such as the privatising of water supply in rural Mozambique. The rational behind this being “if people want water enough, they’ll find away of buying it.” This was attacked as offering some of the poorest people in the world a choice or food or water, but they cant afford both.

In summary, GATS aren’t due to be ratified till 2002. When they do that’s it. Now is the time to mobilise and stop this. From fighting PFI in our communities to stopping the WTO and building on what has been gained, this is the big struggle of the 21st century and it’s up to use to stop it.