Boycott The Guardian
Millennium Leia | 15.11.2001 18:14
I call upon all right-minded individuals to boycott The Guardian - not for reporting that the WTO has negotiated these round of trade talks but the fact that no mention is made of the detrimental effects on developing countries and more importantly it shows the new agenda is LAZY BIASED Corporate journalism. Not worth a penny.
New hope for poor as world trade talks are saved - Where is the evidence Charlotte
Denny?
The World Trade Organisation last night wiped away the bitter taste of its failed Seattle summit two years ago and agreed to launch a new round of global free trade talks, which it promised would bring the greatest benefits to the world's poorest
countries.
The hard-fought agreement will breathe new life into the WTO and will provide a psychological boost to the global economy at a time when many countries are teetering on the brink of recession. The talks hammered out an agenda to help forge a new world trade deal by 2005.
After six days of increasingly fractious haggling and a last minute stand-off between India and Europe, a relieved Mike Moore, the WTO's director general, hailed the agreement as a triumph for international cooperation.
"In a world too often divided we have done something very important today," he said, adding that it had been a "difficult" agreement to reach because of the political sensitivities at stake.
Those were vividly underlined as the meeting in the Gulf state of Doha dragged on well past its Tuesday midnight deadline, when first France and then India threatened to walk out if their demands were not met. Tired delegates of the WTO's 142 member states finally bowed to demand from Europe for a watering down of the commitment to phase out farm subsidies early yesterday morning.
But it was India which nearly brought the talks down at the eighteenth hour, when trade and commerce minister Murasoli Maran declared he could not accept Europe's demand for negotiations on new global trade and investment rules.
In a final compromise the chairman of the meeting, Qatar's trade and commerce minister Youssef Hussain Kamal, read out a statement explaining that any country could veto negotiations at the WTO's next ministerial meeting in two years' time.
The decision to postpone talks on investment and competition was a victory for developing countries which have consistently opposed extending the WTO's remit into complex new topics
"This has been a north-south battle which the north didn't win," said Duncan Green, policy adviser at Cafod.
Yesterday's decision to launch a round is a triumph for Mr Moore who
took the helm at the WTO just months before the shambles of its Seattle
meeting which collapsed after developing countries staged a walkout,
while police fired tear gas at protesters.
Britain's trade and industry secretary, Patricia Hewitt, said the
deal on agriculture would help Britain push for reform of the common
agricultural policy. She added: "Coming just a day after the advances in
Afghanistan, it signals the determination of the world community to
fight terror with trade, as well as arms."
Ministers have dubbed the new trade talks a "development agenda" although aid agencies said there was little to show beyond the rhetoric."This conference should have been about making trade work for the poor,"
said John Hilary of Save the Children. "Instead developing countries
have had to spend all their time fighting off the EU's negative agenda."
But Ms Hewitt said poor countries had won significant advances,
including the prospect of increased trade in agriculture and
industrial products and clarification that patent rules do not stop
countries buying cheap generic drugs for public health reasons.
The Doha meeting welcomed China and its rival Taiwan.
Denny?
The World Trade Organisation last night wiped away the bitter taste of its failed Seattle summit two years ago and agreed to launch a new round of global free trade talks, which it promised would bring the greatest benefits to the world's poorest
countries.
The hard-fought agreement will breathe new life into the WTO and will provide a psychological boost to the global economy at a time when many countries are teetering on the brink of recession. The talks hammered out an agenda to help forge a new world trade deal by 2005.
After six days of increasingly fractious haggling and a last minute stand-off between India and Europe, a relieved Mike Moore, the WTO's director general, hailed the agreement as a triumph for international cooperation.
"In a world too often divided we have done something very important today," he said, adding that it had been a "difficult" agreement to reach because of the political sensitivities at stake.
Those were vividly underlined as the meeting in the Gulf state of Doha dragged on well past its Tuesday midnight deadline, when first France and then India threatened to walk out if their demands were not met. Tired delegates of the WTO's 142 member states finally bowed to demand from Europe for a watering down of the commitment to phase out farm subsidies early yesterday morning.
But it was India which nearly brought the talks down at the eighteenth hour, when trade and commerce minister Murasoli Maran declared he could not accept Europe's demand for negotiations on new global trade and investment rules.
In a final compromise the chairman of the meeting, Qatar's trade and commerce minister Youssef Hussain Kamal, read out a statement explaining that any country could veto negotiations at the WTO's next ministerial meeting in two years' time.
The decision to postpone talks on investment and competition was a victory for developing countries which have consistently opposed extending the WTO's remit into complex new topics
"This has been a north-south battle which the north didn't win," said Duncan Green, policy adviser at Cafod.
Yesterday's decision to launch a round is a triumph for Mr Moore who
took the helm at the WTO just months before the shambles of its Seattle
meeting which collapsed after developing countries staged a walkout,
while police fired tear gas at protesters.
Britain's trade and industry secretary, Patricia Hewitt, said the
deal on agriculture would help Britain push for reform of the common
agricultural policy. She added: "Coming just a day after the advances in
Afghanistan, it signals the determination of the world community to
fight terror with trade, as well as arms."
Ministers have dubbed the new trade talks a "development agenda" although aid agencies said there was little to show beyond the rhetoric."This conference should have been about making trade work for the poor,"
said John Hilary of Save the Children. "Instead developing countries
have had to spend all their time fighting off the EU's negative agenda."
But Ms Hewitt said poor countries had won significant advances,
including the prospect of increased trade in agriculture and
industrial products and clarification that patent rules do not stop
countries buying cheap generic drugs for public health reasons.
The Doha meeting welcomed China and its rival Taiwan.
Millennium Leia
Comments
Hide the following 5 comments
boycott all media
15.11.2001 21:06
Whilst the odd article reflects true unbiased investigative journilism ther remainder is just another tool for legitamising corporate policies. We need to learn to see the vast amount of misinformation around us, to conduct our own referenced research, our own investigative journilism.
99.9% of the population cannot contribute to mainstream media, it is not our voice.
Sal
sal
Daily Paper of the Left
15.11.2001 22:30
Daf
Guardian letters Page
16.11.2001 13:23
Anyway sorry to go on but here are the letters!
Strong arm tactics at Doha
Friday November 16, 2001
The Guardian
Contrary to your analysis (New hope for poor as world trade talks are saved, November 15) the world's poor are set to lose out as a new round of free trade negotiations are launched at the World Trade Organisation. Far from bringing "the greatest benefits to the world's poorest countries" a new round will widen the gap between rich and poor.
While researching our film on Ghana and the WTO, we spoke with small farmers, trade unionists, trade officials and policy analysts, who warned that a new round would impact harshly on the lives of ordinary Ghanaians.
The outcomes of the Uruguay round have already hit the poorest the hardest. Small farmers are being squeezed out of the local market and the country is becoming increasingly dependent on cheap food
imports from the rich countries of the north. Increased
privatisation means many basic services are becoming inaccessible to millions of poor Ghanaians. Trade officials are already massively overstretched dealing with complex and burdensome agreements. A new round with new issues will further overload them.
Prior to Doha, many of the world's poorest countries and lobby groups opposed a new round. By undemocratic practices and dirty tricks the WTO secretariat, the EU, the US and Canada strong-armed the developing countries into agreeing to a new round. Those who will really benefit are the rich countries and their multinational corporations.
David McKnight, Gerard Turner, Chris Coyle
Producers, Black Star Green Room: Ghana and the WTO
Millennium Leia
There is no free press...
16.11.2001 15:43
well,what im sayingis at least the gaurdian allows monbiot and pilger to have a rant its better than nothing.Ask yourself who it serves.
antrophe
There is no free press...
16.11.2001 15:43
well,what im sayingis at least the gaurdian allows monbiot and pilger to have a rant its better than nothing.Ask yourself who it serves.
antrophe