FTAA negotiations failed at meeting in Puebla
translation | 14.02.2004 00:18 | Globalisation | Social Struggles | World
At the start of february representatives of 34 american states have met for one week in Puebla, 65 km south of Mexico City, to negotiate about the introduction of the free trade area of the Americas.
Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of Puebla in opposition to the FTAA (span: ALCA) negotiations.
10 years after the introduction of NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Area, the US is persuing an expansion of the free trade area over the continents for the 1. Januar 2005.
The talks have been abandoned after 4 days without result.
Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of Puebla in opposition to the FTAA (span: ALCA) negotiations.
10 years after the introduction of NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Area, the US is persuing an expansion of the free trade area over the continents for the 1. Januar 2005.
The talks have been abandoned after 4 days without result.
One of the main reasons for the failed negotiations are the massive agricultural subsidies in North America. This subsidies would threaten particularly the existance of peasants and small scale farmers in Latin America. After opening the markets, they would then not even be able to sell their locally produced goods even in their own country. The introduction of NAFTA already had serious negative implications on small scale farming in Mexico. Furthermore, especially in Bolivia, but also in the other Latin American countries the governments are under immense pressure by the impoverished, uprising population.
In Bolivia another general strike with blockades and the closure of the parliament has been called for by the COB and is supported by a coalition of unions of indigenous peasants and workers CSUTCB against the continuation of the former president's neoliberal policy.
Brasilia and Argentina led the economic group Mercosur, and demanded compensation for the subsidies of the US agriculture. The US governement then declared, that the question of agricultural subsidies could only be solved in the framework of the World Trade Organisation WTO. The last negotiations of the WTO in September 2003 in Cancun failed on the same topic. In November 2003, under immense police repression, an "FTAA light" was created in Miami, it layed down some basic trade rules, but left the issue of opening the markets for later negotiations.
The next FTAA talks are planned to continue in about a month.
For more information, see: FTAA Indymedia.
In Bolivia another general strike with blockades and the closure of the parliament has been called for by the COB and is supported by a coalition of unions of indigenous peasants and workers CSUTCB against the continuation of the former president's neoliberal policy.
Brasilia and Argentina led the economic group Mercosur, and demanded compensation for the subsidies of the US agriculture. The US governement then declared, that the question of agricultural subsidies could only be solved in the framework of the World Trade Organisation WTO. The last negotiations of the WTO in September 2003 in Cancun failed on the same topic. In November 2003, under immense police repression, an "FTAA light" was created in Miami, it layed down some basic trade rules, but left the issue of opening the markets for later negotiations.
The next FTAA talks are planned to continue in about a month.
For more information, see: FTAA Indymedia.
translation