Hope and Sadness as World Trade Talks Collapse
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The Bush and Blair administrations, along with other global powers, have long touted trade as a central element in the fight against global poverty. Many international aid and development organizations agree, but disagree with the approach the world's wealthier nations have taken on the issue, arguing that the global trading system is set up largely to benefit the global "haves" at the expense of the "have nots."
As the primary forum where the rules of global trade are set, the World Trade Organization (WTO) can play a key role in either exacerbating or eliminating poverty. The latest negotiations centered largely around the subsidies wealthy countries offer their farmers, which allow them to undercut most farmers in poorer countries. This makes it virtually impossible for farmers in poorer countries to compete on international markets and often even on their home turf, thus decimating their hopes of earning a decent living through their crops. Global aid groups have taken varying positions on Sunday's "collapse" of trade negotiations. Some had held out hopes that a poverty-reducing deal could be hammered out; others believed that wealthy countries would never agree to such a deal, and so the suspension of talks was the best possible outcome. Here are some of their reactions to the news. From ActionAid: "We must now look to the future for global trade--which remains a central element in the fight against poverty. There must now be root-and-branch reform of the WTO if it is to be a force for good in the world, rather than a forum for the rich to exploit the poor.... "ActionAid estimates that the EU and US still spend $100 billion per year on farm subsidies that undercut producers in poor countries. All rich countries promised was a re-packaging of existing domestic support rather than real cuts to the amount of money going to rich farmers and corporations.... "The WTO will still exist--it is only these particular negotiations that have been put on ice. But their suspension does offer an opportunity for root-and-branch reform that bans exclusive meetings and makes the organisation more inclusive and democratic." [Read the whole Q & A: ''Where Next for World Trade?''] From the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, CAFOD "The Catholic aid agency is bitterly disappointed that talks have collapsed and said hopes for achieving a development outcome lie in tatters due to the failure of rich countries to put the longer term interests of developing countries and the global economy before the short-term and selfish interests of domestic lobby groups.... "The U.S. gave the rest of the world a choice between agreeing to unacceptable proposals or seeing the multilateral system collapse. This is no way to show global leadership or create an international trading system that meets the needs of all. "The EU must also take responsibility for the talks reaching this sad point. They consistently put the needs of their own farmers and business above the needs of the poor.... "CAFOD partner Jack Jones Zulu from the Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR) in Zambia says: 'The collapse of the talks takes us backwards and will impact heavily on development in the South as we continue to trade under an oppressive system.'" [Read the whole statement from CAFOD] From Oxfam America, the U.S. arm of the international aid group Oxfam: "What distinguishes this failure, and makes it a tragedy according to the organization, is that these trade negotiations were launched for the express purpose of benefiting millions of poor people in developing countries around the world. The U.S. and other countries made this commitment at the launch of these negotiations in 2001 and although the trade deal was supposed to be finished by 2004, talks have continued on life support, deadline after missed deadline. "'The once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to bring about an international trading system that is not rigged for the rich and hurting the poor has been put on ice,' said Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America. 'Five years of haggling and debating have ended in a sad display of political failure.' "At the G8 meeting in St. Petersburg only a week ago, a spark of hope was lit when heads of state sent their trade ministers back to the table to negotiate, arming them with orders to be flexible. But today's impasse shows that it was not enough. The central hurdle was, and remains, the trade distorting agricultural subsidy programs maintained by rich countries like the U.S. and the agriculture tariffs maintained by the EU." [Read the whole statement or visit Oxfam's ''Make Trade Fair'' site and see what you can do to help.] From Christian Aid: "Christian Aid said that the collapse of the trade talks removed the single most important weapon in the fight against global poverty....Poor countries desperately needed a fair trade deal so that they could grow out of poverty and not rely on hand outs. This tawdry squabbling at the rich world's high table has now put paid to that.... "How can this allegedly great trading organisation continue to function when it cannot perform the basics of what it was designed for? This is an extremely serious matter and I suspect we are back to the drawing board on trade--with all the damaging consequences that will have for poor countries." [Read the whole statement from Christian Aid.] From Friends of the Earth International: "Campaigners from Friends of the Earth International today welcomed the collapse of the World Trade Organisation (WTO)s trade negotiations. This means that there is now time to review and reconsider the multilateral trading system in its entirety. "This will be welcome news to millions of people around the world who feared that a WTO deal would have further impoverished the worlds poorest people and caused irreparable damage to the environment. Developing countries, including India, also fear that a WTO deal would cause immense harm to millions of small and subsistence farmers.... "Ronnie Hall, Trade Campaigner at Friends of the Earth International added: 'The delay created by the failure of the Doha negotiations must be used to review past negotiations and analyse the flaws in the WTO system as a whole. It will allow us to reflect on how to develop multilateral governance systems that will genuinely promote fair and sustainable societies that benefit everyone.'" [Read Friends of the Earth's complete statement here.] |
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