WTO summit sparks Seattle protests, conflict

by Nune Gazdhyan
Features Editor

The World Trade Organization (WTO) summit took place in Seattle from Nov. 30 through Dec. 3 and was designed to review the global trading system and ensure its dynamism and responsiveness for the years ahead.

However, the meeting of representatives from most of the world's governments came to a halt due to civil disorder and anti-globalization protests.

Charlene Barshefsky, a United States trade representative, called off the summit after deeming that the WTO's goals were out of reach and that the WTO would take time off and enter a process of self-examination to seek a better way of including all its 135 member nations in decision-making and seek solutions for the issues it faces.

"All they [WTO members] were trying to do here was to lay out the program for the next five years. The only thing that came out was the concern that President Clinton addressed about child labor laws," said La Verne Professor of Business Administration and Economics Dr. Ahmad Ispahani.

The issues the WTO needs to address deal with the protests and the civil unrest, mainly from laborers upset with the WTO's plans for globalization.

Many American workers, especially in farming and other labor intensive jobs, felt that their jobs will be threatened as a result of globalization.

Some of the major issues that faced the trade ministers in Seattle included the issue of whether China should be allowed to join the WTO.

"China was expecting in Seattle everything would be solved and in 1999 they would become a member of the WTO and be involved in planning for the next agenda," said Dr. Ispahani.

"I think that you cannot ignore China. It has 1.2 billion people. They have to enter the WTO and they will. The question is when?"

Many developing nations and textile and apparel companies in the U.S. fear that China would step up the competition. U.S. labor groups strongly opposed to giving China membership unless it improves working conditions back home.

"I think that China entering the WTO is a mistake. A lot of it has to do with the moral imperative of human rights," said Chris Medina, director of speech and debate at ULV.

"To allow a developing nation into the WTO," said Medina. "Even though they have problems and are committing atrocities, to allow them simply because they can be a beneficial economical trading partner says that money is more important than humans."

The fear of losing their jobs due to cheaper imported goods caused millions of people to march on Seattle. It turned from a peaceful protest to an uproar, where the police had to get involved to the point of confronting the protesters with tear gas to block them from entering the Seattle Convention Center.

There were also concerns about agriculture. The European Union pushed for massive farm subsidies needed to preserve rural communities and jobs and to ensure food safety. However, the United States, Australia, Canada and other countries said that the subsidies are unfair because they create artificial low prices and undercut producers in other countries.

Another issue was the Uruguay Round Assessment, which deals with the developing countries reluctancy to expand access to U.S. and European markets for textiles and apparel before they open their markets further to developed country's goods.

There was also disagreement on the anti-dumping measure which was initiated by Japan and developing countries who want a review of anti-dumping measures, which allow countries to protect themselves from being flooded with cheap imports. This measure was strongly opposed by the U.S.

Both the U.S. and Europe wanted the WTO to consider labor and environment issues such as whether minimum labor and environmental standards should be linked to trade. This measure was opposed by developing countries who argued that this would only benefit richer countries that have higher labor costs.

Also, the U.S. wanted a moratorium on taxes on e-commerce and tariff reductions on high technology goods, which was opposed by developing countries who argued that they could not afford higher tariffs.

Due to all these issues, the conference was unproductive and ended without any resolutions.

The WTO is a Geneva-based international group, headed by Mike Moore, that acts as a forum for trade negotiations and as a referee in trade disputes. WTO's purpose is to help trade flow as freely as possible, by removing or reducing tariffs and ensuring that people and governments are informed and have confidence in trade rules around the world.

"Whenever you have a large free trade area, everyone benefits from it. Each area specializes and produces items they can produce the best and the cheapest," said Dr. Ispahani.

The WTO was established in 1994 and replaced the General Agreement Tariffs and Trade (GATT) organization which was established after World War II. Although GATT regulations have been transformed they are rural communities and jobs and to ensure food safety. However, The United States, Australia, Canada and other countries said the subsidies are unfair because they create artificial low prices and undercut producers in other countries.

Another issue was the Uruguay Round Assessment, which deals with the developing countries reluctancy to expand access to U.S. and European markets for textiles and apparel before they open their markets further to developed country's goods.

There was also disagreement on the anti-dumping measure which was initiated by Japan and developing countries who want a review of anti-dumping measures, which allow countries to protect themselves from being flooded with cheap imports. This measure was strongly opposed by the U.S.

Both the United States and Europe wanted the WTO to consider labor and environment issues such as whether minimum labor and environmental standards should be linked to trade. This measure was opposed by developing countries who argued that this would only benefit richer countries that have higher labor costs.

Also, the United States wanted a moratorium on taxes on e-commerce and tariff reductions on high technology goods, which was opposed by developing countries who argued that they could not afford higher tariffs.

Due to these issues, the conference was unproductive and ended without any resolutions.

The WTO is a Geneva-based international group that, headed by Mike Moore, acts as a forum for trade negotiations and a referee in trade disputes. WTO's purpose is to help trade flow freely by removing or reducing tariffs. Its intent is to ensure that people and governments are informed and have confidence in trade rules around the world.

"Whenever you have a large free trade area, everyone benefits from it. Each area specializes and produces items they can produce the best and the cheapest," said Dr. Ispahani.

Established in 1994, the WTO replaced the General Agreement Tariffs and Trade (GATT) organization. Although GATT regulations have been transformed, they are still upheld. The creation of the WTO helped establish a firmer legal basis for trade and covered a wider range of trade issues.

The WTO has 135 member states and about 30 more candidate states, including China and Russia, are waiting to join. Members represent most of the industrial world, three-quarter of the world's population and more than 90 percent of global trade. Of the 135 members, more than 75 percent represent developing countries.