THE NEWS INTERNATIONAL / Shahina Maqbool
ISLAMABAD: Anti-globalisation activists on Saturday organised a demonstration against the "secret" visit of the Director General World Trade Organization (WTO) Mike Moore to Pakistan and called for a review of the international trade agreements in accordance with the needs of the developing countries.
Three dozens activists, breaking Section 144 that prohibits public gathering of more than four people, rallied outside the only five-star hotel in the federal capital where Moore is staying during his daylong visit.
"We strongly protest the way the WTO works. Its working is non-transparent, which is now evident from Moore's secret visit here. We don't know what he is going to discuss with Pakistani officials. All we know is that his discussions will impact the lives of the poor Pakistanis," said a protestor.
The protestors were holding placards inscribed with slogans describing the WTO as an outfit that discriminates against the poor developing countries in favor of the industrialized North and multibillion transnational corporations. "Food First, Trade Later," said one poster. Another banner read, "WTO: Save Patients, Not Patents."
The Sustainable Agriculture Action Group (SAAG), a coalition of non-governmental organisations and farmers coming from all over the country, organised the protest. "We have serious reservations at the WTO agreements, particularly their impact on food security and sustainable livelihoods," said Dr Shahid Zia, who works with the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), a member organisation of SAAG.
The rally, which lasted more than an hour, also opposed any new trade round as is being advocated by the developed countries. The developed countries want further trade liberalization by including investment, competition, industrial tariffs and e-commerce in the purview of the WTO.
The developing countries, on the other hand, want the existing WTO agreements to be reviewed and made reflective of the needs of the developing countries. "We oppose any new round and want a stocktaking of the five years of WTO agreements. We believe that the WTO has failed to deliver on promises of equitable economic growth, sustainable development and poverty alleviation, which it made to developing countries in 1995 at the time of its (WTO's) creation," said Mushtaq Gadi of Sungi Development Foundation.
The protestors also called upon the government to exercise caution while dealing with "agents of trade-imperialism." They said the government should be more concerned about the adverse impacts of the world trade agreements, rather than selling out people's interests to abstract promises.
"Patients are dying because of lack of access to essential medicines as a result of market failures and killing of patent regimes under the TRIPS agreement. The centuries old traditional know-how of the people is being appropriated by predatory multinationals. environmental considerations are being compromised. Is this what we mean by the term globalisation," asked a spokesperson for The Network for Consumer Protection, which also participated in the demonstration.
"Having reached a higher level of development themselves, the industrialized countries are pushing for the harmonisation of trade policies, and in the process, ignoring the development needs of poor people and countries. We are going to be the ultimate losers, if we didn't assert now," said the Network spokesperson.:
