By Roger Burbach
For three days from April 20-22, the historic city of Quebec was the scene of a popular revolt as thirty-four heads of state gathered for the Summit of the Americas. Their agenda, a Free Trade Area of the Americas, or FTAA.
On the first day, a surprisingly warm sunny Friday that ended the long winter in Quebec, thousands of demonstrators gathered on the outskirts of the old city. They faced a ten-foot high chain link fence with cement abutments that ran for two and a half miles around the hotels and conference centers where the summit was held. Led by a number of militant civil disobedience organizations, many of which united under the slogan "Carnival Against Capitalism," the demonstrators engaged in a variety of antics and tactics designed to protest the FTAA meetings.
Green Peace sent a hot air balloon over the chain link fence with three passengers aboard. They were immediately arrested when they descended not far from the main conference center. Next a wooden catapult was assembled that launched teddy bears over the fence. When the police picked up the teddy bears, demonstrators joked that the bears "were being taken hostage by the authorities and will be held until police demands are met that we disperse."
These playful antics quickly gave way to a more confrontational mood. Many demonstrators sat down in front of the fence while others tried to push it over. By late afternoon, the melee was on as police began launching tear gas canisters and using water cannons against the demonstrators. Around 5 o'clock demonstrators breached the security perimeters as a fifteen-foot section of the fence was toppled. Dozens of officers armed with batons and guns moved to close the gap, firing repeated rounds of tear gas. Smoke rolled over blocks in the heart of the city, floating into the meeting centers of the summit, causing the opening ceremonies to be delayed for an hour.
Although the Black Bloc--an anarchist group that first made its appearance in the Battle of Seattle in late 1999 against the World Trade Organization--was present in the assaults on the fence, its members were actually outnumbered by other militants. Even more notable was the fact that the Black Bloc and other demonstrators were overwhelmingly home grown, speaking French, the language of the people who reside in Quebec City and the province of Quebec. As evening turned to night, many of the demonstrators would regroup in homes near the old city, receiving succor from local residents. The battle at the fence continued until 3 in the morning, with scores injured and the police arresting approximately 150 demonstrators.
The biggest protest occurred on Saturday, an even warmer day. Then upwards of 50,000 people assembled from around the hemisphere to participate in a mass demonstration. French-speaking Canadians once again predominated. Trade unionists, not just from Quebec, constituted the principal component of the demonstration. Auto workers from Tennessee, public service unions from New York, trade unionists from Chile, sweatshop organizers from the maquiladora regions on the Mexican-US border, as well as trade unionists from the rest of Canada participated with their anti-FTAA banners and slogans.
The demonstrators began to gather in the morning near the port of Quebec City. Before they marched, thousands gathered in a nearby "People's Tent" where a number of Canadian organizers and international participants spoke. No one condemned the demonstrators who battled at the fence the night before. Maude Barlow, the chair of the Council of Canadians, one of the main organizations backing the march, opened her address by declaring: "Welcome to the revolution." She went on to state: "We are a movement of non-violence," but refused to criticize the youthful demonstrators who assaulted the fence and battled with police the night before. She said: "Our youth and children are born into a toxic society run by the multinationals in the name of free trade. We are poisoning them." She rhetorically asked: "Are they vandals? The first vandals are the ones who ordered the wall built. The real violence is being carried out by those who are meeting behind the wall."
Marching six to ten abreast, it took well over two hours for all the demonstrators to pass in front of the train station that was just beyond the staging area near the docks. The banners of the demonstrators were colorful and creative. Some environmentalists were dressed as black and white cows, carrying a large sign saying "FTAA=Mad Cows. Others were dressed as frogs to protest the use of animal genes in the creation of genetically modified foods. Following a banner "Les Artistes pour la Pax" came a mime troupe of about forty members who were dressed up in black suits as bankers and multinational executives. They stopped in unison every few steps to look at their wristwatches, mocking corporate efficiency and profiteering.
Quebec nationalism was a critical factor in the spirited and militant march. Many trade unionists as well as other demonstrators carried emblems of the Quebec provincial flag on their protest signs. They view opposition to free trade as an extension of the Quebec struggle to win independence from the Canadian federal government based in Ottawa. The current Prime Minister of Canada, Jean Chretien, endorsed the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, after first objecting to it in his campaign for Prime Minister in 1993. Comprised of Canada, the United States and Mexico, this agreement is the fundamental building block for the FTAA and is viewed as costing tens of thousands of jobs in Quebec and being one more step in the usurpation of the rights and livelihood of the Quebecois.
As the huge march came to an end, many participants, including trade unionists, headed for the chain link fence, intent on disrupting the FTAA meetings. Many sat down in front of the barrier in acts of civil disobedience, but many more taunted the police and tried to breach the fence. The confrontation grew even more militant than the day before, as wave after wave of protestors began to storm the fence. Proclaimed one trade unionist: "This movement is going to keep growing, it's not just those few dressed in black who are at the barricades." Stones, cans, balloons filled with paint, hockey pucks, and golf balls flew over the perimeter, while some demonstrators brought up battering rams to knock down the fence. Clouds of tear gas engulfed the city and the police began using plastic bullets to repel the demonstrators. The single exit gate from the FTAA meetings was shut down, trapping reporters and functionaries inside the perimeter.
One of the peaceful demonstrators at the fence, Svend Robinson, a member of the Canadian Parliament, was among those injured as the police themselves jumped the perimeter in order to push back demonstrators. He was hit point-blank by a tear gas canister, leaving an ugly gash on his thigh. Others were struck in the face by plastic bullets. Over 400 people were arrested. The League of Rights and Liberties had about 25 official observers present with credentials. One of the spokespersons for the League noted: "The militants who tried to breach the fence were more agile at evading police sweeps, often escaping down side streets. It was those engaging in civil disobedience who were often attacked and arrested." One young women college student was charged with rioting for merely holding up her fingers in a peace sign.
The battle at the perimeter continued throughout the night and well into Sunday morning. Bank windows were smashed and demonstrators set bonfires as they grew even angrier. A loud explosion echoed throughout the city. Helicopters hovered continually overhead, providing guidance and coordination to police efforts to contain the demonstrators. The city of Quebec was effectively under siege.
On Sunday afternoon, the thirty-four hemispheric leaders concluded their summit meeting by releasing their official declaration. Pronouncing this "The Century of the Americas," they called for the conclusion of negotiations for the FTAA by January 1, 2005, and for the official implementation of the new trade treaty by December 31, 2005. The declaration also announced a "Program of Action." Special social funds would be set up by the governments of the hemisphere to alleviate poverty, improve health and education, and to provide job training.
This program was reminiscent of an ambitious plan for improving education drafted at the last Summit of the Americas held in Santiago Chile in 1998. A study by the Miami based Leadership Council for Inter-American Summitry concluded that countries and multilateral lenders actually provided less money for education projects after the summit of 1998 than before it.
President George W. Bush in his remarks to the press at the conclusion of the summit made it clear that his main interests were the trade provisions of the declaration. He said, "Skeptics should look at NAFTA. I campaigned on a program of free trade. We will vigorously pursue a program of free trade." After the end of the FTAA gathering, Bush held a special meeting with the other two presidents of NAFTA, Chretien of Canada and Vincente Fox of Mexico. On their agenda, according to Bush, was a discussion of an "electrical grid for the Northern Hemisphere." He added, "if other countries are looking for markets, they should look to the US, especially for energy."
While Bush ignored the popular revolt that occurred outside the chain fence perimeter, others at the meeting were visibly concerned. Enrique Iglesias, the head of the Inter-American Development Bank told the press: "We cannot ignore these kinds of things. The image demonstrators create can undermine the capacity of leaders to implant free trade." Even Prime Minister Chretien was forced to admit: "Democracies face a crisis of legitimacy and relevancy."
Special thanks to Eric Squire for his assistance in participating in the battle of Quebec City.:
