“It is unfortunate that a peaceful expression of discontent from those who have honest differences with the WTO should have been disrupted by the violent acts of a few who want neither dialogue nor constructive interaction. The WTO has been and continues to be open to debate with civil society,” Mr. Lamy said.

The events occurred as the 153 WTO Members prepared for the organization's 7th Ministerial Conference to be held 30 November-2 December in Geneva. More than 2,700 delegates are expected to attend along with 400 journalists and nearly 500 members of civil society. The theme of the conference is “The WTO, the Multilateral Trading System and the Current Global Economic Environment.” The conference will not involve negotiations in the Doha Round of trade talks but will instead offer ministers the occasion to discuss and analyse the full spectrum of WTO activities.