3rd WTO MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Top 10 Reasons to Oppose the World Trade Organization? Criticism, yes … misinformation, no!
More incorrect facts about the WTO found on websites:
SEE
ALSO:
> Other
ministerial meetings
10. The tide is turning aganst free trade and the WTO!
There is a growing international backlash against the WTO and the process of corporate globalization over which it presides. Movement-building by coalitions such as Peoples Global Action against the WTO in Europe and the Citizens Trade Campaign in the US are growing fast, as public support for corporate-managed free trade dwindles. Recent polls show that 58 percent of Americans agree that foreign trade has been bad for the US economy, and 81 percent of Americans say that Congress should not accept trade agreements that give other countries the power to overturn US laws. (Too late!). This is why tens of thousands of people from all walks of life will converge in Seattle Nov. 29-Dec. 4 to confront the World Trade Organization head on at its ministerial meeting. Join us!
The reality
People are free to have their own opinions. The WTO is at the centre of intense debate among governments in the negotiating rooms (which is what the WTO is for), and among citizens out in the streets. That is healthy.
But in any proper debate, it is essential to get the facts right first. Organizations supplying information about the WTO have the responsibility to make sure theyve got their facts right, too. Those making the accusations listed here have quite simply got their facts wrong.
Some protesters might believe there is a growing international backlash against the WTO. But the countries queuing up to join the WTO, from the most populous (China) and the largest physically (Russia) to tiny Andorra, are proof that a significant part of the world believe that their economic future lies in the WTO system. And opinion polls suggest that the public in the US and elsewhere are in favour of freer trade even if they have reservations about some aspects.
The accusations
1. The
WTO only serves the interests of
multinational corporations
2. The
WTO is a stacked court
3. The
WTO tramples over labor and human rights
4. The
WTO is destroying the environment
5. The
WTO is killing people
6. The
US adoption of the WTO was undemocratic
7. The
WTO undermines local development and
penalizes poor countries
8. The
WTO is increasing inequality
9. The
WTO undermines national sovereignty
10. The tide is turning against free
trade and the WTO!
Find out more
In
the booklet, Seattle: What’s at stake?
> Concerns
… and responses (1)
> Concerns
… and responses (2)
On
the main WTO website
> 10
Common Misunderstandings about the WTO