|
Agence France Presse September 9, 2003 Tuesday Agence France Presse September 9, 2003 Tuesday Anti-globalisation circus faces frustrating WTO summit Thousands of demonstrators have arrived in Cancun to take up the anti-globalisation crusade around the World Trade Organisation conference that starts Wednesday. Mexican authorities have ordered strict security for a march to be staged on the opening day. More than 20,000 police and other security forces are on duty and two navy frigates are anchored off the beaches of the Caribbean resort. Hardened by the painful experience of previous summits and international gatherings, organisers are determined to make sure that the demonstrators have a frustrating stay in Cancun. Activists have been told they will not be allowed near the conference convention centre or the hotels where delegates are staying. Some 980 activist groups have been given accreditation by the Mexican government for the summit. But they will not get close to the ministers seeking to thrash out a new world trade accord. The groups, many of whom will also take part in the demonstrations, will only be able to follow the debates on closed-circuit television. A Mexican "ska" group plans to direct powerful speakers at the convention centre to launch a musical attack but it should not stop the already-fraught negotiations between the world's main trade blocs. No boat is allowed to come within two nautical miles of Cancun's shore, which has brought protests from the Greenpeace environmental pressure group, which has often launched sea-borne protests. Many of the complaints are familiar from previous international gatherings. But with agricultural trade at the heart of disputes at the summit, activists have been focusing their attention on farm trade. Chris Martin of the British rock band Coldplay handed in a petition with three million signatures organised by the Oxfam charity and demanding "fair trade." Among the signatories was UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. Speaking at a beachside news conference, Martin called for an end to agricultural subsidies "because they damage poor farmers" and cause "obscene inequalities". "India is losing two billion dollars because of agricultural restrictions imposed by developed countries," said Vandana Shiva of the Indian group, Science, Technology and Ecology. Lori Wallach of the International Forum on Globalisation said the WTO was now "in crisis" and called for demonstrations to disrupt the conference to show solidarity with developing countries. Shouting "Viva Zapata", about 1,000 Mexican Indians and peasants from neighbouring Chiapas state arrived Monday in Cancun in a convoy of buses and were given shelter in local schools and gymnasiums while they prepare for the demonstration. Last month, the leaders of the Chiapas Zapatista guerrillas had announced that their supporters would take part in the anti-WTO demonstrations. One of the star anti-globalisation draws, French activist Jose Bove, has been kept away from Cancun by a French court order preventing him from leaving the country. But Bove and other European activists are holding their own 'Counter Summit' in the French village of Cancon where Bove condemned "the scandalous debt" of third world countries and the "hooligan tankers" which pollute the international seas. Return to home page FAIR USE NOTICE: This document contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. The International Forum on Globalization is making this article available in our efforts to advance the understanding of environmental, corporate accountability, human rights, labor rights, social justice issues, etc. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. |