Abandon Doha—Confront the Crises!
Abandon Doha—Confront the Crises!
The 7th Ministerial Meeting of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) was held in Geneva in the midst of multiple crises, when people all over the world are demanding that governments take decisive action to protect their livelihoods from the dangers of corporate led globalisation. The failure of deregulation and liberalisation that the WTO locks in through its trade regime are all too evident to the ordinary people in the world. That this Ministerial was a non-negotiating meeting, is a reflection of the massive resistance to the WTO trade regime from workers, farmers, fishers and social movements from across the world. Trade ministers did not come to Geneva empowered with a popular mandate to move forward the negotiations. But in an inexplicable but expected disconnect to the realities back home, many of them have called for a speedy conclusion to the Doha Round in 2010.
Fifteen years after its inception, the WTO is further away than ever from an equitable, just, rulesbased multilateral trading system that can foster development. Since its launch eight years ago, it has become progressively more evident that the Doha Development Round is completely antagonistic to the real priorities of peoples in developing countries. Instead, the demands of the global powers continue to set the agenda for trade negotiations and are doing so in a climate of fear where the 'blame game' has become the order of the day. Any country that is not prepared to support the speedy conclusion of the Doha Round is in danger of being blamed for the failure of the multilateral trading system.
The WTO is not a solution to the multiple crises that the world is facing. On the contrary, evidence shows that WTO trade rules are more a cause of and will exacerbate the current food, financial and climate crises. If the the main purpose of this ministerial meeting was to examine the role of the WTO in the current global economic environment, then governments must:
• Immediately halt all negotiations on the Doha Round;
• Reverse WTO commitments and reject progressive liberalisation;
• Conduct comprehensive development audits of the impacts of WTO trade on local and national economies;
• In collaboration with national constituencies, develop new trade rules that will ensure food
sovereignty, financial, economic and environmental security and climate justice;
Governments: listen to your people! Abandon Doha! Confront the Crises!
Endorsed by:
ActionAid International
AFRIKA-EUROPA NETWERK NETHERLANDS
AFTINET
Agribusiness Action Initiatives (AAI)
Alliance of Progressive Labour, Philippines
ATTAC Argentina
ATTAC Austria
ATTAC France
ATTAC Germany
ATTAC Japan
ATTAC Norway
Bharatiya Krishak Samaj, India
Blue Planet Project
Both ENDS
Campaign for the Welfare State
Center for Encounter and Active Non-Violence, Austria
Centre for Education and Communication (CEC), India
Coalition Against Trafficking in Women, Asia-Pacific
Colegiado de Gestão do INESC
Common Frontiers-Canada
Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO).
Council of Canadians
CRBM/Mani Tese, Italy
Development Alternatives with Womenf or a New Era (DAWN).
Ecologistas en Accion, Spain
Economic Justice Network
EQUATIONS India
Fair, Italy
Focus on the Global South
Fundacion Solon Bolivia
Global Network Asia
Hemispheric Social Alliance: Group of Agriculture and Commerce (gtac-asc)
IBON Foundation
India FDI Watch
Initiatives for Dialogue, Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS)
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
Institute for Global Justice, Indonesia
Intercultural Resources, India
International Forum on Globalization
International Gender and Trade Network
International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations (IUF)
Kilusan para sa Pambansang Demokrasya
Kilusang Mangingisda/ Fisherfolk Movement Philippines
La Via Campesina
Labour Education Research Network (LEARN), Philippines
MOSIP (Movimiento por el si de los Pueblos)
Ngo M.A.I.S. Italy
No to WTO Grassroots Campaign in Japan
Obsevatori del Deute en la Globalització (ODG), Catalona
Pambansang Kalipunan ng Makabayang Magbubukid
Platform of Filipino Migrant Organisations in Europe
Commission for Filipino Migrant Workers
Polaris Institute
Red Brasilera por la Integracion de los Pueblos (REBRIP)
Red Mexicana de Accion frente al Libre Comercio (RMALC)
REDES--Friends of the Earth Uruguay
Resistanze and Alternative, Mauritius
RESPECT Network Europe
Stop the New Round Coalition Philippines
The Berne Declaration
The Development Fund, Norway
The Latin American Solidarity Committee of Norway
The Oakland Institute
Trade Strategy Group (TSG) , South Africa
Transnational Institute
Transnational Migrant Platform (TMP)
TWN Africa
War on Want
Women in Development in Europe (WIDE)
World Development Movement
平等の権利と正義委員会・日本（Equal Rights and Justice Committee, Japan)
On December 4, 2009