Archive - 2003 - Article

Cancun is a symbol of globalisation, and the growing gap between the rich and the poor.

Yesterday, some 1,000 anarchists and leftists marched through downtown Cancun, banging drums and chanting anti-WTO slogans.

'We all regret this sad incident,' WTO Director-General Supachai Panitchpakdi said after Lee Kyang Hae, 55, stabbed himself during a protest.

In an important development, yesterday the G-21 countries met yesterday to strengthen their alliance on the key issue of agriculture within the WTO.

Strong domestic support and export subsidies in developed nations have placed tremendous curbs on the export of farm goods by developing nations which had been blocking progress on other fronts in the WTO.

'Ours is a good cause, we have the support of our population and a large proportion of world opinion, this is a chance for the WTO to show it cares for the poor.' - AMORIN

Breaking the two-year deadlock over farm trade reform is widely seen as the linchpin of the five-day meeting and an acid test of rich countries' pledges to make the Doha talks a 'development' round.

'They promised tourist development that would help indigenous people, help the local people and help the poor people. And we noticed at the beginning of the process that that was lies, that wasn't the way it was going to be.' -Aguillon

All major press conferences organized on 9th September a day before the Cancun Ministerial Conference (September 10-14, 2003) clearly show that Agriculture is going to make or break the Cancun Ministerial Conference of the WTO.

Mexican peasant leaders are planning a mass demonstration against free trade on Wednesday to mark the opening of the World Trade Organisation's ministerial meeting in the Caribbean resort of Cancun.