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September 26, 2008 President Bush met with leaders and officials from 11 countries in the Western Hemisphere on Wednesday, September 24th in New York to launch the ‘Pathways to Prosperity in the Americas’ initiative. Canada is joined by the U.S., Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama and Peru in this initiative. All have free trade agreements with the U.S., or one pending before Congress. In a Washington Post article, Bush hails the initiative as, “a forum where leaders can work to ensure that the benefits of trade are broadly shared.” Reading between the lines, by benefits of trade Bush really means more of the same drive for deeper hemispheric integration based on the same free trade principles that the Council of Canadians joined by other civil society groups, indigenous peoples, small-scale farmers, labour unionists (and more) have clearly rejected. Although the release for the new initiative is littered with statements affirming ‘fair trade,’ fighting poverty’ and ‘opportunities for small businesses and farmers’, the fundamentals of the flawed free trade model (in particular, the language of the Security and Prosperity Partnership) remain. Trade liberalization, economic integration, free trade, open markets and public-private partnerships figure prominently in the media release sent out by the White House – all being subject to heavy criticism by the ever-growing movement challenging the free trade model. To be sure, this model has been a bonanza for big corporations and private investors, it has been bad news for the rest of us — and for the public good. Our resources and the environment are under threat. Our public services such as health care are being cut and privatized. Our jobs and the promise of a living wage are being steadily eroded. In particular, this initiative appears to intend to rejuvenate the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas. The plans for this initiative are not available publicly. At this point, we know that the next steps include, “meeting at the ministerial level before the end of this year and regularly thereafter to develop an agenda to advance these objectives and determine next steps…reconvening in 2009 to review the progress made by ministers.” as described the White House media release. The release also recognizes that this initiative is in line with other free trade agreements, many of which have been the source of cross-border solidarity actions such as the joint solidarity statement for democratic, national development of North America's energy resources: “We affirmed our commitment to conclude an ambitious agreement in the Doha Round of World Trade Organization negotiations, to the longer-term goals of free trade in the hemisphere and a Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific (FTAPP) and to continue to pursue other efforts to promote economic integration in the hemisphere, including through the other efforts to promote economic integration in the hemisphere, including through the Summit of the Americas process, the Latin America Pacific Arc Initiative, the Central American Economic Integration process, and the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership. At the same time, we are supportive of bilateral efforts to approve and implement comprehensive, high-standard free trade agreements that promote and extend free trade…” As reported in the Miami Herald, Heide Bronke, U.S. State Department spokeswoman, also recognizes that this initiative is in part in reaction to the alternative models of economic development: ''Eleven leaders in the hemisphere met with our president and stood with him in a project aimed at expanding economic integration,'' Bronke said. ``This is not just free trade, it's a political vision for the hemisphere. Pathways is an association of countries in the western hemisphere focused on increased cooperation in trade and development. . . . It offers an alternative to economic populism. ''The governments of Cuba, Venezuela and Bolivia are absent from this initiative. Further, the Miami Herald highlighted the criticisms of some South American leaders more critical of this initiative, that it should come at a time when the U.S. has promised billions in corporate welfare to address their economic crisis: ''We don't want to conceive of the idea that the rescue of the dignity of the world's poor does not have the same priority or the same urgency of saving the institutions that operate the most powerful financial center in the world,'' Fernández said. ``We need an international financial plan that is as urgent and as bold as the one to save Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, Bear Stearns, Merrill Lynch and American International Group.'' said Dominican President Leonel Fernández.
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