Six Days in Seattle: A Retrospective Series of Reports on the Battle in Seattle, November 29-December 3, 1999

Unedited updates sent by former Council of Canadians' Campaigns Coordinator Jo Dufay on the ground at the 1999 WTO Battle in Seattle.

Report from Seattle – Sunday, November 28, 1999

This is the first of a series of daily briefings from Seattle, as delegates from 135 countries and NGOs around the world gather to consider possible expansions of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

The Council of Canadians has sent a small team to Seattle, to monitor developments as they unfold, to influence decisions as they are made and to report back to our community of supporters across Canada.

As official delegates make their way here from around the world, it is very apparent that the wheels are falling off the WTO’s wagon. This meeting was expected to be largely ceremonial in function, with substantive agreement between countries through their bureaucrats in Geneva reached long ago. That hasn’t happened, and the likely outcome will be a weak commitment to talks on areas mandated by the last WTO round (agriculture, services and intellectual property rights) and some possible agreement to begin consideration of further areas, but no commitment to action. Disagreements between countries, coupled with strong citizens’ protests have made it nearly impossible to conduct this kind of high-profile deal to promote corporate interests. Our challenge is to press that advantage, and to expose sly negotiations in the back-halls of power. That is why we are here.

The formal meetings of the WTO begin Tuesday, but already the streets are humming with people concerned about trade liberalization. NGO events began Friday, and continue all week with tens of thousands of people expected to show up for a mass rally on Tuesday. 

The International Forum on Globalization (IFG) held a large teach-in on Friday night and all day Saturday, in impressive Benaroya Hall, at the corner of 3rd and University here in Seattle. By Friday, tickets were like gold dust and a standing-room-only crowd of over 2,500 paid rapt attention to speakers like Vandana Shiva, Owens Wiwa, Walden Bello and Lori Wallach. 

Our own Maude Barlow brought the crowd to their feet on Friday night, as she outlined the impacts of economic globalization on the environment and people around the world. Susan George, of France’s Transnational Institute had an answer for those – like former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher – who say that There Is No Alternative (‘TINA’). George says it’s TA-TA to TINA, “because there are Thousands And Thousands of Alternatives!”

Martin Khor from the Malaysia- based Third World Network is a close observer of the inside world of the WTO. He outlined how close to the edge the organization has moved. He warned against complacency and self-congratulation, however, as the WTO has come back from the brink before. We must be on our toes, he warned.  Perhaps the surprise star of the event was French farmer Jose Bovee, who described the dismantling of a McDonald’s restaurant in France, in protest over cultural takeovers.

Sunday was less frenetic, as we caught our breath and defined our plans for the next several days.  The Council’s BC organizer, Steve Staples, spoke at a meeting on the WTO and the global war system, clearly outlining the links between corporate globalization and militarism.  Describing the GATT provision that allows countries to pour money into military development, while forbidding investment in peaceful development, Steve observed that “the WTO is a weapon of mass destruction”.

At the end of the day, a briefing was held for NGO delegates registered for the convention. It is clear that the WTO is trying to respond to criticisms and to at least give the appearance of being open to NGOs. It is equally clear that they are failing. Over 700 NGOs have registered for this meeting, with up to four delegates per organisation.  Only 200 spaces are available for NGO delegates in the WTO meetings. The situation for the media is about the same, causing considerable anger all around.

The last event for this Sunday evening was a briefing given by Canadian Agriculture Minister Lyle Vanclief. Although billed as being for “Canadian NGOs”, the audience was made up chiefly of representatives from industry groups. (These industry associations are listed as NGOs, and the lack of distinction between these and real representatives of civil society is very frustrating to genuine NGOs.) Clearly that’s who Vanclief was expecting, as he urged the crowd not to engage with any protestors, but to keep their eyes and ears open and report back to him feedback from industry groups from other countries.  Vanclief outlined the determination by the US that these talks will launch a new round of trade negotiations. Perhaps believing that he was among industry friends, he was frank about the degree of pressure that Canada will bring to bear to make that happen. His comments are a reminder that this week we will see some blunt politics played out between countries.

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6

« Return to WTO index

Information

updated December 4, 2009