by Craig A. Butler
Daily Lobo Columnist
Last week an informal meeting of the World Trade Organization in Sydney, Australia, concluded with a tentative agreement by trade ministers. In a continuation of talks that began in Seattle in 1999, they are working toward an international agreement on reducing the cost of life-saving medicines in poorer countries.
At present, many developing nations cannot afford to import drugs to fight major diseases such as HIV/AIDS. Pharmaceutical companies in the industrialized world have proven reluctant to allow generic versions of their drugs to be produced in these countries. These companies want to maintain control of their patented formulas.
Recognizing the need to assist developing nations in fighting deadly diseases with the most modern medicines, the WTO has been working to create a framework for allowing impoverished nations the right to produce generic versions of drugs patented in other countries.
Little news of this historic breakthrough in Sydney reached the United States. What did reach the United States were scenes of the protesters who showed up en masse to demonstrate against the WTO and its policies. Hundreds of protesters flooded the streets of Sydney and dozens were arrested.
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In Seattle, three years ago, similar rioters managed to shut down much of the city, disrupting the WTO talks and causing thousands of dollars in property damage. They advocate many causes, from environmentalists wearing sea turtle costumes to anti-globalization advocates.
Unhappiness with the WTO stems from sources as diverse as the belief that it destroys jobs to displeasure with certain trade rulings. Some protesters come on purely philosophical grounds, while others come seeking justice for specific events. Violent police crackdowns on the protesters only spur them on.
Despite this organization's world-shaking importance, Americans as a whole are fairly ignorant of what the WTO is and what it does. After World War II, it was realized that the economic policies of the 1930's, which emphasized protectionism and trade barriers, had hurt the economies of all the world's nations and prolonged the Great Depression.
What emerged was the 1947 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. The purpose of this agreement was to outline the common goal of lowering barriers to international trade. The period of globalization before the outbreak of World War I in 1914 had clearly illustrated that market economics operating across national boundaries led to lower prices and greater availability of goods to everyone. The agreement was designed to help recreate that success.
During the 50 years of the agreement 1947's influence on world trade, the world economy grew and expanded unbelievably. In 1994, wishing to further decrease obstacles to free trade, a new round of talks was held and a new general agreement was negotiated. This agreement created the WTO.
Some oppose globalization on moral grounds and have opposed the WTO on the grounds that it overrides national sovereignty, hinders the development of third-world nations, takes precedence over environmental agreements, and a host of other reasons. Some oppose it simply because it lacks a forum for civilian participation.
One famous example of conflict over the WTO is the famous sea turtle controversy, in which the United States tried to ban imported shrimp from nations that did not use specially designed nets. These nets allow sea turtles captured with the shrimp to escape. The WTO ruled that this discriminated against poor Southeast Asian nations that could not afford to quickly convert their shrimping fleets to the new nets.
Although there are many valid complaints against the WTO that deserve to be heard, there are better ways of doing so than starting riots. At the very least, protesters could have the decency to avoid disrupting meetings that are trying to bring affordable health care to billions of impoverished people in the developing world.
