New Book on the WTO
Fatoumata Jawara and Aileen Kwa:
"Behind the Scenes at the WTO: the Real World of International Trade
Negotiations". Zed Books, London. Due out:
August 2003. Paperback UKŁ12.99/US$19.95;
hardback UKŁ36.95/US$59.99, plus
10% postage and packing for on-line
sales. (Ordering information below.)
I'm writing to draw your attention to
this immensely important book on the politics of the WTO, which takes the lid
off how the WTO really works, and what really happened before, at, and after
the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference in Doha in 2001, on the basis of
interviews with 33 Geneva-based delegates to the WTO and 10 Secretariat staff
members.
This is the ammunition the critics of the
WTO have been waiting for. It reveals the systematic subversion of an
ostensibly democratic system to ensure that the "agreements" that are
reached are those the major powers - primarily the US and the European Union -
want, irrespective of the views of interests of most developing countries, who
form the great majority of the membership.
The authors summarize:
"Crucial meetings are held behind
closed doors, excluding participants with critical interests at stake, with no
formal record of the discussion. When
delegates are, in principle, entitled to attend meetings, they are not informed
when or where they are to be held. Meetings are held without translation into
the languages of many participants, to discuss documents which are only
available in English, and which have been issued only hours before, or even at
the meeting itself. Those most familiar with issues (Ambassadors) are sometimes
discouraged or prevented from speaking in discussions about them at Ministerial
meetings. 'Consultations' with Members on key decisions are held one-to-one, in
private, with no written record, and the interpretation left to an individual
who has a stake in the outcome. Protestations that inconvenient views have been
ignored in this process fall on deaf ears. Chairs of committees and
facilitators are selected by a small clique, and often have an interest in the
issues for which the committee is responsible. The established principle of decision-making
by consensus is routinely overridden, and the views of decision-makers are
'interpreted' rather than a formal vote being taken, even in such key decisions
as the selection of Mike Moore as DG and the chairmanship of the Trade
Negotiations Committee. Rules are ignored when they are inconvenient, and a
blind eye is turned to blackmail and inducements. The list is endless.
"Any country whose political system
operated as the WTO did before, during and after the Doha Ministerial - where
procedures were interpreted with such 'flexibility', rules were routinely
ignored, and people or interested groups routinely used bribery and blackmail
to achieve their political ends - would not only be rightly condemned by the
international community as undemocratic and corrupt, it would also face a real
and constant threat of revolution. No developed country would contemplate
running its government in this way; and yet they are happy both to exploit the
system and to defend it against pressure for democratic reform at the international
level."
This book is a "must-read", not
only for anyone engaged in campaigning and advocacy on the WTO and
international trade issues, but also for anyone who wants to know how our world
is really run, what's going on behind the headlines, and how international
structures are being abused to impose globalisation on an unwilling world.
Go to: http://www.zedbooks.demon.co.uk <http://www.zedbooks.demon.co.uk/>
Click on "order books" Click on
"on-line order form" (or use one of the other options) Fill in: ISBN
(paperback 1 184277 311 9; hardback 1 84277 310 0) title (Behind the Scenes at
the WTO)
price (paperback UKŁ12.99/US$19.95;
hardback UKŁ36.95/US$59.99)
It would be helpful if you could order as
soon as possible, to help us assess demand.
BULK ORDERS AND SALES TO NGOs:
Discounts are available for NGOs,
depending on location (North or South) and quantities. Prices include postage
where applicable. Courier costs, if required, are extra. Northern NGOs: up to 5
copies:
UKŁ10.72/US$16.46 (25% discount plus
postage)
6 to 20 copies: UKŁ9.57/US$14.70 (33%
discount plus postage)
21 to 50 copies: UKŁ8.57/US$13.17 (40%
discount plus postage) 51 to 100 copies: UKŁ7.79/US$11.97 (40% discount,
postage free) more than 100 copies, negotiable.
Southern NGOs:
up to 10 copies: UKŁ7.79/US$11.97 (40%
discount, postage free) 11 to 50 copies: UKŁ6.50/US$9.98 (50% discount, postage
free) more than 50 copies: negotiable.
Please e-mail Farouk Sohawon (Farouk.Z@zedbooks.demon.co.uk)
as soon as possible.
If you are able to review the book for a
newspaper, journal, newsletter, etc, please request a review copy from Farouk
Sohawon (Farouk.Z@zedbooks.demon.co.uk).
Suggestions for possible reviewers are very welcome (with e-mail address if
possible). If you write a review, please send a copy or web-link) to David
Woodward (woodwarddavid@hotmail.com).
If you require leaflets for distribution,
please contact Farouk Sohawon (Farouk.Z@zedbooks.demon.co.uk).
If your organization is interested in
holding an event related to this book (eg a local press launch or press
briefing, workshop, etc), please e-mail David Woodward (woodwarddavid@hotmail.com).
NB we are unable to offer financial or logistical support for such events, but
we MAY be able to provide other resources (eg advance copies for pre-Cancun
events; leaflets; and possibly a video of the launch). We hope such events will
form the basis of a global debate on the legitimacy of the WTO.
If you would like to be informed of any
planned events in your country,
please send an e-mail specifying the
country to David Woodward
If possible, please send a list of e-mail
addresses for relevant media contacts to David Woodward (woodwarddavid@hotmail.com),
so that we can include them in our mailing.
If, having read the book, you are
concerned about the picture it paints, we would encourage you to write to
newspapers, MPs, Trade Ministers, WTO delegates and the Director General of the
WTO. Those in a position to do so might also try to get MPs to ask
parliamentary questions.
Please forward this e-mail as widely (and
as quickly) as possible, including to all relevant mailing lists and
list-serves. The information can be reproduced on web-sites without permission,
using the following link to the Zed Books web-site:
http://zedbooks.co.uk/cgi-bin/refertitle.cgi?1%2084277%20310%200
PLEASE FORWARD THIS E-MAIL TO EVERYONE
WHO MIGHT BE INTERESTED.
David Woodward