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>From owner-asia-apec  Tue Jul 28 18:17:51 1998
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From: "ALARM (APEC Labour Rights Monitor)" <alarm at HK.Super.NET>
Subject: Final Declaration of the Sumit 
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1998 17:12:01 -0700
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Dear Friends,

Here is the final declaration of the People's Summit held in Chile last
April. This was sent by Coral Pey (RECHIP). 

**********
Final Declaration of the Summit

Santiago, Chile, April 18, 1998

	In the People's Summit of the Americas-- a gathering of union,
social, environmental, women's, native, human rights', educational and
parliamentary organizations-- we  have taken a united stand in favour of
economic, social and cultural integration, but one that truly benefits the
people of the Americas, not the one set up within a trade framework,
directed by corporations and applied by governments.  The priorities of our
integration proposals are participatory democracy, sustainable development,
and cultural and ethnic diversity.

	We have no reason to believe in the fulfilment of the social
commitments signed by governments.  Most of the recommendations from the
Round of Social Conferences of the United Nations still have not been
implemented.  The social concerns proclaimed at the First Summit of the
Americas in Miami have not been acted upon either.  We believe that
governments will go on using these proclaimed social concerns as bargaining
chips in their trade negotiations.  In practice, these declarations
contradict their own policies which result in the deterioration of public
services.  In most of the continent's countries, programs to privatize
education and social security continue.

	We are convinced that the Americas does not need free trade.  It
needs fair trade, regulated investment, and a conscious consumer strategy
which privileges national development projects.

	We call governments' attention to the priorities which our people
have set and which have not been taken into consideration in their official
conferences.  We place emphasis on the following priorities which were
debated at the People's Summit:

*Human, social, labour, environmental and citizens' rights
*Aboriginal peoples
*Sustainable development
*Alternatives to socioeconomic integration
*Farm workers and Agrarian Reform
*Ethics in the political process

	All of these topics were amply discussed and debated by
representatives and members of the organizations which are most
representative of civil society in the countries of our hemisphere who met
in 10 different forums from April 15 to 18 in the city of Santiago.  Our
debates reflected the richness, diversity and plurality of our peoples, as
well as our ability to formulate proposals.  Under the criteria of
inter-sectoral discussions, the forums analyzed the following issues:

*Globalization and integration
*Development and sustainability
*Investment
*Employment and quality of life
*Follow-through of the Summit

	We made a commitment to work for the demands which came out of the
forums and to pressure government authorities of our respective countries
on our conclusions and on the plan of action which we have adopted.

	We reject the anti-democratic character of agreements such as the
FTAA.  Organizations which represent distinct segments of civil society in
our continents are excluded from the process.  Not even legislators are
consulted, thus restricting even more the limits of democratic
representation.  We do not accept that any more of these kinds of
agreements, which have negative repercussions for the population as a
whole, be signed at the cost of our peoples.

We demand that the fundamental negation of our economic sovereignty implied
by carrying out accords such as the Free Trade Area of the Americas or the
Multilateral Agreement on Investment be directly and ultimately decided
upon by the citizens of the Americas, by plebiscite, preceded by fully
informed national debates.

Our Summit's goal is to call attention to the inequalities which the
official meetings insist upon ignoring.

*Increased unemployment, informal work situations, precarious labour
relations, intensification of work rhythms, and salary reductions.
*Increased female and child poverty, along with forms of overexploitation
such as forced labour, child labour, and discrimination against women.
*Continuous degradation of our peoples' environment and quality of life.
*Increased migration, xenophobia, and the lack of recognition of the rights
of migrant workers.
*Permanent and increased violations of the rights of our indigenous peoples
to their life, land, and cultural values.
*Concentration of rural property, growing conflicts over land ownership,
murder of farm worker activists, and impunity for their murderers.
*Urban violence, insecurity, and social exclusion.

	The People's Summit of the Americas was a milestone in the process
of hemispheric articulation of a united strategy which we have called the
Hemispheric Social Alliance to fight against neoliberal trade integration.

	Free trade rhetoric is inconsistent with the trade blockade of Cuba.

	The People's Summit of the Americas reaffirms that continental
integration processes must be built upon the principles of participatory
democracy, equality, social justice, respect for cultural and ethnic
diversity, social development, and ecological sustainability.