[asia-apec 1498] Open Letter to Director of NZ Security Intelligence Service Re Mike Moore/WTO

[APEC Monitoring Group]

GATT WATCHDOG
PO BOX 1905
CHRISTCHURCH
AOTEAROA/NEW ZEALAND

OPEN LETTER TO DIRECTOR OF THE NZ SECURITY INTELLIGENCE SERVICE RE NEW
ZEALAND VISIT OF WTO DIRECTOR-GENERAL MIKE MOORE

Mr Richard Woods
Director of Security
New Zealand Security Intelligence Service
PO Box 600
WELLINGTON

3 August 2000


Dear Mr Woods,

We write to draw the attention of the New Zealand Security Intelligence
Service to the upcoming New Zealand visit of Mr Mike Moore, Director-General
of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and to urge your Service to act
swiftly to protect New Zealand’s international and economic wellbeing from
the impact of the foreign-influenced capabilities, intentions or activities
generated by Mr Moore and the WTO.  We believe that Mr Moore and the WTO
constitute "a range of new and emerging external threats to New Zealand’s
security" (Security In New Zealand Today; NZSIS;1998; p13).

We understand that New Zealand’s small intelligence and security community
aims to "protect and promote New Zealand’s defence, foreign policy and
national economic interests".  Being an intelligence organisation, the NZSIS
must know all about the devastating impacts that trade and investment
liberalisation is having on communities throughout New Zealand.  Beginning
with the job losses caused by tariff cuts, the frighteningly high level of
transnational corporate ownership of vital infrastructure, the land sold to
infamous criminals like the Suharto family, increasing income disparities
between rich and poor, and so on.  These kinds of things are often justified
in the name of New Zealand’s commitments to the global free market economy
which the WTO maintains and promotes.

In Parliament, Mr Moore was a strong supporter of the NZSIS.  But he has now
gone on to ther things.  He is the figurehead for a powerful international
organisation which operates in a clandestine, unaccountable manner, which
makes enforceable decisions that can undermine existing national laws and
which could well constrain future governments from charting their own course
of economic, political and social development.

The WTO claims to operate by consensus.  Yet really it is dominated by a
"quad" of powerful governments (USA, Japan, the EU, and Canada) who then try
to impose their decisions on other WTO members.  Negotiating positions and
the contents of agreements at the WTO are closely guarded secrets until they
have been signed when it is far too late for any of us to do anything about
them.

Indeed even former Director-General of the GATT Secretariat, Arthur Dunkel,
at a seminar of prominent WTO supporters last year, raised the question
regarding the WTO "who is driving the process in trade policy – governments
or the business community?"

The NZSIS takes an active interest in "the threat to New Zealand’s security
from extremist groups dedicated to overthrowing or undermining parliamentary
democracy" (p13 Security In New Zealand Today).  The WTO, along with other
vehicles which promote the global free market economy clearly threatens
"parliamentary democracy".  It is hardly surprising that the Clerk of the
House, David McGee, said that "international agreements are driving domestic
law to a far greater extent than they were before".

The WTO is clearly a subversive organisation.  This has been corroborated
internationally.  We note that last week in Islamabad, Pakistani
organisations concerned about the impact of WTO agreements on Pakistan
described Mr Moore as a "terrorist", and the WTO as a "terrorist
organisation".

The WTO acknowledges that it undermines Parliamentary democracy.  For
example, last year it published "The 10 benefits of the WTO Trading System"
(available on its Website) which conclude: "Quite often, governments use the
WTO as a welcome external constraint on their policies: "we can’t do this
because it would violate the WTO agreements.""

Given that the WTO operates in "clandestine ways to achieve their
objectives" (p17, Security In New Zealand Today) we presume you will seek a
warrant to intercept Mr Moore’s communications now and in the future.  We
would however suggest some prior training in the art of breaking and
entering as we are a little concerned at the level of skill level displayed
by some of your officers in the past.

Besides his involvement in a very shadowy organisation, in his role as
Director-General of the WTO, Mr Moore’s appearance incites trouble.  We are
sure that the Service will have noted the mass mobilisations of many
thousands of people in Seattle at last year’s WTO Ministerial Meeting and
perhaps similar events surrounding his various international fixtures since
becoming WTO Director-General.

We realise we have not always seen eye to eye with your Service.  But as
your predecessor Don McIver states, the NZSIS relies "on the support and
assistance of other ordinary New Zealanders to do our work effectively"
(Security In New Zealand Today, p6), and we are just trying to do our bit.

We attach a copy of GATT Watchdog’s factsheet on the WTO to help you and
your organisation plan your operations against Mr Moore and the WTO.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you need further information about
Mr Moore and his dangerous organisation.

Sincerely


Aziz Choudry
GATT Watchdog