From amittal at foodfirst.org Wed Nov 1 11:37:22 2000 From: amittal at foodfirst.org (Anuradha Mittal) Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 18:37:22 -0800 Subject: [asia-apec 1627] The Peoples Caravan Press Release 3 Message-ID: <0.700000824.230461566-212058698-973046242@topica.com> The People's Caravan 2000 - Land and Food Without Poisons! PRESS RELEASE 31 OCTOBER, 2000 Asian Pacific NGOs and Farmers Groups Alarmed by the Creation of the World's Largest Agrochemical Corporation Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific (PAN AP), a coalition of over 150 groups in 18 countries, is alarmed by the merger of Novartis and AstraZeneca creating the world's largest agrochemical corporation, Syngenta. According to a report by a Pan-European coalition of NGOs, Syngenta will posses more than 40 per cent of the world's patents on genetic engineering technologies that can restrict plant reproduction, growth and development. These technologies either render crops sterile or control their genetic traits via chemicals. This is in contravention of previous commitments by both companies not to pursue these technologies. It also contradicts the high profile, consumer-driven, 'anti-genetic engineering' position taken by Novartis in claiming to have withdrawn genetically engineered ingredients from its product lines worldwide. Sarojeni Rengam, Executive Director of PAN AP, said, "genetic use restriction technologies trap farmers into an expensive seed and pesticide package. They will be forced to purchase seeds every planting season that are dependent on chemical inducers to switch on and off plant characteristics for yield, height, nutrition, flowering, ageing, disease resistance, etc." Sterile seeds are unable to germinate thereby disabling farmers the right to save seeds for replanting˜crucial for the food security of communities. Approximately 1.4 billion farmers rely on saved seeds. According to the South-North Development Monitor the new Syngenta will be the third largest seed supplier in the world. "Seed is the first link in the food chain. Whoever controls the seed, controls the food supply," said Anuradha Mittal, Co Director of Food First. "With the advent of genetic engineering, seeds have become the "operating system" that the corporations are using to deliver new genetic technologies." Furthermore, sterile, chemically dependent crops will increase the sales of unnecessary and dangerous agricultural inputs. The report by the pan-European coalition of NGOs states Novartis and AstraZeneca have taken out 11 new patents to render crops dependent on chemicals. "Farmers around the world are being pushed into planting genetically engineered crops with all their human health and environmental risks, with no guarantee as to the future market of genetically engineered food products" comments Ms. Rengam. Farmers in the U.S. have taken exception to the new Novartis policy, claiming it to be a double standard. Novartis produces Ovaltine, Gerber baby foods, Wasa crackers and a variety of 'health foods'. To alert millions of farmers, consumers and producers of these developments, various NGOs, farmers groups and anti-genetic engineering advocates across the Asia Pacific region will hold a People's Caravan "Citizens on the Move for Land and Food Without Poisons!" from November 13-30. According to Rafael Mariano, Chairperson of KMP (Peasant Movement of the Philippines), "The caravan will expose the immoral and unethical practices of agrochemical transnational corporations (TNCs) in their push for corporate control and dominance of our food production systems." This issue will be addressed as one major theme threatening farmer's livelihoods, food security and the production of safe food. The People's Caravan will kick off on November 13 in Chennai, India; followed by Bangladesh on November 19, and culminate in Manila, Philippines between November 26-30. The caravan is organised by the Tamil Nadu Women's Forum (TNWF) and the Society for Rural Education and Development (SRED) of India; UBINIG (Policy Research for Development Alternatives) and the Nayakrishi Andolon (New Agriculture Movement) of Bangladesh; the Kilusang Magbubukid sa Pilipinas (Peasant Movement of the Philippines); with PAN AP in collaboration with Food First, U.S.A. For more information on the People's Caravan contact: PAN AP (Pesticide Action Network Asia & the Pacific) Jennifer Mourin, Campaigns and Media Coordinator OR Sarah Hindmarsh, Program Assistant Genetic Engineering Campaign. Tel: (60-4) 657-0271/ 656-038. Fax: (604) 657-7445 E-mail: panap@panap.po.my or visit the People's Caravan Web site: www.poptel.org.uk/panap/caravan.htm Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy Tel: (510) 654-4400 fax: 510-654-4551 Email: food first@foodfirst.org Web: www.foodfirst.org Join the fight against hunger. For more information contact foodfirst@foodfirst.org. ___________________________________________________________ T O P I C A The Email You Want. http://www.topica.com/t/16 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics From amittal at foodfirst.org Thu Nov 2 09:33:42 2000 From: amittal at foodfirst.org (Anuradha Mittal) Date: Wed, 01 Nov 2000 16:33:42 -0800 Subject: [asia-apec 1628] New Report from Food First onn GEAnatomy of a Gene Spill Message-ID: <0.700000824.872593551-951758591-973125222@topica.com> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Nicholas Parker November 1, 2000 (510) 654-1914 Ext. 229 Author available for interviews Anatomy of a ‘Gene Spill’ Do we Really Need Genetically Engineered Food? Food policy think tank releases report on the StarLink/taco shell corn scandal which raises questions about genetic engineering of our food supply Full text of the report available at: http://www.foodfirst.org/pubs/backgrdrs/2000/f00v6n4.html (Oakland, CA)—The scandal surrounding the genetically engineered (GE) StarLink corn—a variety not approved for human consumption—first found in Taco Bell taco shells, is symptomatic of larger problems, according to Food First’s latest Backgrounder: Anatomy of a Gene Spill: Do we Really Need Genetically Engineered Food? The report issued by the Institute for Food and Development Policy, also know as ‘Food First,’ tackles the thorny issues of corporate concentration and collusion in this recent ‘gene spill,’ the difficulties of keeping GE foods from the human food supply, and the implications of gene spills for human health and the environment. "Unfortunately, gene spills are not as easy to contain as oil spills," says Dr. Peter Rosset, the author of the report and Co-Director of Food First. "You can’t just throw a boom around them. Once genes are taken out of the laboratory, they can move from plant to plant by natural pollination, winding up in genomes in which they have never been tested and where they may have unpredictable effects." After independent studies discovered Taco Bell taco shells to be contaminated with a GE corn variety only approved for animal feed, further studies have revealed how widespread this contamination is, with the latest reports finding it in U.S. exports to Japan. According to the report, all steps in the corn commodity chain, including planting, harvesting, storage, shipping, and distribution, are susceptible to genetic co-mingling. Complicating issues of accountability when accidents happen are rampant corporate mergers, acquisitions and alliances in the agriculture and food industry, which impede regulatory oversight. "Whether it is Alar on apples, or food poisoning outbreaks from fast food hamburgers, corporate power and negligence with new technologies—farm chemicals in one case and factory farming in the other—are increasingly putting our food supply at risk and our federal regulators to sleep," said Rosset. The report argues that there is "no compelling need" for the these products to be in our food today, and calls for an immediate moratorium on commercial use of genetic engineering of crops and GE foods until each product has passed widely acceptable environmental and health safety tests. Food First—founded in 1975 by Frances Moore Lappé and Joseph Collins after the success of Diet for a Small Planet, is an ‘outside the beltway’ policy think tank that carries out research, education and advocacy about out food system. Food First works to identify the root causes of hunger and poverty in the United States and around the world, and to educate the public as well as policymakers about these problems and alternative solutions to them. Full text of the report is available at: http://www.foodfirst.org/pubs/backgrdrs/2000/f00v6n4.html To schedule interviews, please contact Nick Parker at (510) 654-4400 ext. 229; nparker@foodfirst.org ### Join the fight against hunger. For more information contact foodfirst@foodfirst.org. ___________________________________________________________ T O P I C A The Email You Want. http://www.topica.com/t/16 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 2 17:07:15 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 2 Nov 2000 21:07:15 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1629] GATT WD media release 21 October - NZ-Singapore FTA Message-ID: <001501c044a3$ead29080$5484a7cb@notoapec> FTA Select Committee Hearings A Show Trial GATT Watchdog P O Box 1905, Christchurch Media Release 21 October 2000 Show trials in totalitarian regimes can have only one outcome, but go through the charade just for show. The Select Committee hearing submissions into the Singapore free trade agreement has just completed a similar sham. Its political masters would allow it no other outcome than approval of the agreement. Even its report admitted as much. "By the time a treaty is presented to the House, it will normally have already been adopted by the States Parties and will often have been signed by the New Zealand Government as well", it said. "'Two way' consultation is not possible". It admits that consultation was insufficient and that its submission timeline was too short. Even though the Deputy Prime Minister has told us he asked MFAT to consult with opponents of the Agreement, Gatt Watchdog and a number of other interested parties were not invited to briefings. The process the Committee followed was so hasty that even its report is full of errors. It attributes comments to Gatt Watchdog even though we never made a submission. We did however, send a letter to the committee outlining why we would not participate in such a sham. It claims to have advertised for submissions on 9 September, before the Agreement was even presented to Parliament on 11 September. In fact it didn't advertise until 16 September in Wellington and 18 September elsewhere, giving those few who heard about it only a week to get hold of a copy of the complex 192 page text and make a submission. It misquotes submissions and glosses over major issues. Concerns at the favourable position Singapore retains through its extensive government-linked companies and regulations are barely covered. Worries that Singapore involvement in New Zealand tertiary education and research could undermine academic freedom are dismissed with an inaccurate reference to the law. The use of Singapore as a back door to New Zealand by multinational corporations is barely analysed. It dismisses significant local government concerns in less than a paragraph. Yet those concerns came from major Councils including Christchurch, Manukau, and Horowhenua, and Local Government New Zealand. Dunedin City Council was not allowed to make a late submission despite its mayor's attendance at the hearings. It does not refute arguments that the tariff removals are in opposition to Government policy to freeze tariffs, nor that those tariffs are beneficial. Even on the issue of process, where the Select Committee could have made a stand to ensure there is proper, informed consultation with the New Zealand public, with early release of drafts of the text, it makes only general statements of support for a longer time frame and more consultation. But it says that its future part in the process will again be a charade of inquiring into agreements that have already been committed to. And then there is the inevitable conclusion: the majority of the Committee supports the Agreement. The grand coalition of National and Labour overrode all concerns. Nothing that anyone could say - and did say at great personal cost - could have changed that. The hearing and submissions were just for show. New Zealand has lost another piece of its independence after another stifled debate. ENDS From aaronj at interchange.ubc.ca Fri Nov 3 02:57:41 2000 From: aaronj at interchange.ubc.ca (Aaron James) Date: Thu, 02 Nov 2000 09:57:41 -0800 Subject: [asia-apec 1630] Asia Pacific Labour Network Meeting Message-ID: <4.3.1.0.20001102095440.00ad4a00@pop.interchange.ubc.ca> APEC must deliver on its promises to working people 30/10/2000 (ICFTU OnLine Monday October 30 2000) The trade unions of the ICFTU Asia Pacific Labour Network (ICFTU/APLN) today called for APEC Leaders, who will be meeting in Brunei in just over two weeks? time, to heed the loss of public confidence in the multilateral trading system in both the developing and the industrialised countries, and adopt measures to ensure that globalisation brings benefits to all sections of society. In an eighteen-point statementadopted in Bandar Seri Begawan today, the ICFTU/APLN which is meeting in Brunei over 28-31 October 2000 calls for APEC to set up a Labour Forum as a counterpart to its established APEC Business Advisory Council. ?The Leaders of APEC must fulfil their promises to broaden the APEC social dimension, and must involve working people through their trade unions better in APEC?s work, if they want to convince their people of APEC?s role?, said ICFTU General Secretary Bill Jordan. The Statement calls on APEC to establish a Labour-Management Work Programme on Social Development, covering issues such as occupational health and safety; social safety nets; respect for the rights of migrant workers; and fundamental workers? rights, including child labour. The trade unions challenge APEC to recognise gender perspectives at various levels and to promote women?s issues in all the various activities of APEC. ?Most APEC leaders at recent APEC Leaders? Meetings have agreed that organised labour should be involved more?, noted Ken Douglas, President of the ICFTU?s Asia and Pacific Regional Organisation (ICFTU-APRO). ?APEC Leaders must now give substance to those words, and devise structures for meaningful involvement of trade unions in APEC processes?, concluded Bill Jordan. The trade union delegation is due to meet the Sultan of Brunei on Tuesday 31 October to discuss the trade union recommendations to APEC. (Note to journalists: APEC is the trade and investment liberalisation and economic co-operation organisation that brings together the countries around the Pacific Rim, ranging from Singapore to the United States and including new members such as Chile, Peru and Russia. The ICFTU?s Asia Pacific Labour Network (APLN) is holding its 6th Regional Conference in Brunei. The ICFTU/APLN was founded in 1995 for unions to match the power of business in the APEC forum. It has been seeking consistently since then to raise the profile of social issues in APEC.) ICFTU/APLN Statement to 2000 APEC Leaders' Meeting International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU)/ Asia Pacific Labour Network (ICFTU/APLN) Sixth Regional Conference (Brunei, 28-31 October 2000) DELIVERING TO WORKING PEOPLE WITHIN THE APEC COMMUNITY: ICFTU/APLN STATEMENT TO THE 2000 APEC LEADERS? MEETING Introduction 1. The street protests in Seattle, Prague, Seoul and many cities in the Americas and throughout the world are representative of a much broader loss of public confidence in the multilateral trading system in both the developing and the industrialised countries. APEC needs to ensure that globalisation brings benefits to all sections of society - at present APEC lacks support among many people who have seen little gain from the globalisation process while working hours have increased and real wages have fallen. APEC Leaders must fulfil their promises to broaden the APEC social dimension, and must involve working people through their trade unions better in APEC?s work, if they want APEC to achieve successful economic and social co-operation among its many diverse members. Above all, APEC needs to reach out beyond its established consultations with the business community to establish effective mechanisms for the involvement of trade unions in relevant activities and meetings throughout the APEC structure. Trade union participation in APEC meetings ? Recommendations 2. The Brunei APEC Leaders? Meeting should discuss practical measures to improve the representation of trade unions in the APEC process. The ICFTU/APLN recommends: Endorsement of the establishment of an APEC Labour Forum and a commitment to a process, involving national trade union centres, to discuss how to set it up; Representation of trade unions on selected APEC committees, working groups and ministerial meetings, including the APEC Human Resources Development (HRD) working group and in preparations for the 4th APEC HRD Ministerial (Kumamoto, Japan, 29-30 September 2001), with resources to support such participation; Continuation of regular contacts between the ICFTU/APLN and the APEC secretariat for the exchange of information so that, where appropriate, trade union comments on issues being discussed within the APEC process can be formulated and presented; Inclusion of trade unions and appropriate representatives of civil society in APEC national consultative committees and in national delegations to APEC meetings. An APEC Labour-Management Work Programme on Social Development 3. Workplaces with trade union-enterprise collaboration are overwhelmingly the most productive and by the same token, joint labour-management co-operation would strengthen the capacity of the APEC process to deliver socially and economically sustainable results. Issues like occupational safety and health; boosting productivity; active labour market policies; and developing best-practice models for labour-management collaboration, need to be the subject of collaborative work by ABAC together with the APLN to develop common approaches and joint recommendations for adoption by APEC member states. 4. Given the lessons that should have been learned from the Asian economic and financial crisis, the Brunei 2000 APEC Leaders? Meeting should instruct APEC?s bodies to provide recommendations for a strong labour-management work programme on social and employment policies, through both APEC?s trade and investment liberalisation and facilitation (TILF) and APEC?s economic and technical cooperation (ECOTECH) work programmes, with full use of the expertise of the International Labour Organisation (ILO). The guidelines being developed by APEC Finance Ministers on ?responsive and fiscally manageable social safety nets? need to be discussed with the APLN and ABAC, in view of the workplace expertise that only the social partners can provide, at a tripartite workshop before they are presented to APEC Leaders. 5. Women have been more adversely affected by financial and economic crisis than men. The recommendations of the APEC Ministerial Meeting on Women, concerning in particular the recognition of gender perspectives at different levels in APEC and the promotion of women?s issues in all the various activities of APEC, need to be implemented fully. The Brunei APEC Leaders? Meeting should make recommendations to develop a work programme for affirmative action to improve their situation. 6. An APEC work programme on Social Development would build on the HRD project on social safety nets and be in line with the conclusions of the 3rd APEC HRD Ministerial Meeting (Washington D.C., 29-30 July 1999). This requires in turn recognition of the need for respect for human and democratic rights on the basis of the right to freedom of association, democracy and universal suffrage. 7. The better-off APEC economies should increase dramatically their support for social and economic development, directed to the most needy. The priorities are stimulating employment creation in quality jobs where core labour standards are respected; improving social security systems in APEC members, particularly education, health and medical benefits, pension schemes and unemployment benefit schemes; helping enterprises to recover, and to pay wage arrears; respect for the basic human rights of migrant workers (including freedom of association); and promoting sound industrial relations and tripartite dialogue between governments, employers and unions, based on respect for the ILO?s fundamental workers? rights. 8. The increasing number of workers in part-time, temporary and contract employment is of growing concern to us. These workers are, in many cases, not guaranteed equal treatment in terms of employment security, working conditions and social security benefits. APEC needs to devise recommendations to establish fair work rules to secure and improve working conditions for those with atypical employment contracts. 9. All APEC members should support fundamental workers? rights in law and in practice, and should include them on the future APEC work programme, in the light of their commitments engaged into under the WTO Singapore Declaration and the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and its Follow-up. APEC should for example develop its work against child labour beyond its existing ?best practices? project. Strengthening a socially responsible multilateral system 10. APEC has consistently stressed its support for multilateral trade and investment liberalisation through the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Yet several months after Seattle, there is concern world-wide that the WTO undermines domestic sovereignty, particularly in areas where trade can have a socially and environmentally damaging impact. Similarly, the IMF and the World Bank face a massive decline in confidence in their abilities to fulfil their mandates of poverty reduction, financial stability and economic growth. 11. The ICFTU/APLN believes that the WTO General Council must adopt measures to tackle the concerns of developing countries about fair treatment in the multilateral trading system, to protect basic labour standards during globalisation, and to make the trading system environmentally sustainable. The APEC Brunei Leaders? Meeting should support steps by the WTO General Council in this regard, including an enhanced role of the WTO with regard to respecting fundamental workers? rights. 12. In the context of a spiralling number of bilateral and sub-regional trade and investment agreements within APEC, it is vital that basic workers? rights be safeguarded and that the agreements result in the improvement, not in the lowering, of living and working standards. 13. APEC work on investment promotion should include reference to respect by multinational companies for the revised OECD Guidelines on Multinational Companies, as well as the long-standing ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy. 14. APEC leaders should adopt proposals for a newly regulated international financial system which would achieve stable, sustainable development by all countries. The necessary measures would include improved fiscal and monetary policy co-ordination; recognition of the rights of developing countries to control foreign capital inflows and outflows; the establishment of a currency transactions tax; examining the setting up of regional funds to mitigate the impact of liquidity crises and, where necessary, establishing social safety nets in the region. 15. The vulnerability of the APEC economies, particularly the developing countries, has been increased further by the "oil shock" of 2000. The impact of rising oil prices is causing unbearable strains in many countries and is adversely affecting the poor and marginalised sectors. The APEC leaders should seriously consider ways and means to respond effectively to the oil crisis, including through actions to tackle the practices of the multinational companies concerned. Efforts to explore the use and further development of alternative and sustainable sources of energy should be stepped up. Conclusions 16. Most APEC leaders at recent APEC Leaders? Meetings have agreed that organised labour should be involved more at the country level when APEC issues were discussed. Some APEC Leaders? Declarations such as Vancouver (1997) have referred to the role of labour in promoting sustainable growth and well-being. APEC Leaders must now devise structures for meaningful involvement of trade unions, which would be consistent with the Senior Officials? Meeting (SOM) decision in September 2000 to expand APEC?s outreach programme to include civil society. This is needed starting at the APEC Leaders? level, comparable with the arrangements for access by the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC), and continuing throughout the APEC process. 17. The ICFTU/APLN welcomed the participation in its 4th, 5th and 6th Conferences of the APEC Executive Directors, and its discussions with the Chairs of the ABAC at its 5th and 6th Conferences, as an important step towards developing contacts and consultation between the government, business and labour communities within APEC. 18. The ICFTU Asia Pacific Labour Network (ICFTU/APLN) believes that involvement of trade unions in the APEC process would give an important boost to APEC?s role as a decision-making and problem-solving forum to endure in the 21st century. Involving trade unions on a formal basis in APEC?s work requires the setting up of an APEC Labour Forum and, ultimately, the opportunity to meet APEC Leaders annually just as the ABAC does. APEC must set up an APEC Labour Forum and tackle the social, financial and trade dimensions of the APEC region on the basis of the recommendations in this document. The ICFTU Asia Pacific Labour Network (ICFTU/APLN) was established in 1995 to support and promote the work of trade unions of the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) region in their dialogue with governments, business and other groups involved in the APEC process. The APLN consists of the affiliates of the ICFTU in Chile, Mexico, the USA, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, the Republic of Korea, Japan and Peru, together with the associated sectoral unions grouped in the International Trade Secretariats. The contact point for the Network is the ICFTU Asian Pacific Regional Organisation (APRO), NTUC Trade Union House, 73 Bras Basah Road (4th Floor), Singapore 189556, Republic of Singapore, Tel. No. (65) 222.62.94, Fax No. (65) 221.73.80, E-mail: gs@icftu-apro.org Web-site: http://www.icftu-apro.org The aim of the ICFTU/APLN is to harness the APEC objective of the internationalisation of markets to the improvement of the conditions of work and life of the citizens of this populous region. In pursuit of these goals, in each of the past six years the ICFTU/APLN has held substantive and productive meetings with all the hosts of the APEC Leaders? Meetings: the Prime Minister of Japan; the President of the Philippines; the Prime Minister of Canada; the Prime Minister of Malaysia; the Prime Minister of New Zealand; and the Sultan of Brunei. From ircalb at swcp.com Sat Nov 4 01:56:11 2000 From: ircalb at swcp.com (Interhemispheric Resource Center) Date: Fri, 03 Nov 2000 09:56:11 -0700 Subject: [asia-apec 1631] US-China Relations Message-ID: <3.0.1.32.20001103095611.006f7a4c@swcp.com> -------------------------------------------------------------- FOREIGN POLICY IN FOCUS http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/ -------------------------------------------------------------- The Big Issues in U.S.-China Relations: The Silent Debate By John Gershman, Asia-Pacific Editor, Foreign Policy In Focus http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/commentary/chinaissues.html In a presidential election in which foreign policy occupies a less than central role, it may come as no surprise that U.S.-China relations are virtually absent from the debate. As LA Times columnist Jim Mann observed regarding the presidential campaign and U.S. policy toward China, "The country ought to be having a debate, but instead our political leaders act as though they have all been afflicted by an epidemic of lockjaw." Indeed, there appears to be a more public debate in China about U.S.-China relations than in the United States. To read complete text: http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/commentary/chinaissues.html This commentary was printed in today's issue of the Progressive Response, FPIF's e-journal on US foreign policy and world affairs. The Progressive Response is designed to keep the writers, contributors, and readers of the Foreign Policy In Focus (FPIF) series informed about new issues and debates concerning U.S. foreign policy issues. The purpose of the “Issues of Debate” section is to serve as a forum to discuss issues of controversy--not to express the institutional position of either the Institute for Policy Studies or the Interhemispheric Resource Center. We encourage you to submit your comments and opinions. Send comments to tim@irc-online.org best regards, Tim McGivern Foreign Policy in Focus http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org From sap at web.net Sat Nov 4 05:34:30 2000 From: sap at web.net (Faruq Faisel) Date: Fri, 3 Nov 2000 15:34:30 -0500 Subject: [asia-apec 1632] Presentation on Afghanistan in Ottawa Message-ID: <002d01c045d6$32a584c0$5b0000c0@look.ca> CPCC-SAP AFGHANISTAN WORKING GROUP Invites you to a presentation on: "Afghanistan: A Country of Lost Generations" Experiences from Working with Guardians By: Hafeezullah Yaqoobi Founder and Executive Director Guardians, Afghanistan & John Green Director The Rehabilitation Centre, Ottawa Wednesday, November 8, 2000 12:00 - 14:00 Conference Room (202), 1 Nicholas Street, Ottawa Guardians is a humanitarian non-political, non-partisan, non-government organization of Afghanistan. Guardians run projects include Guardians Institute of Orthopedics in Khandahar, Afghanistan. This program addresses immediate needs of the disabled Afghans, men, women and children, by means of conservative orthopedics and physiotherapy services. The Rehabilitation Centre (Ottawa) partners with Guardians in providing technical assistance to this center. Other programs of Guardians include: Community Based Rehabilitation, Mine Action, Campaign Against Drugs, Disabled Tailoring Venture and Park for People with Disabilities. Mr. Hafeezullah Yaqoobi who is currently in Canada, will share his experiences in working with the Afghan people in need. John Green will present his observations from past missions to Afghanistan. A discussion period will follow the presentation. Please RSVP by phone, fax or e-mail to: Faruq Faisel or Judy Stott, SAP Canada Phone: (613) 241-1333, Fax: (613) 241-1129 E-mail: sap@web.net From sap at web.net Sat Nov 4 06:07:16 2000 From: sap at web.net (Faruq Faisel) Date: Fri, 3 Nov 2000 16:07:16 -0500 Subject: [asia-apec 1633] Presentation on Afghanistan in Ottawa Message-ID: <005901c045db$bcb35e80$5b0000c0@look.ca> CPCC-SAP AFGHANISTAN WORKING GROUP Invites you to a presentation on: "Afghanistan: A Country of Lost Generations" Experiences from Working with Guardians By: Hafeezullah Yaqoobi Founder and Executive Director Guardians, Afghanistan & John Green Director The Rehabilitation Centre, Ottawa Wednesday, November 8, 2000 12:00 - 14:00 Conference Room (202), 1 Nicholas Street, Ottawa Guardians is a humanitarian non-political, non-partisan, non-government organization of Afghanistan. Guardians run projects include Guardians Institute of Orthopaedics in Khandahar, Afghanistan. This program addresses immediate needs of the disabled Afghans, men, women and children, by means of conservative orthopaedics and physiotherapy services. The Rehabilitation Centre (Ottawa) partners with Guardians in providing technical assistance to this center. Other programs of Guardians include: Community Based Rehabilitation, Mine Action, Campaign Against Drugs, Disabled Tailoring Venture and Park for People with Disabilities. Mr. Hafeezullah Yaqoobi who is currently in Canada, will share his experiences in working with the Afghan people in need. John Green will present his observations from past missions to Afghanistan. A discussion period will follow the presentation. Please RSVP by phone, fax or e-mail to: Faruq Faisel or Judy Stott, SAP Canada Phone: (613) 241-1333, Fax: (613) 241-1129 E-mail: sap@web.net From sap at web.net Sat Nov 4 06:09:55 2000 From: sap at web.net (Faruq Faisel) Date: Fri, 3 Nov 2000 16:09:55 -0500 Subject: [asia-apec 1634] Presentation on Afghanistan Message-ID: <005a01c045db$bec352c0$5b0000c0@look.ca> CPCC-SAP AFGHANISTAN WORKING GROUP Invites you to a presentation on: "Afghanistan: A Country of Lost Generations" Experiences from Working with Guardians By: Hafeezullah Yaqoobi Founder and Executive Director Guardians, Afghanistan & John Green Director The Rehabilitation Centre, Ottawa Wednesday, November 8, 2000 12:00 - 14:00 Conference Room (202), 1 Nicholas Street, Ottawa Guardians is a humanitarian non-political, non-partisan, non-government organization of Afghanistan. Guardians run projects include Guardians Institute of Orthopedics in Khandahar, Afghanistan. This program addresses immediate needs of the disabled Afghans, men, women and children, by means of conservative orthopedics and physiotherapy services. The Rehabilitation Centre (Ottawa) partners with Guardians in providing technical assistance to this center. Other programs of Guardians include: Community Based Rehabilitation, Mine Action, Campaign Against Drugs, Disabled Tailoring Venture and Park for People with Disabilities. Mr. Hafeezullah Yaqoobi who is currently in Canada, will share his experiences in working with the Afghan people in need. John Green will present his observations from past missions to Afghanistan. A discussion period will follow the presentation. Please RSVP by phone, fax or e-mail to: Faruq Faisel or Judy Stott, SAP Canada Phone: (613) 241-1333, Fax: (613) 241-1129 E-mail: sap@web.net From fod346 at hotmail.com Sun Nov 5 23:17:40 2000 From: fod346 at hotmail.com (winner white) Date: Sun, 05 Nov 2000 23:17:40 PKT Subject: [asia-apec 1635] Fw: Horror of Fundamentalism..SOS from Pakistan Message-ID: ----- Original Message ----- From: Fayaz Aziz To: ; ; ; Sent: Sunday, November 05, 2000 7:40 PM Subject: [wsc-network] Horror of Fundamentalism..SOS While we are busy in discussing the issues of international politics, IMF, World Bank, revolution, globalization, environment, provincial autonomy, nationalism and modern and classic literature the molvis, mullas, talibs, and religious fanatics are destroying ile already wounded Sindh, Balochistan and Seraiki belt of Pakistan, economically and socially. The ban on modern English education, activities of NGOs and progressive literature, repression of women, many of whom live like prisoners in their own homes, is only a harsh symptom of a larger disease. Poor peasants / farmers, villagers, students and women of small villages and towns like Ghotki, Jacobabad, Bhan Seedabad, Sujawal, Amrot, Shahdadpur, Arore, Dighri, Qamabar, Sanghar, Sukkur, Tando Mohammad Khan, Pano Aqil, Mirpur Mathelo, Tando Bago, Pir Jo Goth, Larkana, Hala, Dadu, Mithi, Shikarpur, Mirpur Sakro and Mehar, who came to Talibs, Mullas and Madarsas to get shelter under the umbrella of renowned religious tolerance and equity feel that they are on the front lines of a battle for survival. They see their children in danger of growing up without a future. Everyone wants to know where the next generation of doctors, lawyers and other professionals will be found. In remote rural villages of Sindh, Balochistan and Seraiki: 1. The molvis / mullas have decreed that women could no longer work and study and must be veiled in the all-enveloping chador, shuttlecock burqa, they can not marry the groom of their choice they can not refuse to marry elderly sick married men. They have been forced to remain in their homes and even not allowed to visit hospitals and rural health centers and to die of suffocation. 2. Small boys as well as girls are being denied education because many teachers were women who have not been replaced, and their male counterparts who remained in the schools are often not paid and therefore do not show up. The mullas and madarsa teachers have also been found involved in sodomy and small kids often abused and have been subjected to sexual violence. 3. Photography has been declared forbidden and even in a sporting events, display of legs has been declared punishable offence. In remote villages and surrounding areas of Madarsas they do not permit un-bearded participants to play games, but they insist on wearing above-the-ankle shalwars and below-the-knees qameezes, black turbans and chaddars slung over their shoulders. 4. Many families of madarsa affected villages have lost the income not only of women but also of youth who have left due to restriction, or were thrown out of villages by mullas. 5. They justify, facilitate, support and encourage the trafficking of AK47 and other weapons and use of local made drugs including NASWAR, OPIUM, HEROIN and BHANG. Their leaders and Mullas import these drugs from Afghanistan which produced 4,600 tons of opium last year, more than doubling its 1998 output, and accounting for 75 per cent of the total world opium production for the 1998-1999 season, according to ODCCP. The total estimated production of illicit opium for 1999 was about 6,000 metric tons, roughly 60 per cent more than the 3,750 metric tons recorded in 1998. 6. They talk in favour of peace but their peace is similar as "stillness after war". There peace in those villages is similar as Curfew, because people know that if they say any thing they will be hanged on the street and will be shot to death and their bodies will be chopped and remain there to decompose. 7. The Mullas / Moulvis have frequently been criticized by Western governments and non-governmental organizations for enforcing strict rules on what women must wear, but now they have banned men from wearing western clothes and a displaying of flesh. Last month a Madarsa administration near Sukkur arrested a group of students from Nawabshah for wearing trousers. The Mulla said the wearing of tight trousers near the Madarsa violated the Islamic dress code hence the students were not only arrested and tortured but also had their heads shaved as punishment. WHAT HAS TO BE DONE: 1. Re-organization of radical-nationalist, progressive and democratic political activities. 2. Re-opening of Study Circles, libraries, ideological debates. 3. NGO / CBO activities and networking. 4. Cultural activities, musical programs. 5. Anniversaries of legends. 6. Anti fundamentalism lectures based on tolerant, moderate mystic teachings of Shah Latif , Buley Shah, Hafiz, Sami, Sachal, Kabir, Omar Khayam. Farid and others. 7. Establishment of Coeducation Schools and colleges in interior Sindh. 8. Facilitating and encouraging the English language, computer studies and internet use in villages. 9. Coordination between media, human rights and advocacy organization, NGOs and political parties. 10. Revival of progressive and democratic Sindh of late sixties and seventies. We trust that you will continue to support struggle against the terror and horror of expected fundamentalist rule in Peace loving Sindh. By: Students of Sindh University, Mehran Engineering University Jamshoro and LMC Sindh Pakistan _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com. Share information about yourself, create your own public profile at http://profiles.msn.com. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Mon Nov 6 15:19:26 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Mon, 6 Nov 2000 19:19:26 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1636] Lagos to visit NZ prior to APEC Message-ID: <000a01c047b9$869afd00$2584a7cb@notoapec> President Lagos of Chile to visit NZ Monday, 6 November 2000, 5:05 pm Press Release: New Zealand Government 6 November 2000 Media Statement President Lagos of Chile to visit NZ Prime Minister Helen Clark announced today that the President of Chile, Ricardo Lagos, will visit New Zealand on 12 and 13 November. Helen Clark said she was delighted that President Lagos was taking time to visit New Zealand for talks before the Apec leaders' meeting in Brunei next week. "This will be the fourth occasion I have met President Lagos this year. I attended his inauguration in Chile in March, and then was with him at meetings of the Progressive Governance group of social democratic leaders in Berlin in June, and New York in September. "Apart from previewing matters arising at the Apec meeting, I will be keen to continue the discussions the President and I have had on closer economic relationships between Chile and New Zealand. "The issues are more complex for Chile than for New Zealand but we intend to keep up dialogue on the matter. I know President Lagos will be very interested to hear more about the closer economic partnership which is being developed between New Zealand and Singapore," Helen Clark said. President Lagos will meet with the Prime Minister in Auckland on Sunday 12 November and be the guest of honour at a State luncheon at the Carlton Hotel. Further details of President Lagos' visit will be confirmed later in the week. ENDS From notoapec at clear.net.nz Mon Nov 6 16:33:54 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Mon, 6 Nov 2000 20:33:54 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1637] APEC and Oil Prices Message-ID: <000a01c047c3$ebe322a0$29cca7cb@notoapec> >From Borneo Bulletin On-Line, Brunei Nov 6 2000 MONDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2000 Apec faces balancing act on oil prices TOKYO (AFP) - Asia-Pacific leaders meeting in Brunei Darussalam this month face a balancing act to accommodate the rival interests of oil producers and importers as the price of crude surges. Leaders of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) member nations will push for a more stable pricing regime for oil at their November 15-16 summit in the oil-rich Sultanate, according to aides. Senior Apec trade officials and diplomats meeting in September said action was needed to tame wild swings in the cost of crude oil, which has raised fears of inflation as it shoots up to 10-year highs. But the group includes major oil exporters such as Russia, Mexico, Indonesia and Malaysia, who have gained from the higher price of oil. "Naturally there are some differences of interest," acknowledged Mitsuru Taniuchi, the Tokyo-based chairman of the Apec economic committee, which is drafting a statement on oil to be issued by the Apec leaders. US President Bill Clinton, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Jiang Zemin as well as the leaders of Japan, Australia, Canada, Peru and South Korea, among others, are to attend the summit of 21 nations. "The Apec countries will probably affirm their shared understanding that high oil prices could hurt the economies of developing nations," said Hiroaki Kagawa, an international affairs official at Japan's trade ministry. Those developing nations include crisis-wracked Indonesia, which as a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) agreed last week to a new 500,000 barrel-a-day output increase, the cartel's fourth hike this year aimed at taming prices. For every extra dollar on a barrel of oil, Indonesia earns three trillion rupiah (US$330 million) more a year, said Indrayana Hadir, director of estimates and revenues at the Indonesian Department of Oil and Gas. "Indeed the rise in international oil prices has pushed revenue up, but it's also meant an increase in domestic government subsidies" for the poor, who are hit hard by dearer cooking and heating oil, he said. "So overall the rise in revenue is only slight," Haidir said. In contrast the developed members of Apec, such as Japan and the United States, have grown more immune to oil price volatility despite the thirsty energy needs of their industries and consumers. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Mon Nov 6 16:56:19 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Mon, 6 Nov 2000 20:56:19 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1638] NZ Herald on ABAC 2000 report Message-ID: <000a01c047c7$0e3cbf20$a485a7cb@notoapec> Backing for trade initiatives 20.10.2000 Business leaders linked to Apec have urged the world to engage in another round of talks to liberalise agricultural trade. The latest report from the Apec Business Advisory Council (Abac), released yesterday, said Apec leaders should reiterate that open trade and investment were critical for growth and development in the Asia Pacific region. The report will be presented to the 21 leaders of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Brunei next month. New Zealand's outgoing Abac representatives, former Trade Minister Philip Burdon, Trade Development Board chief executive Fran Wilde and Lion Nathan chairman Douglas Myers, contributed to the report. The report says Apec must remain a strong voice for trade liberalisation. As with past reports, the business leaders have told Apec politicians to continue with the forum's aims of removing trade and investment barriers for developed Apec economies by 2010 and developing economies by 2020. It says trade and investment liberalisation is central to the prosperity of the region and the world. Much of the report focuses on removing non-tariff barriers to trade, while encouraging nations to adopt technologies to embrace e-commerce opportunities. Apec trade ministers at their meeting in June pressed the World Trade Organisation to start another round of agricultural liberalisation talks, after the failure of the Seattle talks late last year. Abac says it endorses the ministers' call. Mr Burdon, co-chairman of Abac, will step aside from his role after next month's summit and is to be replaced as a member by former Dairy Board chairman Sir Dryden Spring. Ms Wilde and Mr Myers have been replaced by Montana Group chairman Peter Masfen and Wendy Pye, who publishes educational material. - NZPA From notoapec at clear.net.nz Mon Nov 6 16:37:10 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Mon, 6 Nov 2000 20:37:10 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1639] APEC in Brunei - Borneo Bulletin Online, Nov 5 2000 Message-ID: <001601c047c4$604e9a20$29cca7cb@notoapec> Brunei as birthplace of the 'New Economy' By a Special Correspondent The twenty-first century's first summit of the Asia-Pacific leaders will be held in a few days time. For the host, Brunei Darussalam it's all systems go, as it becomes the cynosure of the world's eyes as it hosts the biggest ever international gathering it had ever done . The leaders of Apec's 21 economies will assemble at the International Convention Centre in Berakas to set the pace and shape up the economic priorities for this region in particular, and for the world in general. Judging by the multifarious deliberations leading up to the Apec summit, the main focus could well be on the so-called 'New Economy,' that will transcend global borders . Brunei will indeed go down in history as where it all began in this new millennium. Some of the frontline economic and political leaders within the Apec fraternity have already set the guidelines for the inevitable birth of the ' New Economy'. For instance the US Apec Coordinator Lawrence Greenwood Jr. who earlier attended meetings in Brunei describes the new economy as something under which advances in information and communications technology can be applied to the way business is done, and how governments will be run in order to increase productivity, employment while generating new income and prosperity in the region. According to Mr Greenwood the new economy features a number of actions and inititiatives, many of which will be featured in Brunei.One important segment that Apec has been working on for almost 18 months is in the area of e-commerce readiness.Currently all but two Apec economies have undertaken e-commerce readiness assessment in their respective private sectors. Among some new aspects that may emerge at the summit will be matters dealing with e-commerce readiness guide for Asia Pacific, IT skills training,curbs on the use of unlicensed computer software and agreement on easier conformance of computer and telecom equipment standards. Speaking to the Asia-Pacific media in a televised interview this week Mr Greenwood expressed confidence that the summit in Brunei will indeed be a great success. He reiterated that the subject of "New Economy" will be a major theme at the summit. Under that heading delegates will be looking at a number of different policies and capacity-building programmes. At the same time the Brunei summit is expected to delve on trade, especially extensive discussions on building a consensus to get the new WTO round off the ground. Majority of Apec economies are hopeful of China completing the procedures needed to enter the World Trade Organisation thus becoming a fully fledged member of global trading system. Concerns over the very process of globalisation are expected to be raised, particularly by Malaysia who generally speaks on behalf of the developing countries.Apec being a forum of equals, a positive dialogue could be expected. The current global concerns over the price of oil will be another important issue that would be highlighted , mainly because of the impact of rising oil prices vis a vis the Asian economic recovery that is underway.Apec has hitherto tried to arrive at a common consensus between oil producers and consumers in order to achieve sustainability. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://list.jca.apc.org/manage/private/asia-apec/attachments/20001106/4d9e2965/attachment.html -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: image/gif Size: 43 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://list.jca.apc.org/manage/private/asia-apec/attachments/20001106/4d9e2965/attachment.gif From notoapec at clear.net.nz Tue Nov 7 03:43:24 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Tue, 7 Nov 2000 07:43:24 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1640] NZ eyes trade deal with Chile Message-ID: <000a01c04821$73420100$2acfa7cb@notoapec> Independent Radio News 7.10.00 Latest Business News Clark eyes trade deal with Chile as MPs vote on Singapore deal 07.11.2000 06:35 Parliament will today debate the free trade agreement with Singapore that the Prime Minister is expected to sign next week. It is expected, with the backing of National, the deal will win the majority of parliament's approval. The Government is looking at other trade blocs and Helen Clark says she will discuss one with Chile when its President pays an official visit to Auckland on Sunday. Miss Clark says the issues for Chile in an agreement with New Zealand are more complex that Singapore as they have a heavily protected dairy industry but she is keen to get into talks with them. President Ricardo Lagos will stop over in Auckland on his way to the APEC meeting in Brunei. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Tue Nov 7 09:02:43 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Tue, 7 Nov 2000 13:02:43 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1641] GATT Watchdog slams NZ Parliamentary debate and vote on Singapore trade deal Message-ID: <002001c0484e$2192ed60$96cea7cb@notoapec> GATT Watchdog PO Box 1905 Christchurch MEDIA RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE USE 7 November 2000 Government Gambling with People's Lives: Parliamentary Debate and Vote on Singapore Free Trade Deal a Charade - GATT Watchdog Today Parliament will debate and vote to ratify the Closer Economic Partnership free trade and investment agreement with Singapore. "In rushing through this agreement and stifling any genuine debate, Labour is exhibiting the same callous disregard for New Zealand workers, and communities' rights to determine their own path of development which it accused National of doing while in opposition. Now both parties are joining hands to ram the deal through before APEC," says GATT Watchdog spokesman Aziz Choudry. "Today's debate and vote is being heralded by some as a great leap forward in the way New Zealand deals with international trade agreements. In reality it is a charade. The outcome of this afternoon's vote has been predetermined. Officials signed off on the text of the agreement in August after it had been negotiated in secret. The much-vaunted Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade "consultations" about the agreement were a carefully-managed, cynical propaganda exercise. The select committee hearing into the agreement was a total farce, allowing around a week for people to obtain and read the 190-page text, analyse and write submissions. "If this is 'progress', it just shows how far New Zealand is behind comparable jurisdictions in terms of the democratic scrutiny given to international treaty negotiations. Both Australia and the USA are way ahead of us in this respect. "Few would begrudge Helen Clark and Jim Sutton having a flutter on the horses against the odds today in their private capacity, using their own money. But instead of joining the punters at the Melbourne Cup they are irresponsibly gambling with other people's lives. They are gambling with the livelihoods of local textile clothing and footwear workers and the wellbeing of their communities as they agree to remove all remaining tariffs on Singaporean imports, although 60% of the product's value could potentially be created by low-wage workers in an Indonesian free trade zone. They are locking in New Zealand's open investment regime which has contributed to massive joblosses, asset-stripping and overseas ownership of most of New Zealand's communications, financial and physical infrastructure. With this agreement, and the anti-democratic way in which they have pushed it through, they set a dangerous precedent for other trade and investment deals with other countries. They are gambling with our future. "The Singapore agreement is not due to come into effect till January 1 2001. But Helen Clark wants this deal stitched up now so she can sign it with great fanfare en route to the APEC Summit in Brunei next week. With APEC in virtual paralysis and the WTO reeling from failure to launch a new round of global trade talks in Seattle last year, both governments hope this agreement will be a way to symbolically put some momentum back into international trade and investment liberalisation which has been faltering for some time. "Like its predecessors, this government is petrified of any genuine contest of ideas about free trade. A decade and a half of free trade and investment policies have failed to deliver the promised benefits to the majority of New Zealanders. Gambling only pays when you are winning. For all of its rhetoric about social and economic justice and regional development, Labour is backing a free trade dogma which has lost all credibility in a race to the bottom." For further comment, contact Aziz Choudry ph (03) 3662803 From pcaravan at tm.net.my Tue Nov 7 17:50:36 2000 From: pcaravan at tm.net.my (People's Caravan 2000) Date: Tue, 07 Nov 2000 16:50:36 +0800 Subject: [asia-apec 1642] 6TH PRESS RELEASE - THE PEOPLE'S CARAVAN - NOV 13-30 Message-ID: <0G3N00LRZD8649@ipop2.tm.net.my> Dear Friends Please find below the latest press release for the People's Caravan - "Citizens on the Move for Land and Food Without Poisons!" from November 13-30. Your support in the distribution of this information to your network partners and within your own publications and information services is greatly appreciated. Regards, Sarah Hindmarsh Programme Assistant Genetic Engineering Campaign for Jennifer Mourin People's Caravan Regional Coordinator The People's Caravan 2000 ? Land and Food Without Poisons! FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 07 NOVEMBER, 2000 PRESS RELEASE Asia's rural poor denounces next round of APEC meetings A year after the intense protests mounted against the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Seattle, over 150 groups from 18 countries throughout the Asia Pacific region have denounced the next round of APEC meetings as yet another avenue by the 'advanced' countries, especially the US, to disadvantage third world peoples through trade and investment liberalisation, deregulation, privatisation and denationalisation. With close to 40% of US total trade now conducted with the East Asia and Pacific region, the US has its corporate guns firmly aimed on the region for further exports of pesticides and genetically engineered foods. Smoothing the way is APEC's support to actively participate in WTO negotiations to free up agricultural trade restrictions, which currently help to safeguard nations and the rural poor from the operations of powerful foreign transnational corporations (TNCs). If not checked, the implications for Asia Pacific regional agricultural and food production systems are profound. More landlessness; increased hunger and malnutrition; increased chemical pollution of groundwater, crops and ecosystems; more control by foreign agrichemical TNCs; and increased threats to people's food security and health is the recipe that APEC would serve up. When is this volatile agenda being cooked up? On November 15-16, 2000 at the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Leaders' Meeting at Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam. Feeding into the process is a round of APEC Ministerial, Senior Officials and Business Advisory meetings during the preceding week. To highlight the concerns of numerous non-governmental organisations, small farmers, landless peasants, farm workers, and anti-genetic engineering campaign groups, a People's Caravan is marching its cause across the region. Advocating "Land and Food Without Poisons" the People's Caravan, coordinated by the Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific (PAN AP), will travel through India, Bangladesh and the Philippines from November 15-30. Simultaneous activities will be held in Japan, Korea and Indonesia. Central to the Caravan's concerns is the environmentally and socially unethical promotion of pesticides by the US and APEC to bolster national agriculture towards export-crop production for the world market. This is an alarming trend. As far back as 1990, studies in the World Health Statistic Quarterly, a World Health Organisation (WHO) publication, showed that in the South alone an estimated 25 million workers and farmers suffered from pesticide poisoning. To make matters worse, the annual and growing agrochemical market?worth US$31 billion in 1998?fuels the increasing environmental crisis, as well as contributing to the depletion of oil which at current rates of consumption is set to run out within 40 years. Obviously, the intensive agricultural system has too many problems and needs to be phased out. More sophisticated farming systems that work with nature and the people are the real recipe for a sustainable future. As Sarojeni Rengam, Executive Director of PANAP comments: "Intensive agriculture and the current move to genetically engineered rice and other crops is corporate friendly, anti-people, anti-environment, and anti-long term sustainable development, and will only serve the short-term interests of profit and greed of an already excessively rich few. It has absolutely no benefit to the majority or to the region. Community and environmentally friendly agriculture has to be the only way forward". For more information contact: PAN AP (Pesticide Action Network Asia & the Pacific) Jennifer Mourin, Campaigns and Media Coordinator OR Sarah Hindmarsh, Programme Assistant Genetic Engineering Campaign. Tel: (60-4) 657-0271/ 656-038. Fax: (604) 657-7445 E-mail: panap@panap.po.my or visit the People's Caravan Web site: www.poptel.org.uk/panap/caravan.htm _________________________________________ People's Caravan 2000 P.O. Box 1170, 10850, Penang, Malaysia. Tel: (604) 657 0271/656 0381 Fax: (604) 657 7445 E-mail: pcaravan@tm.net.my / panap@panap.po.my Webpage: www.poptel.org.uk/panap/caravan.htm From notoapec at clear.net.nz Wed Nov 8 04:35:23 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Wed, 8 Nov 2000 08:35:23 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1643] NZ Herald on NZ Parliament vote for Singapore FTA Message-ID: <000a01c048f1$e1eb8240$5484a7cb@notoapec> Landmark free-trade treaty with Singapore to go ahead 08.11.2000 By JOHN ARMSTRONG political editor New Zealand's landmark free-trade deal with Singapore will be signed by the two countries' prime ministers next week after Parliament yesterday ratified the agreement by 89 votes to 30. Labour, National and United combined to provide majority backing for the closer economic partnership treaty in the face of opposition from the Alliance, the Greens, Act and NZ First. The deal will be rubber-stamped by the cabinet next Monday after the Alliance agreed to abide by the result of yesterday's vote in Parliament. The Coalition partner strongly opposed the deal on the grounds that it lacked national interest, employment, foreign investment and environmental safeguards. Helen Clark will sign the treaty in Singapore next Tuesday en route to Brunei, the venue for this year's Apec summit. While firmly in favour of free trade, Act voted against the motion because of the "bogus" and "deeply racist" clause inserted into the agreement giving more favourable treatment to Maori to meet Treaty of Waitangi obligations. The free-trade agreement looked in jeopardy in September after National suggested it might vote against the deal because it made special allowance for Maori. A slanging match erupted between Labour and National, with Labour accusing the Opposition of hypocrisy since the same words were used in previous trade deals drafted while National was in Government. National yesterday claimed belated victory in the spat, saying Ministry of Foreign Affairs papers it had since obtained showed that the clause was not there purely to meet treaty obligations. Its meaning had been broadened to ensure that affirmative action programmes under the Labour-Alliance "Closing the Gaps" programme were exempted from the agreement. Both National and Labour agreed yesterday that the free-trade deal was vital as a "bridge" to Asia because of lack of progress in multilateral trade liberalisation through the World Trade Organisation. Finance Minister Michael Cullen said New Zealand was perhaps the only developed country at some risk of being shut out of the increasing "circles" of regional trade agreements. The Singapore treaty was a crucial gesture that New Zealand wanted to be part of such agreements. Dr Cullen and National's Jenny Shipley cited the prospect of similar negotiations with Chile, whose President, Ricardo Lagos, is paying a brief visit to Auckland on his way to Apec. The closer economic partnership deal establishes a free-trade area with Singapore that covers goods, services, investment and technical barriers to the trade in goods. It eliminates tariffs, prohibits export subsidies on goods, including agricultural products, and expands services commitments. The agreement comes into effect on January 1. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 9 07:56:46 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 11:56:46 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1644] NZ Trade Talks with Hong Kong Message-ID: <000a01c049d7$2da5a2c0$7bcca7cb@notoapec> NZ to explore CEP prospects with Hong Kong Wednesday, 8 November 2000, 5:29 pm Press Release: New Zealand Government New Zealand to explore Closer Economic Partnership prospects with Hong Kong Hong Kong is a dynamic North Asian economy, and a key trading partner for New Zealand, Trade Negotiations Minister Jim Sutton said today. The two countries enjoyed excellent relations. "I welcome Mrs Chan's reported comments, which confirm that Hong Kong has been re-evaluating its previous policy of not entering into bilateral trade agreements, favouring instead the multi-lateral route to trade liberalisation. "On my instructions, New Zealand officials have briefed Hong Kong officials on the Singapore-New Zealand Closer Economic Partnership agreement, and are to hold exploratory discussions on the concept of a CEP between New Zealand and Hong Kong." Mr Sutton said that, with the agreement of Cabinet, these discussions would now become more structured, but it was not yet a formal negotiation. "It is my hope that we will be able to move quite quickly to that stage." Mr Sutton said such a development would of course entail Cabinet endorsement of a detailed negotiating brief and extensive public outreach and consultation. ENDS From notoapec at clear.net.nz Fri Nov 10 07:51:53 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Fri, 10 Nov 2000 11:51:53 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1645] Free trade and investment/NZ References: <20001109182746.16474.qmail@web1405.mail.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <008e01c04aaa$0ac12620$c5cda7cb@notoapec> For your info - here is a form letter currently being used to pressure the NZ government over trade and investment policy...it contains a summary of some of the issues which are on the agenda for those of us campaigning against the neoliberal agenda in solidarity Aziz Choudry GATT Watchdog ___________________________________________________ Dear friends, Below you will find a form letter prepared on behalf of GATT Watchdog and CAFCA which can be adapted and sent to Alliance and Labour MPs, party branches and officials, but also cross-posted on websites (with these introductory notes). With the Labour Party conference coming up in just over a week, and with the news that the government intends to pursue a free trade agreement with Hong Kong, we urge you to act quickly on this. We suggest you send by ordinary mail or email to MPs at Parliament Buildings, Wellington - (it's free!) Please send us copies by separate email to notoapec@clear.net.nz or by mail to PO Box 1905, Christchurch. Please repost this message and urge others to act. GATT Watchdog ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________ (Your Name) (Address) (Date) Dear In 1997-98, public outrage led to the defeat of the proposed Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) which would have given unprecedented powers to transnational corporations. Yet actions by this government threaten to achieve many similar aims piece by piece. This is despite both the Alliance coalition partner and the Greens, on which the government's existence depends, having campaigned strongly against such policies. The few controls on foreign investment that remain are being weakened step by step. Major overseas takeovers continue. Fletcher Paper and Air New Zealand are just two since the Labour/Alliance government took power. I am very concerned that there has been no action to strengthen the feeble controls that are still in place. There are no "national interest" criteria for the great bulk of foreign investment where no significant land or fishing quota is involved. We need to regain the ability to choose investment that suits us, and we need stronger "good character" laws for foreign investors. The trigger point for investments to require Overseas Investment Commission approval was raised from $10 million to $50 million by the outgoing National Government, and nothing has been done to reverse that. In fact, the Singapore "Closer Economic Partnership" cements that in. It commits us to opening even further to foreign investment over the next few years, particularly in the services sector where important social services such as health and education will eventually be affected. On top of that it strips us of the ability to reinstate international capital controls. I am concerned that this is only the start. There are investment liberalisation agreements that were negotiated by the previous government with Chile and Argentina in 1999, which have MAI-like "expropriation" clauses that would allow investors to force the government to pay compensation, or even revoke laws, if environmental or social measures reduce their profitability. These need only Cabinet approval to go into effect. They have never been opened to public consultation or Parliamentary debate. The government has announced negotiations with Hong Kong on a similar agreement to that with Singapore. It has committed itself to developing a wider version of the Singapore and CER agreements with the whole of South-East Asia, through negotiations headed by Bill Birch. It has talked about new free trade and investment agreements with Chile and the U.S.A. It supports opening more services to foreign investment through the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) under the WTO, and there are proposals for other investment agreements there too. I therefore strongly urge you to ? Oppose the Singapore agreement and any consequent legislation ? Gain an assurance that Cabinet will not approve the investment agreements with Chile and Argentina ? Oppose further work on the proposed agreements with Hong Kong and South-East Asia, and other similar agreements ? Support democratisation of the treaty approval process, including releasing drafts of proposed agreements during negotiations so the public can debate them properly. ? Work for a moratorium on further agreements and commitments under the WTO until an independent review has been made of the effects of previous agreements and the public have had an opportunity for a wide-ranging and informed debate on these issues. The world's political climate has changed radically with the 1997 Asian financial crisis, the Seattle debacle and the numerous demonstrations, critical reports and studies that have followed. Though changes in domestic policies recognise the failure of previous approaches, New Zealand's international economic policies seem not to have taken any notice of the sea-change that has occurred. Rather than continue to follow the previous government's international free market policies, which are completely at odds with the new government's opposition to free market policies at home, New Zealand needs to manage its economic relationship with the rest of the world. New Zealanders need to have a say in that. Yours sincerely From notoapec at clear.net.nz Fri Nov 10 18:51:53 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Fri, 10 Nov 2000 22:51:53 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1646] Fw: APEC/Philippines Message-ID: <001301c04afb$db2ed4a0$b8cea7cb@notoapec> > "Philippine Daily Inquirer", 10/11/00 > Amando Doronila, columnist > > > > Crisis brought before Apec > > > > THE RESIGNATION of Roberto Romulo, Jose Luis Yulo Jr. and Benigno Ricafort > as Philippine representatives in the Apec Business Advisory Council has not > been fully appreciated, coming as it did after the resignations in the > Cabinet and the defections in Congress. > > > > The resignation of the three means that the Philippine business sector, > amalgamated in the Abac will not be represented in the Asia-Pacific Economic > Cooperation forum in Brunei on Nov. 11-16. And the absence of the Abac will > highlight before an international forum the severance of the partnership > between government and private business in this country, as an aftermath of > the political crisis engulfing the Estrada administration. > > > > While Malaca?ang insists that the President will attend the Apec meeting > despite the crisis and a limping government, the Philippine delegation will > be crippled by the withdrawal of the Philippine business sector > representation in the Abac, composed of private sector groups in the > Asia-Pacific. During the past Apec summits, the private sector has been a > key component in the development of economic and trade ties among Apec > members, given that most of them are market economies. > > > > Romulo, the former foreign secretary, and his two other colleagues, wrote in > their letter to President Estrada on Nov. 4 that, ?We have been comfortable > in serving in this capacity in your administration because we felt that it > gave us the opportunity to work for a cause that we have long espoused. We > have long believed that the Philippine economy would on balance benefit from > closer economic integration with the Asia-Pacific region. More importantly, > that the success of such integration lies in adherence to the Apec ideals of > commitment to openness, transparency and accountability particularly in > economic governance. > > > > ?However, we have watched with great dismay how gradually our government has > strayed away from these ideals that Apec governments committed to when > leaders first met in Seattle and which they reaffirm every year. We in the > Abac have been critical of governments who have behaved in such a matter in > the past not just on moral grounds but because of their adverse economic > consequences on their citizens. > > > > ?And now the Philippine business community whose views we are mandated to > represent in Apec has expressed the same sentiment. We cannot in good > conscience continue to remain the country?s representatives to the Abac when > we find it increasingly difficult for us to remain credible in espousing > these ideals in this regional forum when our government is the first to > violate them. For this reason, we are tendering our resignation from our > appointment as Philippine representatives to the Abac effective > immediately.? > > > > The Philippine Abac representatives are referring to the corruption whose > more ghastly aspects have been revealed by Gov. Luis ?Chavit? Singson. It > would be difficult for them to be preaching transparency and level playing > field when the business environment in Manila smacks of rent-seeking and > favoritism for cronies. > > > > Thus, the absence of the Philippine representatives in the Abac can only > highlight the rupture between the government and the private sector and the > economic isolation of the government. Malaca?ang says that the President > will abbreviate his presence in the Apec, but with the jueteng scandal > hanging over his head, he will be placed in an embarrassing and awkward > position. Apec ministers will not, of course, ask him whether the jueteng > charges are true. They know better than doing that, and yet the President > will bear the stigma of the scandal in Brunei. > > > > The Philippine business sector has been the dynamo of initiatives for > regional economic integration, especially during the Ramos administration > when the Philippine economy posted a sustained rise in economic growth and > when its recovery put back the Philippines in the map of the Asian economic > miracle. Now, the Philippine business sector is in no position to stage > initiatives. The picture that will be presented in the now reduced > Philippine participation in the Apec is that the country has been crippled > by the crisis; consequently other Apec members would not be taking the > official delegation seriously. > > > > It is hard to imagine how the slide of the Philippine economy toward > recession can be stopped when the business sector has withdrawn its support > for the administration. The President may fortify the political front from > giving in to pressure for Cabinet resignations by compelling 23 Cabinet > members and even provincial governors and city mayors to sign pledges of > loyalty to the administration. The signature campaign is not normal. It > emphasizes the insecurity of the President about the loyalty of the > remaining Cabinet members, and his concern that public pressure would at > some point break the fa?ade of Cabinet solidarity. > > > > As the President maneuvers to regain control of Congress by moves to > reorganize the chambers by deposing Senate President Franklin Drilon and > Speaker Manuel Villar, he has succeeded in solidifying the trade union > movement, both from the Right and the Left, in jumping into the bandwagon of > the Estrada resign demand. The widespread withdrawal of support of many > sectors, including business and the unions, accelerates the tailspin of the > economy. No matter how much the President strengthens his political defenses > in the Cabinet and in Congress, in particular in the legislature where he is > facing an impeachment complaint, these defenses stand on shifting sand and > are likely to crumble. > > > November 10, 2000 > From notoapec at clear.net.nz Sat Nov 11 09:28:31 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Sat, 11 Nov 2000 13:28:31 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1647] NZ - Chile free trade deal Message-ID: <001001c04b76$567f95c0$b184a7cb@notoapec> (from www.newsroom.co.nz) Difficulty With Chile Free Trade Deal Staff Reporter Patric Lane 10/11/00 13:46:00 Negotiating a free trade deal with Chile is likely to prove more difficult than reaching a similar agreement with Hong Kong, according to the Trade Negotiations Minister Jim Sutton. Earlier this week, a visiting senior Hong Kong official indicated the North Asian hub economy was interested in looking at forming a trade pact similar to the NZ-Singapore Closer Economic Partnership (CEP) to be signed next Tuesday. South America's most open economy, Chile, also appears receptive to such an idea, with Prime Minister, Helen Clark, and Chilean President, Ricardo Lagos, due to meet this weekend to discuss the prospect of that country joining the CEP agreement. Mr Sutton said that talks with Chile were at an earlier stage than things were with Hong Kong, although New Zealand and Singapore officials had been to South America to brief their counterparts on the pending treaty. "It's really up to the Chileans - both Singapore and New Zealand would be open to exploring this idea further," said Mr Sutton. However, Mr Sutton said the Chileans were very sensitive about dairy products and would see New Zealand as a threat to their industry. If and when things moved forward, he expected negotiations to be more difficult than with Hong Kong, which doesn't have a dairy industry, let alone a protected one as in Chile, and provision would have to made for the South American country's "sensitive areas". While New Zealand would not be prepared to cut dairy produce out of a deal, the Government could be prepared to be flexible to give the Chilean industry - which had signed up to the APEC Bogor agreement to free up trade in goods between member economies over the next two decades - time to get competitive, said Mr Sutton. Presently, the trade scales with Chile hang in New Zealand's favour, with their economy soaking up $58.8 million worth of our exports in the year to June while $24.1 million worth flowed this way. Like New Zealand, the Chilean economy has a strong agricultural focus, counting fisheries, forest products, apples and kiwi fruit among its major exports. But Mr Sutton rejected any suggestion they are more competitive than compatible and that a trade deal would have little to offer. "They're probably our biggest southern hemisphere competitor, but on the other hand it's a bit like Singapore - the greatest opportunity for expansion is probably in the services sector because so many of our skills are relevant to their needs. "I think we're not potentially going to have a large trade in agricultural products between Chile and New Zealand but there could be a very considerable trade in services because we are capable of providing a lot of them." Mr Sutton also said that setting an example of an enlightened trade relationship involving agriculture would be a useful thing to do. ? NewsRoom 2000 From notoapec at clear.net.nz Sun Nov 12 07:36:09 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2000 11:36:09 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1648] Jenny Shipley (Former NZ PM) on APEC Message-ID: <000a01c04c2f$cc70eae0$9484a7cb@notoapec> Shipley: PM Must Get Real On APEC Friday, 10 November 2000, 3:15 pm Press Release: New Zealand National Party Helen Clark is wrong to assert that APEC has run out of steam and is only focused on trade liberalisation, Opposition Leader Jenny Shipley said today "In New Zealand's APEC year, we addressed issues such as food systems, customs union, e-commerce and approaches to manage economies effectively to recover from financial crises. All the leaders valued these measures highly. "APEC also provides an opportunity for leaders and CEOs of the region's leading companies to interact in the meetings that precede the leaders' summit - a process that is unique to APEC and invaluable for the opportunities it provides. "It is also a venue where the leaders of small economies have access to leaders of large economies. I can think of no other forum where the New Zealand Prime Minister has access to the leaders of Russia, China, Japan, the United States and the Latin Americans. "Both formally and informally, APEC can address a lot of issues that are beyond the scope of any other forum. "The Auckland summit last year demonstrated APEC's worth superbly as leaders used the meeting to thrash out a solution to the East Timor crisis. No other forum could have provided such a focus and prompted such immediate action. "The fact is, APEC has already scored real advances and there are more within its grasp - if leaders like Helen Clark are prepared to be bold. "I suspect that her comments are designed in part for domestic consumption. She is embarrassed going to APEC by the fact that her coalition partner is adamantly opposed to free trade. "I urge her to not allow domestic political interests to damage New Zealand's overall best interests as she goes to APEC. "The Alliance would rather New Zealand pulled out entirely. But that would be in no one's best interests," Mrs Shipley said. Ends From notoapec at clear.net.nz Sun Nov 12 07:41:14 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2000 11:41:14 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1649] APEC - from Borneo Bulletin (Brunei) Message-ID: <001501c04c30$805e9fc0$9484a7cb@notoapec> SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2000 Imams greet Apec pray for success By Malai Hassan Othman & Bahreen Hamzah Mosques throughout the country yesterday delivered a special sermon welcoming Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec), an international grouping of 21 world economies to hold its meetings. Brunei, one of the smallest economies in Apec is this time around a host to this prestigious international event. The climax of the meeting will be the much-awaited Leaders Summit next week which will be attended by world leaders including, United States President Bill Clinton, China's Premier Jiang Zemin, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japan's Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori as well as leaders from the less powerful and influential economies. Imams in the Friday sermon said it is truly an honour for Brunei, being just a small economy in such a big grouping of widely diverse economies, to play host to such prestigious international event. "Leaders and delegates from member economies will be in town soon for the upcoming Apec Ministerial Meeting and Leaders Summit," said imams in their sermon as senior Apec officials began their two-day deliberations to finalise preparations for a two-day ministerial meeting comprising foreign ministers and ministers responsible for trade to begin on Sunday. The imams said, as Brunei will be in the international limelight it would only be appropriate for people in the country to do the nation a favour by upholding "the fine identity and culture of Bruneians, the courtesy and the good attitudes we are known for". Imams during the Friday mass prayer also recited a special prayer to seek divine blessing for the smooth running of the Apec proceedings in the country which senior officials are struggling to avoid being sidetracked by the issue of rising world oil prices and globalisation. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Sun Nov 12 07:44:15 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2000 11:44:15 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1650] APEC Officials Conclude talks in Record Time Message-ID: <002001c04c30$ec240a60$9484a7cb@notoapec> Borneo Bulletin, Brunei SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2000 Apec officials conclude talks in record time By Suriani Garip Senior officials of 21 economies of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) yesterday displayed a show of unity as they concluded an informal meeting in double quick time , ahead of schedule after overcoming differences and reaching a rapid consensus. The senior officials finalised preparations for the two day meeting of foreign ministers and ministers responsible for trade commencing on Sunday in the Brunei capital. Yesterday's meeting was chaired by Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pehin Dato Lim Jock Seng. According to informed sources the statement to be released next Thursday is expected to include agreement on a new round of global trade liberalisation talks by the World Trade Organisation (WTO.) The officials' recommendations will now go to the meeting of ministers which will put the final touches to the final declaration by the leaders of the 21 Apec economies. The senior officials focused on the three broad themes of building stronger foundations, creating new opportunities and making Apec matter more. During the morning and afternoon sessions, they agreed to forward more than two dozen reports to the Twelfth Ministerial Meeting. The reports are expected to be endorsed by ministers ahead of the Apec Economic Leaders meeting starting next Wednesday. In the area of trade and investment liberalisation and facilitation, Pehin Lim presented the SOM Chair's summary report on improvements in individual action plans agreed to by members under the Osaka Action Agenda of 1995. Nineteen economies have already submitted their action plans for this year. Brunei updated officials on a new electronic IAP system developed by Australia, Brunei and Singapore with support from the APEC Secretariat in Singapore and software developed and sponsored by Microsoft Corp. The Chairman of the Committee on Trade and Investment (CTI) outlined the committee's annual report to be presented to ministers on Sunday while Australia updated officials on its new bizAPEC.com website. In the area of strengthening the multilateral trading system, Japan briefed officials on the final report on a strategic plan for capacity building in APEC related to implementing agreements under the World Trade Organization (WTO). The strategic plan identifies six categories of needs for developing economies and is based on nine reports on various field surveys. Australia also briefed officials on a separate final report outlining the past decade of progress in APEC. The report, "Open Economies Delivering to People", is based on a preliminary report prepared for the annual meeting of APEC ministers responsible for trade held in Darwin in June. In the area of strengthening markets, the SOM Chair outlined a progress report on APEC's "road map" for improving areas such as transparency, competition and regulation while reducing compliance costs and making business easier. The SOM Chair also outlined the annual report by the Economic and Technical Cooperation Sub-Committee to be presented to ministers on Sunday. On macroeconomic issues, the chairman of APEC's Economic Committee briefed officials on the committee's annual report to ministers as well as the annual Economic Outlook and two other reports, "APEC Economies Beyond the Asian Crisis" and "Toward Knowledge-Based Economies in APEC. The chairman also briefed officials on a new study on the impact of higher oil prices on APEC economies, requested by officials during their meeting in September. The SOM Chair outlined a separate report on human capacity building in APEC and meeting the needs of the 21st century. The report highlights education and skills upgrading among the key issues facing all stakeholders ranging from government and business to training institutions and workers. The Republic of Korea briefed officials on its report on an APEC forum on shared prosperity and harmony held in Seoul earlier this year. Initiatives include a regional social safety net, a cyber education network, a hedge fund monitoring channel and a foreign exchange crisis forecast model. Other reports endorsed during the morning session involved creating new opportunities. These included the SOM Chair's report on the New Economy and a report on electronic commerce covering paperless trading, consumer protection and a readiness assessment guide. Also endorsed was an APEC-wide action plan to support the use of electronic commerce by small and medium-sized enterprises. Towards the end of the morning session, China briefed the senior officials on arrangements for a high-level symposium on paperless trading to be held in Beijing in February. During the afternoon session, the officials turned to the third theme of making APEC matter more, reviewing a report on public outreach efforts to communicate the impact of trade liberalization, a framework for the integration of women, and activities to encourage the participation of youth. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Sun Nov 12 07:48:11 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2000 11:48:11 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1651] Brunei - APEC Security Message-ID: <002b01c04c31$7925c200$9484a7cb@notoapec> Borneo Bulletin SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2000 Host Brunei is ready security-wise By Noorlela Abdul Rahman & Jeani Goh Brunei Darussalam is ready for the Apec Summit, which is approaching in few days time. All the working Apec members are gearing up as a team to make a fruitful meeting in the Sultanate. Security is strictly focused in various Apec venues. Some of the foreign delegates may not be too confident of Brunei safeguarding the delegates. However, Brunei is now ready to prove to others that she can accomplish the important mission. The atmosphere is warming up and the pace is hectic in the International Convention Centre. Everybody is actively doing their respective tasks and some look confused in the vicinity. The Media Centre is crowded with local and foreign journalists gearing up to report and asking for more updated information. The International Convention Centre is equipped with a rapid scan and metal detector and is guarded by the members of the Royal Brunei Armed Force, Royal Brunei Police Force and the security members at every entry, and outside the vicinity. Without any legal car permit, vehicles are prohibited from entering. Guest and customers have to go through security checks before entering the hotels. One of the leading hotels in Brunei have two types of car passes granted to go in. Car Pass P is for parking at the hotel and Car Pass D is to drop off the passengers at the hotel. Even at the basement parking, the vehicles are thoroughly inspected by the members of security. Hotel customers have to tolerate this enforcement of safety procedures. In addition, hotel staff members are strictly required to use the Apec Identity Pass while working in the premises. The main attention of security will start at the Brunei International Airport in Berakas. Liaison officers, logistics staff, support staff, Royal Brunei Armed Forces, Royal Brunei Police Force and security members are always available to welcome the arrival of delegates and to assist in answering any enquiries made by the foreign delegates. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Sun Nov 12 07:51:00 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2000 11:51:00 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1652] Brunei - APEC SOM Message-ID: <003601c04c31$dd8d3020$9484a7cb@notoapec> Borneo Bulletin, Brunei SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2000 SOM a prelude to Apec Summit By Azlan Othman The informal Senior Officials Meeting, a prelude to the 12th Apec Ministerial Meeting, kicked-off yesterday at the plenary hall of the International Convention Centre, where plans were finalised for a two-day annual Ministerial meeting scheduled on Sunday. Dato Paduka Pehin Lim Jock Seng, who is chairing the senior officials meeting, said "we think this year's Ministerial meeting will be very productive, as we have several deliverables for the Ministers". He declined to give details of the deliverables, saying that "we are only the foot soldiers of Apec. We'll leave any decisions on announcement to the Ministers." The meeting of the foreign ministers and ministers responsible for trade is to be followed by a two-day summit of Apec economic leaders on November 15 and 16. Senior officials are expected to focus on three broad themes; building stronger foundations, creating new opportunities and making Apec matter more. In addition to reports on traditional APEC subjects such as trade and investment liberalisation and facilitation, the officials were set to consider on the new economy, electronic commerce and interaction with the community. Meanwhile. the atmosphere at the International Media Centre is back to its busiest stage as in the case of the last 20th Southeast Asian Games, which attracted 1,500 media people. Hundreds of journalists are already gathered to cover the event, and hundreds more will come in the next few days. Complimentary books, magazines, brochures are distributed free of charge to the press. These include state mufti monetary issue books, Time magazine, Apec folders plus a continuous flow of snacks and drinks. Press kits are also distributed but currently only to the foreign press. In addition, there are 60 computers available for the press. . JTB, DST, Postal service booth, medical centre, bank, airline booth and grocery shop are some of the facilities available at the ICC. Yesterday, some media people already visited the medical centre to seek minor treatment including headaches. Treatment for minor illness is free for all. Specialist consultation and treatment is chargeable for non-Bruneians. For economic leaders and Ministers, the specialist treatment is free. The ICC, the main venue for the Apec summit grew in size over the period of 10 years, from a floor area covering only a few thousand squares metres to the present 40,000 sq. metres, making it one of the largest buildings in the country. The ICC floor area can comfortably accommodate three standard football fields, with room to spare. The largest hall, the plenary hall, can seat 5,000 people. Apec information is continuously available to the press. For those who miss the information, it is available at the Apec's news centre website. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Sun Nov 12 08:13:19 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2000 12:13:19 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1653] Singapore Straits Times 11/11/00 - Regional Trade Pacts Message-ID: <005801c04c34$fb590720$9484a7cb@notoapec> Regional trade pacts the need of the hour FROM Egypt to Zimbabwe, the world's latest regional trading arrangement (RTA) this week means Africa has joined Europe, Asia and the Americas on the fast track to economic integration. But that does not mean the road to a new round of global trade talks is closed. Even as they weave more RTAs of their own, Asia- Pacific leaders will once again call for fresh global trade talks when they meet in Brunei later this month. In fact, world leaders never miss an opportunity to do so, but will their focus on building trade blocs hinder the path to freer global trade? According to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), out of 130 RTAs now in force, 90 were set up in the last five years. Apart from the free trade agreement (FTA) signed this week between nine east and south African states, ranging from Egypt to Zimbabwe, this year has seen others concluded between the European Union and Mexico, and the United States and Jordan, to name a few. Singapore, last month, saw a landmark agreement with Japan to negotiate an FTA. Singapore has been a part of Asean's FTA -- Asean Free Trade Area (Afta) -- since 1992, and it recently embarked on a series of new FTAs. It signed one with New Zealand in August and is also talking to Mexico and Canada. As a staunch supporter of WTO, Singapore's efforts clearly represent a recognition that without progress at the multilateral level, its business interests have to be secured through other means. The FTA with New Zealand, for example, tackles not just trade in goods, but also services, as well as providing for investment protection. Strategically, the tie-up also spurred efforts to bring Afta and the Australia-New Zealand FTA closer together. Of course, much more significant is Singapore's proposed FTA with Japan. That particular FTA marks a major policy shift on the part of Japan, and will be its first ever FTA. Although Japan is the world's second largest economy, and has extensive manufacturing investments in East Asia, it did not respond to North America Free Trade Area (Nafta) and the European Union (EU) with proposals for its own RTA. In fact, it is alone among the world's most developed countries in not having any FTAs for a variety of reasons, including its historical and agricultural sensitivities. Some critics of FTAs fear that such deals undermine the relevance of the multilateral trading system and could create closed blocs which would undermine the global trading system. Already, the two major trading blocks -- Nafta, which groups the US, Canada and Mexico, and the EU -- have been consolidating. The EU has been steadily expanding its FTAs with Eastern Europe, the Caribbean and Africa, while the US is supporting the development of what would be a 34-member Free Trade Area of the Americas. In the worst-case scenario, trade wars could see any country not affiliated to a significant RTA, like the European Union or Nafta, shut out from trading competitively. To prevent this, the WTO requires that RTAs do not make trading conditions for non-members any more restrictive than before they were set up. But the reality, as recognised by Japan's federation of economic organisations, Keidanren, is that with so many FTAs already, countries without them are putting their companies at a disadvantage. In Mexico, for example, Japanese companies not only face tariffs on their exports that their American or European competitors avoid, but also miss out on investment protection and government procurement opportunities that FTAs facilitate. ""To combat this situation, Japan obviously needs to conclude similar agreements,'' Keidanren said, urging its government to display political leadership. Singapore, a small, developed economy with no agricultural sector, is an ideal partner for Japan to enter the world of FTAs with. For Singapore, the deal has immense strategic importance. Indeed, Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said last week that ""strategically, this is a very important step, that North-east Asia is being linked to South-east Asia first through the Japan-Singapore free trade arrangement''. North-east Asia, of course, includes the industrial dynamos of Taiwan and Korea -- not to mention the huge potential market of China. According to an official study into the Japan-Singapore FTA, it would ""enable Japan to anchor its foothold'' in Asean, and, enhance Singapore's ""access to North-east Asian markets''. Mr Goh noted that the EU and Nafta expansions have not been matched by significant Asian economic integration efforts yet. But by seeking FTAs with New Zealand, Mexico and Canada, as well, Singapore is obviously not focusing solely on Asian economic integration. Indeed, as the Ministry of Trade and Industry's Permanent Secretary Khaw Boon Wan puts it tellingly: ""The primary objective of our trade policy is to guard our trading interests by ensuring a free and open international trading environment.'' RTAs can strengthen that environment, he says in an open letter on MTI's website. The jury is still out on whether RTAs are a stepping stone or stumbling block for global free trade. But the stepped-up RTA efforts by large and small countries alike, such as those between Japan and Singapore, do show that -- in the words of WTO director-general Mike Moore -- ""trade ministers aren't going to sit around and do nothing in the absence of global trade talks''. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A BRIEF HISTORY OF TRADE AGREEMENTS a.. 1948: General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (Gatt) establishes global trading rules. a.. 1951: European Coal and Steel Community established, eventually becomes the European Union (EU). a.. 1992-1993: Gatt talks stalled; Europe moves towards closer economic union; the US, Canada and Mexico agree to set up Nafta and Asean agrees to set up Afta. Proposals for an East Asia economic caucus championed by Malaysia. a.. 1994: World's trade ministers agree to set up World Trade Organisation to institutionalise Gatt. a.. 1995: EU and South America's Mercosur agree to set up an FTA. a.. 1996: Singapore hosts inaugural WTO ministerial meeting. a.. 1998: Apec attempt to free up trade in 16 sectors fails. a.. August 1999: WTO members, unable to agree on who should be its new chief, decide to split the job between New Zealand's Mr Mike Moore and Thailand's Mr Supachai Panitchpakdi. a.. September 1999: Singapore and New Zealand agree to negotiate an FTA. a.. December 1999: WTO ministerial meeting in Seattle ends without agreement even on a joint statement. a.. May 2000: Asean agrees to let Malaysia postpone its Afta commitments. a.. June 2000: Singapore and Canada agree to start work on an FTA. a.. July 2000: FTA between EU and Mexico comes into force. a.. October 2000: Proposed FTA between Afta and Australia and New Zealand put off for study; Japan agrees to talks for FTA with Singapore From notoapec at clear.net.nz Sun Nov 12 08:16:26 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2000 12:16:26 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1654] Australia-Singapore possible trade deal Message-ID: <006301c04c35$6b36b920$9484a7cb@notoapec> Singapore Straits Times 11/11/00 S'pore, Australia may enter free-trade talks An agreement to work on such a deal may come after the two PMs meet at the Apec summit next week By DOUGLAS WONG IN BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN SINGAPORE and Australia may launch negotiations for a bilateral free-trade agreement (FTA) at next week's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit here, sources said. The proposed FTA would be the sixth such pact to be considered by Singapore in the past year or so with fellow Apec members including Japan, Canada, Chile, New Zealand and Mexico. FTA deals are seen as vital supplementary tools in Apec's free-trade push. Trade officials from Singapore and Australia were tight-lipped on their potential FTA yesterday but sources said that an agreement to work on such a deal could come after Prime Ministers Goh Chok Tong and John Howard meet next week. Singapore-Australia trade was worth over A$8.2 billion (S$9 billion) last year, making Singapore Australia's seventh-largest trading partner. Two other Apec members -- New Zealand and Hongkong -- may also announce FTA plans, as the 21-member grouping continues with efforts to lower trade barriers regionally and globally. The New Zealand Parliament passed the FTA with Singapore this week, and it will be sealed by its two Prime Ministers in a ceremony next Tuesday, after the two countries announced their FTA plans at last year's Auckland Apec summit. Other FTA talks involving Singapore are at varying stages. Apec -- with members ranging from tiny Brunei to giants like China, the United States and Russia -- accounts for half of world trade, 60 per cent of global output and has its own goal of free and open trade by 2020. The target is to be achieved in two stages with developed economies such as the US and Japan opening their markets by 2010, followed by the developing member economies. Unlike the World Trade Organisation (WTO) where trade concessions are negotiated, Apec operates on a voluntary basis -- supplemented increasingly by bilateral FTAs. New Zealand and Hongkong said on Wednesday that they were holding exploratory talks on an FTA, which would be the special administrative region's first, and New Zealand's third. Australia had earlier declined to join New Zealand and Singapore in their FTA negotiations but, like other economies, has become warmer to such arrangements since last year's failed WTO ministerial meeting in Seattle. Australia and New Zealand, which have a long-standing FTA, both sought recently to secure links with Asean's FTA but that was put on hold because of political concerns. The Australian Financial Review newspaper reported yesterday that Australia has also sounded out Japan and South Korea on a deal. The paper said that an Australian FTA with Singapore would have particular benefits in the services sector. Apec senior officials yesterday ended preparations for the annual meeting of their foreign and trade ministers a day early, signalling consensus on Brunei's agenda of measures to boost the region's computer access, and to continue economic and technical cooperation. Ministers will begin their two-day meeting tomorrow to prepare the ground for the annual Apec summit of leaders next week. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Mon Nov 13 11:00:57 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Mon, 13 Nov 2000 15:00:57 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1655] APEC Monitoring Group Challenges Government Participation, Expenditure in APEC Talkfest Message-ID: <002801c04d15$928add40$ea84a7cb@notoapec> MEDIA RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE USE 13 November 2000 APEC Monitoring Group Challenges Government Participation, Expenditure in APEC Gabfest "If Helen Clark thinks that APEC has run out of steam why is her government continuing the pretence that APEC is going somewhere and is worth supporting? As long as the government participates in it, it is clinging to a discredited free market economic model which aims to do to the whole Asia Pacific region what Rogernomics and Ruthanasia did to New Zealand", says the Aotearoa/New Zealand APEC Monitoring Group, which campaigned against last year's APEC meetings in New Zealand. "But APEC is a talkfest going nowhere fast." According to figures obtained under the Official Information Act, the government is spending $2,108712 on participation in APEC activities throughout 2000, including the costs of officials and politicians attending this week's APEC Summit in Brunei. "How on earth can it justify this expenditure?" asks the APEC Monitoring Group. "Last year the Shipley government spent almost $50 million on hosting APEC and promised this would lead to all kinds of benefits and opportunities that have never eventuated.. At the time we said APEC would barely limp on into the new millennium, and that the Summit was a taxpayer-funded pre-election photo opportunity for the Shipley government. We have been proved to be right, and National lost the election. "We warned that internal tensions among the 21 APEC members would paralyse efforts to speed up and broaden trade and investment liberalisation. Unlike the economic fundamentalism of successive New Zealand governments, many APEC members have long been critical of claims that economic liberalisation is the only alternative. Because of these conflicts and the inability to reach consensus APEC shunted off many issues to the WTO - which also failed to deal with them when the Seattle talks dissolved in disarray. Now both the WTO and APEC are engulfed by a serious crisis of legitimacy and credibility, and the multilateral trading system is struggling to keep its head above water." "In 1999 we pointed out that official moves to seek the "constructive participation" of "civil society" in APEC was merely public relations rhetoric to try to stave off mounting criticism of the forum and its free market goals "Since last year's APEC Summit in Auckland, peoples movements around the world have made it clear their response to continued attempts to push this narrow economic agenda on the world will no longer be so 'civil'. There have been major protests in Seattle, Washington, Melbourne, Prague, Seoul and dozens of other cities around the world against meetings which promote free trade and investment. Meanwhile many governments, particularly in the Third World, are resisting pressure to implement further trade and investment liberalisation measures. "The tide is turning internationally against the economic policy package that APEC and the WTO promote. But the Labour-led government is playing King Canute as it tries desperately to kickstart multilateral trade and investment liberalisation through a patchwork of bilateral deals with countries like Singapore and Hong Kong. . "It is high time the government stopped to rethink its position in relation to international trade and economic policy and the social, political, and environmental costs of free trade and investment ideology." For further comment, contact Aziz Choudry (03) 3662803 ; Radha D'Souza (09) 846 3227 or Maxine Gay/Robert Reid (04) 237 5062 or 3895399 From ircalb at swcp.com Wed Nov 15 02:06:06 2000 From: ircalb at swcp.com (Interhemispheric Resource Center) Date: Tue, 14 Nov 2000 10:06:06 -0700 Subject: [asia-apec 1656] APEC and Vietnam Message-ID: <3.0.1.32.20001114100606.006fced4@swcp.com> Dear Colleagues, Below are links to two of latest FPIF policy briefs that relate to President Clinton's trip to South East Asia. best regards, Tim -------------------------------------------------------------- FOREIGN POLICY IN FOCUS http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/index.html -------------------------------------------------------------- Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) by John Gershman (FPIF Asia Pacific Editor) http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/briefs/vol5/v5n39apec.html Together, the APEC countries account for nearly half of the world?s merchandise trade, half the global GNP, and approximately half of the world?s population. Operating from a modest secretariat in Singapore, APEC sponsors regular meetings and annual summits of senior government officials and heads of state. APEC operates by consensus rather than through binding agreements and the type of legalism evident in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) or the European Union (EU). Through a process of ?concerted unilateralism,? APEC members define broad regional goals but leave the specific aspects of implementation to each nation. As the world?s broadest regional economic institution, APEC is worth preserving if it can do two things: 1) contribute to community building efforts in the region that address shared social, environmental, and economic challenges, and 2) move toward a more balanced sustainable development agenda. As first steps, the U.S. could gain support for these two goals by abandoning its liberalization-for-everyone approach, increasing its support for capacity building efforts at the national and regional levels through the eco-tech process, and leading by example at home. Beyond liberalization, the U.S. has no serious proposals to offer at APEC. While the U.S. concentrates on overcoming the objections to what regional leaders see as Washington?s agenda for a U.S.-dominated pattern of globalization, other problems raised by U.S. citizen groups and regionally based NGOs receive little attention. A central complaint is that APEC is opaque and undemocratic. As a result, citizen organizations have difficulty raising their concerns about the development process in the Asia-Pacific region. Overcoming the Legacy of the Vietnam War By Andrew Wells-Dang http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/briefs/vol5/v5n26vietnam.html Breaking the current deadlock in U.S.-Vietnam relations requires substantive new initiatives on the part of the United States. Of primary importance is the bilateral trade agreement?not because signing it will bring Vietnam the economic benefits that the U.S. business lobby claims, but because it removes a critical cold war-era roadblock to full relations. Increased access for U.S. corporations will, of course, have dubious effects on Vietnam?s workers and overall social development. But the effects of the trade agreement may well be less significant than claimed by either its proponents or its detractors. Few Vietnamese companies are in a position to expand rapidly into the U.S. market, and potential U.S. investors may find their returns smaller than expected. Contrary to President Clinton?s hyperbole, the agreement will not ?dramatically open? Vietnam?s economy or society, let alone ?go hand-in-hand with [improvements in] human rights.? Foreign Policy in Focus (FPIF)--a "Think Tank Without Walls." A joint project of the Interhemispheric Resource Center and the Institute for Policy Studies, FPIF is an international network of analysts and activists dedicated to ?making the U.S. a more responsible global leader and partner.? We encourage responses to the opinions expressed and may print them in the "Letters and Comments" section of Progressive Response, a weekly electronic journal of world affairs. For more information on FPIF and joining our network, please consider visiting FPIF?s website: http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org/. submit comments to: tim@irc-online.org ****************************** Tim McGivern tim@irc-online.org Foreign Policy in Focus http://www.foreignpolicy-infocus.org From sap at web.net Wed Nov 15 06:12:45 2000 From: sap at web.net (Faruq Faisel) Date: Tue, 14 Nov 2000 16:12:45 -0500 Subject: [asia-apec 1657] Presentation in Ottawa: Health and Globalization Message-ID: <001801c04e80$4d927c40$5b0000c0@look.ca> SOUTH ASIA PARTNERSHIP (SAP) CANADA Invites you to a presentation on: People's Health in a Globalizing World: The Case of India By: Dr. Mira Shiva Head, Public Policy Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI) Date: Tuesday, November 21, 2000 Time: 9:30 am - 12:30 pm Venue: Westin Hotel Governor General Room, 2nd Floor 11 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa Dr. Mira Shiva is a leading campaigner and advocate for people-centred health policies and programs in India. She speaks to the full spectrum of health issues in the country, including drugs and pharmaceuticals, a rational drug policy; reproductive and women's health; female feticide; epidemics; equity and the impact of globalization on health in India. Among other writings, Dr. Shiva is the editor of "National Profile on Women, Health and Development", published by VHAI in April 2000. She is also a coordinator, organizer, networker for different international organizations and movements for better health for people at the grassroots. The Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI) is one of the foremost organizations on health issues in India. It is a federation of 24 state organizations, uniting more than 4000 health and development institutions and community-level health programs in the country. VHAI's activities include campaigns research, policy advocacy, training, public engagement, publications and information, and projects. As an apex body in India it is an advocate for community health policies and services, social justice and human rights. Dr. Shiva is in Canada as a guest of South Asia Partnership Canada, a forum in Canada on South Asian human development, linking Canadian civil society organizations with partners in the region. Dr. Shiva will be in Ottawa from November 20 to 22, 2000. Please RSVP by phone, fax or e-mail to: Faruq Faisel or Judy Stott, SAP Canada Phone: (613) 241-1333, Fax: (613) 241-1129, E-mail: sap@web.net From notoapec at clear.net.nz Wed Nov 15 14:11:35 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Wed, 15 Nov 2000 18:11:35 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1658] Jane Kelsey - Time to turn off Apec's life-support machine? Message-ID: <000a01c04ec2$8af35a40$1385a7cb@notoapec> New Zealand Herald, Auckland Dialogue: Time to turn off Apec's life-support machine? 15.11.2000 JANE KELSEY* says that Apec has become moribund, a peripheral and dispensable victim of disagreements between members and bilateral initiatives. Last July, Prime Minister Helen Clark told the Financial Times that little would come from Apec this year. Undiplomatic, perhaps, but she simply reflected what others had said for years. The Government could now afford that admission. Its term as Apec's chairman was over and the poisoned chalice had passed to the Sultan of Brunei. Apec was kept on life support last year as part of the National Government's election-year publicity platform. Officials understood that every Apec activity was expected to reflect well on the Government. Despite an excess of hype and spin, Apec proved hard to sell. Aucklanders especially were irritated at the cost and inconvenience, while the wider public seemed unconvinced that a regional version of New Zealand's failed free-market experiment was a truly desirable goal. The 1999 talkfest was rescued from disaster by the imperative on leaders to address the tragedy in East Timor - an irony, given the New Zealand Government's insistence that non-trade issues had no place on the Apec agenda. Then a week of Clinton mania helped to eclipse the overpolicing of protests against Chinese Premier Jiang Zemin. As for Apec itself, there was a signal lack of progress towards its defining goal of free trade and investment in the region by 2010 for its richer members and 2020 for poorer ones. The face-saver saw Apec's economies endorse a raft of issues for inclusion in the new World Trade Organisation round, to be launched in Seattle in late November last year. That strategy failed, too. The paralysis has continued in Brunei this week. The ministerial meeting was reduced to debating the subtleties of the communiqu? since nothing of substance could be agreed. Malaysia insisted that poorer countries must retain the right to shape their policies according to domestic economic and social circumstances, and any negotiations in the WTO must have a balanced agenda with no rigid timeline. Apparently, Thailand and the Philippines supported that, with South Korea, Japan and others more quietly sympathetic. Some believe that constructing a web of bilateral and sub-regional agreements can provide a circuit-breaker for both Apec and the WTO, with New Zealand and Singapore leading by example. Others fear that this will undermine the goal of free trade and investment on a global scale. The motives behind the strategy are pragmatic and political. Negotiations between two governments are far less complex than with the 138 members of the WTO or even the 21 of Apec. The deals they reach can be selectively extended to others and refined as necessary. Low-key bilateral negotiations also attract less publicity than regional and global deals. The forces of opposition are limited to the countries involved. The secrecy that surrounds the negotiations shields the details from scrutiny until the text is signed, allowing governments to consult and release information selectively and with optimum spin. Such agreements are ad hoc and highly variable. Governments that are reluctant to make further global concessions can craft deals that produce more tangible returns to them, while protecting areas of primary concern. That applies even to governments that have been champions of free trade. Singapore carefully safeguarded its sensitive economic interests in the recent treaty with New Zealand. Chile has rejected New Zealand's proposals for a similar agreement because of the impact on its dairy industry. An initially reluctant Australia has now expressed interest in such arrangements but only if there is something in it for it. New Zealand, on the other hand, seems committed to entering such deals on almost any terms. The ideology of free trade and investment still reigns supreme, despite the rejection of a market-driven New Zealand by voters and, to varying degrees, the parties that make up the governing Coalition. This bilateral strategy is not new, but it is gaining momentum. Most people know about the CER agreement with Australia, signed in 1983 and extended periodically since then and which some now suggest should include a common currency. Fewer people know that last July the National Government signed investment agreements with Chile and Argentina which promise to protect their investors from New Zealand Government actions that would undermine their profitability, and vice versa. These agreements run for a minimum 15 years. If a government then withdraws, existing investors will continue to enjoy those protections for a further 15 years. Breaches can attract punitive sanctions. Although neither agreement has come into effect, that simply requires an exchange of letters between each government. There has been no parliamentary scrutiny or debate and minimal public disclosure. The same applies to investment agreements New Zealand signed with China and Hong Kong in 1989 and 1995, respectively. The Government is now aiming for a free-trade agreement with Hong Kong. It hopes this and similar deals can be signed off with a minimum of public and political opposition. That would be a serious miscalculation. A private member's bill to require full parliamentary approval of treaties is before a select committee. Whatever its fate, these agreements have now become politically charged. At the same time, the Singapore, Chile and Argentina treaties provide solid examples around which the opponents of globalisation can campaign. Where does Apec fit in this scenario? It is both peripheral and dispensable. Rather than leading the charge, the ministerial and leaders' meetings are little more than opportunities for governments to take soundings from each other and reaffirm the Apec rhetoric without having to deliver. With China in the chair next year, the politics of Apec will be even more complex. By then, the multiplicity of bilateral negotiations may have further undermined its regional approach, while the battles among Apec members over the direction of the WTO remain unresolved. For critics of Apec, this is no victory. The forum itself has never been the issue. It is merely one of many vehicles through which the global free market is pursued. If Apec remains moribund, the free traders - and their opponents - will refocus their energies elsewhere. * Jane Kelsey lectures in law at the University of Auckland. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Wed Nov 15 14:15:54 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Wed, 15 Nov 2000 18:15:54 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1659] New Zealand Herald on APEC 2000 Message-ID: <002001c04ec3$220954c0$1385a7cb@notoapec> New Zealand Herald Free trade enters by back door 13.11.2000 By JOHN ARMSTRONG political editor The end-of-summit communique is already written, its language crafted to offend no one. Noble-sounding sentiments will insist that global trade talks stalled at the World Trade Organisation must begin as soon as possible - but without any helpful incentives offered by way of tariff cutting from Apec's own protectionist laggards such as Japan. Don't hold your breath, either, for a strong statement on Apec's other headache - soaring oil prices threatening to plunge member economies into 1970s-style recession. Apec is split between big oil consumers, such as the United States and Japan, and oil exporting nations, such as Malaysia, Mexico and, of course, host Brunei. On that delicate subject, the communique's tone will be what diplomats describe as "finely balanced." So much for this week's Apec, an organisation once again dogged by questions about its relevance a year on from Auckland, although Bill Clinton may want to make some impact at his last meeting before signing off as President. The more relevant piece of paper may be the one flourished in Singapore tomorrow, the day before the leaders meet in neighbouring Brunei. In an ornate hotel ballroom just off the shopping mecca of Orchard Rd, New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and her Singapore counterpart, Goh Chok Tong, will sign the landmark free-trade agreement between the two countries at precisely 7.32 am. Helen Clark then leaves immediately to catch a flight to Brunei. The timing is deliberate. Having provocatively, but frankly, declared that Apec has run out of steam on trade liberalisation, Helen Clark intends the deal with Singapore to send a pre-summit message to other Apec leaders and act as a catalyst on those who are making precious little effort to reach the organisation's ambitious target of free trade by 2010 for developed economies. But the general lack of will to revitalise the tariffs issue via Apec and the Mike Moore-led WTO is also forcing free-traders such as New Zealand to take the precaution of stitching together such bilateral and trilateral agreements among themselves. A patchwork of such deals criss-crossing the Pacific may yet go a long way towards helping Apec reach the 2010 target by de facto means - and not thanks to Apec itself. New Zealand, which has already cut tariffs unilaterally, is now looking at striking a Singapore-like deal with Hong Kong. Likewise with Chile, whose President, Ricardo Lagos, stopped over in Auckland yesterday for talks with Helen Clark on his way to Brunei. All this should single Helen Clark out for attention in Brunei. It is understood that Taiwan is also interested in a deal. And lurking in the background is the P5 (Pacific Five) - a free-trade area that would link New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, the United States and Chile. Progress on that initiative is slow, having been halted by the American presidential election, with the candidates afraid of offending domestic lobbies. But P5 is a scary prospect for the more protectionist economies, which risk shutting themselves out of the burgeoning number of free-trade areas. The question is where this leaves Helen Clark, who, in Opposition, sounded like a critic of such speedy trade liberalisation. She argues that Labour has always favoured free trade, but considered Apec too focused on a rigid liberalisation agenda and not enough on ensuring that the benefits of globalisation are shared around more fairly. Apec is now shifting the emphasis. Such broader thinking is understood to be reflected in the communique, which stresses the need to address widening disparities between nations in wealth and knowledge, and develop sound social "safety nets" - language that will satisfy social democrats such as Helen Clark and Mr Clinton. In this regard, at the leaders' retreat at the Rudyard Kipling-sounding Jerudong Polo Club, Helen Clark intends playing a "bridging" role, speaking as a developed economy but one that is based on primary production and thus shares the trade access worries of lesser-developed economies. * John Armstrong will be in Singapore and Brunei with the Prime Minister to cover the Apec summit. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Wed Nov 15 15:17:04 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Wed, 15 Nov 2000 19:17:04 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1660] Mark Vaile on APEC Message-ID: <002f01c04ecb$ad347e00$3b85a7cb@notoapec> Sunday, November 12, 2000 Open Economies: APEC's Decade of Delivering Trade Minister, Mark Vaile, today released a new report which shows that the open economic policies pursued by APEC members over the last decade have helped to improve economic and social conditions in the Asia Pacific region. "This research demonstrates that during a decade in which APEC economies lowered trade and investment barriers, 195 million jobs were created and around 165 million people in the region have been lifted out of poverty," Mr Vaile said. The report, titled Open Economies Delivering to People: APEC's Decade of Progress, was released by Mr Vaile on the first day of the APEC Joint Ministerial Meeting, in Brunei. "Economies that embrace economic openness reap the biggest rewards and APEC has played a pivotal role in helping member economies pursue these policies. The Open Economies report estimates that reaching APEC's Bogor goals of free and open trade and investment would add over A$1 trillion to regional GNP. "It exposes the weak arguments of those who oppose efforts to open up markets. Indeed, it demonstrates that such policies help solve many of the problems that concern the anti-globalisation lobby," Mr Vaile said. The report shows that over the past decade APEC economies have generated nearly 70% of global growth; exports have increased by 113% to nearly A$5 trillion; and foreign direct investment in APEC economies has grown by over 200% - and by 475% in lower income APEC economies. APEC comprises: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong (China), Indonesia, Japan, The Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Russian Federation, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, US and Vietnam. Contact: John Kunkel in Brunei (08) 740 358; from Aust. (6738 740 358) From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 16 04:01:13 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2000 08:01:13 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1661] Bigger trade bloc possible within year Message-ID: <000a01c04f36$6eb72ae0$2384a7cb@notoapec> New Zealand Herald, Auckland Bigger trade bloc possible within year By John Armstrong, political editor 16.11.2000 BRUNEI - New Zealand, Australia and Singapore could be a free-trade bloc by this time next year. Australia and Singapore said yesterday that they would start talks on a comprehensive bilateral free-trade agreement immediately and hoped to sign a deal in time for next year's Apec leaders' meeting in Shanghai. Yesterday's announcement - which New Zealand officials had known about in advance - comes hard on the heels of the historic free-trade deal between Singapore and New Zealand, which the two countries' Prime Ministers signed on Tuesday on their way to this year's Apec summit in Brunei. New Zealand and Australia already have their longstanding CER partnership which has removed tariff barriers. The new moves thus set up the possibility of a trilateral arrangement. And Prime Minister Helen Clark immediately raised the prospect of Chile joining, saying that country would be spurred into action by yesterday's announcement despite worries about protecting its inefficient dairy industry. To kick things along, she scheduled a trilateral meeting with Chilean President Ricardo Lagos and Singaporean leader Goh Chok Tong yesterday afternoon. She also flagged the possibility of Hong Kong being party to the wider arrangement down the track, although she acknowledged it competed with Singapore as a financial services centre. Both Singapore and New Zealand are also trying to entice the United States into a "Pacific Five" free-trade area, which would also include Australia and Chile - a mega-deal on hold until after the new American President takes office. Both Mr Goh and Helen Clark raised the possibility of New Zealand being party to talks with Australia on a combined free-trade area. The sudden proliferation of such bilateral deals has dominated this year's Apec, which is struggling to advance global talks on new trade rules. The danger is that Apec will be trampled in the rush and poorer members, such as Vietnam, will be ignored by richer states stitching up deals between themselves. Mr Goh and Australian Prime Minister John Howard said their negotiations should not be seen as undermining Apec's own free-trade goals or efforts to start a fresh round of multilateral talks through the World Trade Organisation. "Those who can run faster should be allowed to run faster," said Mr Goh. "They should not be constrained by those who do not want to run at all." Those remarks may be seen as a pointed reference to Malaysia, which has this week blocked attempts to start WTO talks. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 16 04:04:01 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2000 08:04:01 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1662] Brunei spares no expense to host top show Message-ID: <001501c04f36$d1fb27a0$2384a7cb@notoapec> NZ Herald, Auckland Brunei spares no expense to host top show 16.11.2000 By JOHN ARMSTRONG political editor BRUNEI - The old joke about Apec needs to be rewritten. No longer should it stand for "Ageing Politicians Enjoying Cocktails;" in strictly Muslim Brunei, "Alcohol-deprived Politicians Enduring Coca-Cola" would be more apt. But the country's ban on booze and the force-feeding of soft drinks and fruit juice at official functions and dinners ranks as the only deprivation being suffered by world leaders gathered in the tiny sultanate on the island of Borneo. Unless, that is, you count the sleep-interrupting 4.30 am call to prayer booming from loudspeakers at the local mosque. Still, there is plenty of time to kip, as Brunei proudly claims the "Most boring nightlife in the world" title. If this year's Apec is a failure - and that is the way the summit has been shaping all week on the big-ticket issue of cutting barriers to free trade - no one can blame the polite and patient hosts. As befits a man who houses his scores of polo ponies in air-conditioned stables at Jerudong Polo Club, the Sultan of Brunei has spared no expense to ensure the week-long Apec circus at least functions in the logistical sense. But while it is nice to have somebody opening every door for you as you rush between frank and meaningless meetings and countless press briefings, you do ponder why it needs five people to do the job. The Sultan, now in second place in the seriously rich stakes behind software whizz Bill Gates, appears to have dragooned many of his 300,000 subjects - plus a tide of foreign workers - into helping him run Apec. For example, the cooks working in the kitchen of Helen Clark's guest-house are caterers imported from Thailand by the Hyatt Hotel. "Guesthouse" is a modest description of a millionaire's mansion - one of 20 or so in the tightly-guarded leaders' compound, which come with servants, swimming and spa pools, gold-flecked carpets and wide-screen televisions. Bill Clinton, of course, gets the biggest one. They were constructed in 1992 for VIPs invited to the Sultan's 25th jubilee. Since then, cleaners have come in every day to dust the chandeliers and buff the fine wooden furniture - but the houses had stood empty until this week. On a lesser scale of extravagance, much the same under-use applies to the Ong Sum Ping apartments, a nearby complex of 11-storey blocks designed in tasteful Muslim-modern and housing the hordes of officials and media representatives who have flown in for the summit and who cannot be fitted into the country's few hotels. These apartments, too, have stood vacant since serving as athletes' accommodation for the Asian Games in the late 1990s. Never mind. Brunei has confounded the sceptics and is coping with one of the planet's biggest roadshows. Then again, as one foreign diplomat confided, you can fix most things with money. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 16 04:16:35 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2000 08:16:35 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1663] Australia leads free trade charge in Brunei - Melbourne Age Message-ID: <002b01c04f38$93711b00$2384a7cb@notoapec> The Age, Melbourne, 15/11/00 Australia leads charge on globalisation and free trade Source: AAP| Brunei: Australian Prime Minister John Howard today led a charge of support for globalisation and free trade at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Brunei. Fresh from committing Australia to a free trade agreement with Singapore, Mr Howard said the true story of the benefits of globalisation were being ignored. He was backed by US President Bill Clinton who used a keynote address to APEC business leaders to urge further trade liberalisation because of is benefits to the Asia-Pacific. And Chinese President Jiang Zemin also said globalisation had brought many benefits, but warned it needed more stringent regulation to protect developing nations. But it was Mr Howard, along with Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, who pushed the globalisation cause. He said countries which followed a path of trade liberalisation were streets ahead of those who hid behind trade barriers. 'If you've looked at what's happened to their growth, their poverty levels and the like you will see that those that have taken the more open path are wealthier, stronger and better able to look after their citizens,' Mr Howard said. 'Strangely enough this attitude doesn't seem to filter through to the streets of Seattle and Melbourne, it seems to be quite the reverse. 'And the whole debate about globalisation, not only here but around the world, still suffers from an incredible unwillingness of far too many people to recognise the living standard dividend that comes out of globalisation.' Neither Mr Howard nor Mr Goh would directly criticise Malaysia which at this week's earlier trade discussions forced a partial backdown on efforts to re-start world trade negotiations. But Mr Goh, who said the Australia-Singapore agreement recognised both countries wanted faster improvements on trade, implied Malaysia would have a lot of catching up to do if it stuck with its conservative approach towards globalisation. 'Malaysia will not be able to stop others such as Australia and Singapore from running faster,' he said. Mr Clinton said per capita income across East Asia had doubled in 10 years because of trade liberalisation and globalisation. As countries had become richer services such as health facilities had improved, leading to a better quality of life for most residents. President Clinton said globalisation and trade liberalisation had to continue. 'The most important thing we can do is launch a new trade round at the World Trade Organisation (and) it ought to happen as early as possible next year,' he said. Mr Jiang said there were many benefits to globalisation, but it had to be done in a more equitable manner that ensured developing nations caught up to wealthy nations. 'What we need is an all-win economic globalisation featuring equality,' he said. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 16 04:26:35 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2000 08:26:35 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1664] Push for open-door deal with Singapore (Sydney Morning Herald) Message-ID: <003601c04f39$f9a145c0$2384a7cb@notoapec> Sydney Morning Herald, 16/11/00 Push for open-door deal with Singapore By Tom Allard in Brunei and Sherrill Nixon The free movement of citizens between Singapore and Australia, including automatic residency, is on the agenda after the countries yesterday announced they would begin formal negotiations to secure a free trade agreement. A successful conclusion to the deal within a year, as envisaged, will represent only Australia's second such treaty with a nation after New Zealand. The Prime Minister, Mr Howard, said the aim was to "put everything in the agreement" and a senior trade official confirmed later that "everything meant everything", including the movement of citizens and residency arrangements. "We see it as an ambitious attempt to open trade between two countries that are very close economically, politically and socially," Mr Howard said. Australia's decision to follow the bilateral trade route with Singapore reflects a strategic shift in trade policy away from reliance on forums such as the World Trade Organisation and APEC. It is also indicative of the stalled global free trade movement after the collapse of the Seattle WTO round amid wild street protests. Until this year, Australia has been lukewarm, at best, about bilateral trade agreements, arguing that they could distract from the main game - a new WTO round of global trade liberalisation. Previous overtures from Singapore had not been taken up. Leaders at the APEC meeting in Brunei are struggling to find common ground over the launch of a new WTO round of trade talks next year, or to make any real progress toward APEC's free trade and investment goal of 2010 for developed countries and 2020 for all 21 APEC nations. Mr Howard said the planned free trade agreement with Singapore "adds to the momentum [of APEC] but it also provides insurance" . The merchandise trade with Singapore has few barriers so it is in the area of services that Australia hopes to make strides. Singapore's Prime Minister, Mr Goh Chok Tong, envisaged that Australian companies would be able to tender freely for government contracts worth more than $100,000 and that opportunities would open up for architects, lawyers and accountants. Mr Goh said a tripartite grouping of nations including New Zealand, which signed a free trade deal with Singapore this week, was possible. "I hope we can extend to a few other countries as well." He was referring to the Pacific5 group of trading nations (P5), involving the US and Chile, an idea that has been floated for at least two years. Mr Howard met Chile's President Ricardo Lagos yesterday morning and an earlier meeting between the Minister for Trade, Mr Vaile, and his US counterpart, Ms Charlene Barshefsky, in Brunei canvassed a feasibility study on the P5 idea. While free movement of citizens and automatic residency will be on the agenda for the Singapore pact, a shared welfare arrangement is unlikely. Singapore is Australia's 7th largest trade partner. Exports to Singapore were worth $4.9 billion in 1999-2000 while imports totalled $4.4 billion, giving Australia a trade surplus of $499 million. Gold and oil sales make up the bulk of Australia's exports to Singapore, with meat ranked third. Principal imports were computers, boats and floating oil rigs and telecommunications equipment in 1999-2000. It sends more students (almost 18,000) to Australia than any other country. New Zealand, with which Australia has a common market, signed its trade deal with Singapore this week. A trade bloc between the three countries and Chile and, eventually, the US, known as the Pacific 5 group, is being discussed at APEC. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 16 04:31:06 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2000 08:31:06 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1665] LA Times on APEC2000 Message-ID: <004101c04f3a$9ad4aae0$2384a7cb@notoapec> LA Times, 15/11/00 Trade Forum's Saving Grace The 21-nation Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC) started out in 1989 as an organization that would lead its member governments to open markets and economic integration. In 1994, under President Clinton's leadership, it agreed to convert to a free-trade area that would unite half of the world's population, 60% of the global output and nearly half of the trade. When Clinton makes his valedictory appearance at the APEC summit in Brunei today, he will find the group no closer to its goal than it was six years ago. Asian integration is taking place elsewhere, in bilateral agreements and smaller subregional groupings. Criticism of APEC as a do-nothing organization is largely justified, at least if its accomplishments are measured against the ambitious goals it set for itself. The biggest was to create a free market among its more developed countries by 2010 and the rest by 2020. At the 1997 summit, the APEC leaders got more specific and decided to slash import tariffs on $1.5 trillion in goods. A year later, with many of the Asian countries struggling with the worst financial crisis since World War II, APEC was in disarray and the tariff cuts were all but forgotten. The summit dissolved in acrimony, with the East blaming Western profiteers and the West complaining of corrupt Asian governments. Vice President Al Gore, deputized by Clinton, added fuel to the fire by delivering a patronizing speech that very nearly called for the ouster of Malaysian Premier Mahathir Mohamad. Since then, Asia has weathered its economic crisis and tempers have cooled. This will assure a more peaceful summit in Brunei, but little else. Clinton will be saying his farewells, Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien, who is facing an election, won't show up and Japan's beleaguered Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori faces ouster by his own party. Asian integration is taking place elsewhere, in trade deals negotiated by Japan, South Korea and Singapore, and among smaller subregional groupings. China, the trading powerhouse of Asia, will play an increasingly active role in its neighborhood once it enters the World Trade Organization. But, while disappointing as the vehicle for trade liberalization, APEC has served well as a forum in which countries on both sides of the Pacific can discuss political, security and economic issues. They give U.S. presidents, current and future, the opportunity to meet their Asian counterparts face to face. APEC is unlikely to agree on the agenda for the next round of world trade liberalization talks--it is too diverse for that. But it is the best place for the West and Asia to talk to one another. From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 16 08:34:58 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2000 12:34:58 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1666] Reuters story on ASEAN/trade lib Message-ID: <000a01c04f5c$aff18340$8ecfa7cb@notoapec> Thai jokes veil bitter mood over indecision 31.07.2000 BANGKOK - Question: "How many senior officials does it take to change a lightbulb?" Answer: "Ten - to reach a consensus that the room is dark." Of all the jokes about the indecisiveness of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) at the grouping's Bangkok meetings this week, those of senior Thai diplomat Kobsak Chutikul were the harshest. The director-general of the Thai Foreign Ministry's economic affairs department marked the close of a week of diplomatic talks on Saturday with a light-hearted jab at perceptions of Asean as an ineffectual talking shop. "How many ministers did it take to change a lightbulb?" Kobsak asked in the Bangkok Post: "None - they just redefined darkness as an Asean core principle." Other gems from the Thai official included: "For every vision there is an equal and opposite revision" and "Hangover: the wrath of grapes." Host Bangkok spearheaded efforts by Asean - which groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam - to streamline decision-making to respond more quickly to crises. The Thais ran into resistance from more conservative countries in the bloc, whose members include monarchies, a military dictatorship, Communist states and fragile democracies. - REUTERS From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 16 14:38:01 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2000 18:38:01 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1667] NZ to remove tariffs on imports from LDCs Message-ID: <000a01c04f8f$649cf720$0acda7cb@notoapec> NZ removes tariffs on imports from the poorest Thursday, 16 November 2000, 1:18 pm Press Release: New Zealand Government Embargoed until 1.30pm NZT, 16 November 2000 Media Statement NZ removes tariffs on imports from the poorest countries in the world From July 2001 all of the least developed countries of the world will have duty-free access to New Zealand for all their imports, Prime Minister Helen Clark announced today at the APEC leaders' meeting in Brunei. "This is a significant move which demonstrates that international trade is not just about wealthy companies or well connected entrepreneurs," Helen Clark said. "We want to ensure that the world trade system has room for the poorest people from the poorest countries. The rich nations must ensure that the benefits of globalisation are available for everyone and this is a tangible contribution. "Last year, after the failure of the trade talks at Seattle, WTO Director-General Mike Moore challenged the world to open up trade for the poorest countries. From the point of view, as they struggle with massive debt and huge development problems, the trade debates between rich nations can seem irrelevant. "Too often, trade agreements have excluded the very poor. They have no negotiating leverage but have real needs. "As Mike Moore pointed out, if those countries are ever to support another round of international trade negotiations they have to know that they will gain. The best approach is to give them the key straight away, and this move will do that. "I will be announcing this move to leaders at the APEC retreat today, and I will call on them to join New Zealand in this approach. "Between us we could make a real difference for millions of the poorest people of the world. They don't just want our sympathy. They don't just want our aid. They want a chance to participate in a fair and inclusive trading system," Helen Clark said. ENDS From notoapec at clear.net.nz Thu Nov 16 15:30:56 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2000 19:30:56 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1668] NZ Trade Union Federation on LDC tariff removal Message-ID: <001801c04f96$c9a200a0$51cca7cb@notoapec> For immediate release 16 November 2000 P.M. HAS "LOST IT" SAYS MAXINE GAY Trade Union Federation President and Clothing Union Secretary Maxine Gay has denounced the Brunei APEC statement of P.M. Helen Clark to cut all tariffs on goods from the world's poorest countries. "The proposal is outrageous and an affront to the workers in New Zealand who supported the election of a Labour Government," she said. "Not even the National Party was prepared to advocate such an extremist free market policy while in Government. The Prime Minister has simply lost the plot. "This proposal makes a farce of the Government's economic and regional development policies and also its "closing the gaps" policy," Maxine Gay said. "It will completely destroy what is left of clothing and footwear industries in this country. There are currently 10,000 workers employed in these industries and those few that are left will find their wages and conditions under even greater pressure. It is mainly women, often Maori and Pacific, in the clothing and footwear industries who will bear the brunt of this policy," said Maxine Gay. "Many of these workers are in regions of high unemployment." "We are pleased to see the Greens already opposing the proposal," said Maxine Gay. "And we cannot see how the Alliance can support such a policy. It must immediately stand up and be counted on this issue. This is not a matter requiring "loyal and token" opposition of the Alliance, but goes to the heart of the basis of coalition between the Alliance and Labour. Likewise Labour backbenchers must also stand up, remember who they represent and oppose this extremist free trade policy." "The Trade Union Federation is appalled that Helen Clark is attempting to hide her free trade extremism behind concern for the world's poorest countries. Where has Helen Clark's consultation been with third world development groups on this matter? And where is the consultation with New Zealand workers, trade unions and manufacturers," said Maxine Gay. "It is indeed incongruous that Helen Clark has now become a "groupie" of Mike Moore, the man she overthrew as leader of the Labour Party because of his ill thought out policies and erratic behaviour. Perhaps when Helen Clark returns home and engages in some sober reflection, she will change her mind on this issue," Maxine Gay concluded From notoapec at clear.net.nz Fri Nov 17 05:36:35 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Fri, 17 Nov 2000 09:36:35 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1669] APEC "balancing act" - NZ Herald, 17/11/00 Message-ID: <000a01c0500c$ecef28a0$ee84a7cb@notoapec> New Zealand Herald, 17/11/00 Clark performs balancing act over free trade 17.11.2000 By JOHN ARMSTRONG The royal-blue silk blazers and shirts with gold-thread motif that Helen Clark and other Apec leaders wore for yesterday's end-of-summit "family photo" suited the New Zealand Prime Minister just fine - stylish, yet functional. And more low-key than some of the gaudy national costumes of past years. She might even wear her blazer again. This no-fuss Prime Minister has little time for the rituals of diplomatic hobnobbing - and Asian formalities still accounted for an awful lot of time-wasting during Apec's two-day meeting. She went to Brunei to work, conscious of the domestic backlash that can hit New Zealand politicians who get too carried away with their self-importance as they briefly strut the world stage alongside the Clintons and the Putins, while being indulged by an astronomically wealthy host. Above all, though, she knows Apec's free trade theme-tune poses special risks for a Labour Party leader - particularly one who criticised Apec's liberalisation thrust in Opposition. Throughout her first Apec, she sought to strike a careful balance. To her right sits a powerful New Zealand farm-business lobby relentlessly pushing the Government to fight on the international stage for export trade barriers to be removed. This is personified in her blunt talking Trade Minister, Jim Sutton. On her other flank sit the Alliance and the Greens, who are competing for the increasingly vogue anti-globalisation vote. In pragmatic fashion, the Prime Minister embraces free trade, yet wants to be seen to be helping impoverished countries receiving little benefit from it. To the first end, she spent a good deal of her time in Brunei quietly cajoling other countries to join sub-regional free trade pacts like the one signed on Tuesday by New Zealand and the island state of Singapore. The blunt truth is that Apec's goal of rich countries agreeing to dismantle trade barriers by consensus by 2010 looks dead in the water following the Asian recession of the late 1990s. Having opened its borders already (some say prematurely), New Zealand cannot go back to protectionism. The second-best option is to forge bilateral agreements that can then be stitched together into free trade areas in the hope that reluctant economies ultimately join for fear of being left out. The danger is that big countries forge such deals to give the appearance of being free traders, while actually protecting key domestic industries. It is all very well for Japan (which protects its farmers) and Singapore (which has no farms) to be negotiating a free trade arrangement. But that will be counter-productive to New Zealand if it excludes agricultural products because it would undercut efforts to gain better access through over-arching World Trade Organisation negotiations. Already wooing Chile and Hong Kong, Helen Clark's other problem is that the Alliance is likely to kick up rough about her unbridled enthusiasm for more Singapore-style deals. To blunt such criticism, she yesterday cleverly announced that New Zealand would allow goods from the planet's 48 poorest countries to enter duty-free. It is a cost-free move in that such imports are unlikely to pose much threat to local industries and one of particular political piquancy as the Greens' Rod Donald once managed the chain of Trade Aid shops. She was also sending a message to other Apec leaders that the benefits of globalisation must be spread more equitably and that trade negotiations are not just for enriching multinational companies. As a social democrat, she believes that Apec's agenda must be "rebalanced" to acknowledge disparities of wealth - thinking that was reflected in the Apec leaders' final communiqu? yesterday. Such sentiments will not silence opponents of free trade at home who spy a Prime Minister speaking with a fork tongue. But it will stifle those critics' attempts to portray Helen Clark as being a cheerleader for globalisation. The annual summit last night wound up with a call for a new round of stalled global trade talks to get underway as early as next year. The wording of the communiqu? by the leaders appeared to be a trade-off between countries like Malaysia and Indonesia. They had wanted to delay negotiating at the World Trade Organisation, while Australia and New Zealand had pressed for a commitment to 2001. The communiqu?'s call for a "balanced and sufficiently broad-based agenda that responds to the interests and concerns of all WTO members" will partly molify economies like Malaysia, which were buffeted by the Asian recession and are reluctant to open their markets any further to foreign goods. Helen Clark said the wording of the leaders' communique was pleasing. "A date for launch in 2001 is quite satisfactory. The issue now will be to see it achieved. "Obviously there is still a lot of forces against a successful round." From notoapec at clear.net.nz Fri Nov 17 05:41:50 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Fri, 17 Nov 2000 09:41:50 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1670] Sydney Morning Herald - APEC2000 Message-ID: <001501c0500d$a66e0940$ee84a7cb@notoapec> 17.11.00 Sydney Morning Herald Pacific leaders gird to tame the world trade monster By TOM ALLARD, Herald Correspondent in Brunei The issue of globalisation moved from the streets to the halls of power yesterday when APEC leaders strongly supported the concept but endorsed a range of new measures for those left behind. The leaders announced their support for new World Trade Organisation talks to begin next year - a surprise after APEC ministers had failed to agree on the issue just days earlier. The decision means Australia has achieved its main objective at the summit and gives a much needed boost to the credibility of the 21-nation Pacific Rim group. Developing countries had resisted the new WTO round, but rich countries won their support by resolving to fix the "wide disparities in wealth and knowledge and bring the benefits of globalisation to all our people". APEC will help countries develop safety nets and exploit new technologies. Leaders vowed to have Internet access in every community by 2010. Opposition to globalisation has brought demonstrators onto the streets at the WTO and the World Economic Forums in Seattle, Davos and Melbourne. In Brunei, where there were no demonstrators, the leaders declared globalisation a force for good. "We are convinced that the movement toward global integration holds the greatest opportunity to deliver higher living standards and social well-being for our communities," the communiqu? said. It also called for stability in oil prices, another key goal of Australia's. A similar call by APEC foreign ministers - which included a bid for increased production to ease price pressures - was followed hours later on Tuesday by OPEC's decision to hold oil supply levels steady. The Prime Minister, who said APEC had lost its way before coming to Brunei, could now affirm that it was back on track. But proof of APEC's sway in global affairs will have to wait until the WTO round is confirmed. The last APEC meeting in Auckland called for the abolition of agricultural subsidies at the Seattle WTO summit, only to see the talks collapse. Thailand's Minister for Trade and the next head of the WTO, Mr Supachai Panitchpakdi, warned this week that setting a deadline for WTO talks might simply run the risk of further discredit for the trade group, and by extension APEC, if it were missed. APEC in 1994 agreed to abolish all trade and investment barriers by 2010 for developed countries, and by 2020 for developing nations. Progress through the WTO is vital to satisfy the APEC goals but scepticism about what can be achieved remains among many countries, and within APEC, despite yesterday's show of unity. An indication of the stalled push for global trade liberalisation was the announcement by Australia at APEC of negotiations to complete a free trade pact with Singapore within a year, and the prospect of more bilateral deals in future. Until this year, Australia had vigorously opposed bilateral trade agreements, arguing that they distracted from the all-important WTO push. Much of the discussion at the Brunei summit has been about to the relevance of APEC. However, for many, the chance for leaders to hold a series of bilateral meetings on all kinds of topics is its main saving grace. From sap at web.net Sat Nov 18 05:56:44 2000 From: sap at web.net (Faruq Faisel) Date: Fri, 17 Nov 2000 15:56:44 -0500 Subject: [asia-apec 1671] =?iso-8859-1?Q?The_Cases_of_India_and_Canada:_People's_Health_in_a_Global?= =?iso-8859-1?Q?izing_World?= Message-ID: <011901c050d8$f70a9dc0$5b0000c0@look.ca> Event: People's Health in a Globalizing World: The Cases of India and Canada Date: Tuesday, November 21, 2000 Time: 9:30 am - 12:30 pm Venue: Westin Hotel Governor General Room, 2nd Floor 11 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa Resource Person: Dr. Mira Shiva Head, Public Policy Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI) Panel: Stan Marshall Canadian Union of Public Employees Janet Hatcher-Roberts Executive Director Canadian Society for International Health (To be confirmed) Dr. Mira Shiva is a leading campaigner and advocate for people-centred health policies and programs in India. She speaks to the full spectrum of health issues in the country, including drugs and pharmaceuticals; a rational drug policy; reproductive and women's health; female feticide; epidemics; equity and the impact of globalization on health in India. Among other writings, Dr. Shiva is the editor of "National Profile on Women, Health and Development", published by VHAI in April 2000. She is also a coordinator, organizer and networker for different international organizations and movements for better health for people at the grassroots. The Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI) is one of the foremost organizations on health issues in India. It is a federation of 24 state organizations, uniting more than 4000 health and development institutions and community-level health programs in the country. VHAI's activities include campaigns research, policy advocacy, training, public engagement, publications and information, and projects. As an apex body in India it is an advocate for community health policies and services, social justice and human rights. Dr. Shiva is in Canada as a guest of South Asia Partnership Canada, a forum in Canada on South Asian human development, linking Canadian civil society organizations with partners in the region. Dr. Shiva will be in Ottawa from November 20 to 22, 2000. Please RSVP with: Faruq Faisel, or Judy Stott SAP Canada, 1 Nicholas Street, Suite 200, Ottawa Ontario K1N 7B7 Phone: (613) 241-1333 Fax: (613) 241-1129 E-mail: sap@web.ca URL: www.sapcanada.org From notoapec at clear.net.nz Sun Nov 19 11:00:18 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 15:00:18 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1672] APEC puts chief issue in "too hard" basket Message-ID: <000a01c051cc$79370100$51cda7cb@notoapec> NZ Herald, Auckland O'Sullivan: Apec leaders put chief issue in 'too hard' basket 16.11.2000 By Fran O'Sullivan BRUNEI - A $US4 billion white elephant built by Prince Jeffrey, brother of the Sultan of Brunei, is the surreal site for a business summit devoted to getting Apec back to basics. The Empire Hotel will never make a serious buck. In a land where many of the flashest hotels experience average occupancy rates of under 30 per cent, what constitutes a sensible return on investment has never been the subject of everyday debate. Oil riches have seen to that. But there are limits. Prince Jeffrey's investing prowess is now under scrutiny. Also under scrutiny is the level of investment which business players from the Asia-Pacific Rim have put into Apec. At this summit, held in an Islamic country which is both Apec's smallest country (population 300,000) and one of its wealthiest per head, the prevailing concern - how to get the Apec free trade agenda motoring along in the face of a backlash against globalisation - seems at times a forlorn hope. Speaker after speaker has mounted the case to put some spine back into Apec's ambitious goals for free trade and investment within its developed economies by 2010 and within other member economies by 2020. But the political leaders at whom business is really directing its criticism have pre-written their scripts. The leaders' communiqu? is all but ready for release. Most leaders will take the softer option of shifting their focus to Apec's other agenda and coping with the digital divide rather than expose their leaderships to risk by pushing the free trade agenda. The financial realities are such that respected commentators such as Ken Courtis, of Goldman Sachs, are pointing to further risks within Asia of another serious downturn. Southeast Asia's marginalisation - in particular, the slump in real earning power by the Asean bloc, with which New Zealand has been seeking to form a free trade pact - has been noted. This is raising for New Zealanders at this summit the question of why their country is pursuing free trade agreements with this bloc rather than seeking to join Nafta, the North American free trade agreement. Coming through strongly is the perception that the region still depends hugely on the United States to carry on its role as the economy of first resort. But the US also needs to take a leadership stance. The litmus test from this business summit will be the message that the US participants take home to their new President. Bill Clinton, hobbled by Congress, was unable or unwilling to push against internal protectionist interests and further the Apec agenda. Some US participants at this summit predict the next incumbent, whether George W. Bush or Al Gore, will also be unwilling to grapple with the hard issues involved in dealing with the globalisation backlash. But as Fred Bergstein, director of the Institute for International Economics, noted, every President gets a window of opportunity in his first year to take hard decisions. Taking advantage of that window of opportunity will be New Zealand's challenge. Under former National Prime Minister Jim Bolger, steps were taken for New Zealand to cement a free trade agreement with the United States. But the plan came unstuck when Congress told Mr Clinton that it would not agree to fast-tracking free trade arrangements. As Apec's bold agenda for open free trade goals slides further backwards, the World Trade Organisation's multilateral programme is also slipping back as regional ministers baulk at putting a deadline on their push to start a new negotiation round. New Zealand is faced with a pragmatic choice. Either sign up to every bilateral free trade arrangement going, or see a slow slide into obscurity. * Fran O'Sullivan is in Brunei for the Apec summit. From kevin.li at graduate.hku.hk Sun Nov 19 22:57:18 2000 From: kevin.li at graduate.hku.hk (Kevin Yuk-shing Li) Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 21:57:18 +0800 Subject: [asia-apec 1673] HK: Signature campaign against the conferment of an honorary doctorate on Lee Kuan Yew Message-ID: <3A17DC3E.A048DBCD@graduate.hku.hk> Signature campaign against the conferment of an honorary doctorate on Lee Kuan Yew by The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) We are deeply perturbed by the conferment of an honorary doctorate degree this year by The Chinese University of Hong Kong on Lee Kuan Yew. Lee Kuan Yew is a notorious dictator in Singapore who rose to power during the decolonization of Southeast Asia in the 1960's. He exploited the massive opposition against British colonialism by posing initially as a leftist. On assuming power, he consolidated it by making an about turn and spearheaded attacks on Communism in the Cold War. In any case, he had never wholeheartedly accepted the values of freedom and democracy. Lee's authoritarian paternalism has deprived Singapore of true democracy in spite of regular general elections. The rule of law is little more than a facade as the ruling party has constantly abused it to crush dissent. The country might have enjoyed economic growth in the past, but its people have been largely silenced for fear of Lee's arbitrary rule. Press freedom has been curtailed, opposition parties and voices severely suppressed, and the people's daily life controlled by the omnipresent government power. The Chinese University has always purported to shoulder the ideals and missions of Chinese education. But it was precisely under Lee Kuan Yew's rule when Nanyang University, established after the ideals of Chinese education, had been forced to close down, so that dissident voices among Chinese educated students could be stamped out. Soon, Chinese primary and secondary schools contracted into obliteration in Singapore. One wonders how The Chinese University evaluated this part of history as it decided to confer the honorary degree on Lee. Also, in crowning him with the highest honour of a university, does The Chinese University approve of and hold in high esteem Lee's political values of pseudo-democracy and the denial of human rights? The Chinese University has never before conferred honorary degrees on any foreign political figures. But then there is no lack of outstanding political leaders who espouse democracy in Asia. Why should The Chinese University grant its highest honour to such a notorious authoritarian politician in such haste, three years after Hong Kong's return to China? Here, when political conservatism is becoming more rampant by the day, big wigs and high officials have been refering to Singapore as a model. We are deeply concerned that, amid this adverse current, the academic honour of our universities may be turned into cheap political instrument to herald the coming of authoritarian rule in the SAR. We cannot allow values to be twisted around so as to cherish the wrong as if it were right. The Chinese University must not rub salt at the deep wounds inflicted on those who have fought for freedom and democracy in the Lion City. In the name of social conscience and international solidarity, we are making this protest statement as an expression and evidence of our discontent. We hereby call upon the people of Hong Kong to treasure human rights, freedom, and the values of an open society, and never to revere the example of a Lee Kuan Yew. November 2000 Signed by a group of CUHK students, staff and alumni Petition to CUHK: Say No to Lee Kuan Yew (in Chinese) http://go.to/sayno-lky/ For CUHK alumni: http://ns18.newsbook.net/%7Ejimmywong/cgi-bin/anti-lky/CuCampaign.pl?Sign_Form For other public: http://ns18.newsbook.net/%7Ejimmywong/cgi-bin/anti-lky/Campaign.pl?Sign_Form From aaronj at interchange.ubc.ca Mon Nov 20 07:01:59 2000 From: aaronj at interchange.ubc.ca (Aaron James) Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 14:01:59 -0800 (PST) Subject: [asia-apec 1674] Jiang Zemin's warning on Globalization (fwd) Message-ID: >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Aaron James Canada Asia Pacific Resource Network www.caprn.bc.ca tel: 604.255.7346 phone: 604.255.9071 ---------- Forwarded message --------- Subject Jiang Zemin's warning on Globalization ...while the benefits thereof keep his military happy with new toys and thriving businesses AFP November 16, 2000 Jiang warns APEC leaders of hidden dangers of globalized economy BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN China's President Jiang Zemin on Thursday warned 20 other leaders of Pacific-rim nations to beware of the hidden dangers of globalization -- from greater wealth disparities to cultural imperialism. Jiang, speaking during the closed-door Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, said recent developments have further exposed the risks arising as economies become ever closer. "We should not lose sight of the hidden worries facing the global economic development," he said, according to the text of his speech. "The unstable capital and foreign exchange markets and international oil price hike have added to the adverse factors against economic growth." Some countries, he said, react to globalization by raising barriers to foreign trade, while others seek to harness it to their own agendas. "There are a few countries that have tried to force their own values, economic regime and social system on other countries by taking advantage of economic globalization," he said. Elements in the Chinese leadership are concerned that an influx of foreign investment would mean an influx of liberal western -- and in particular American -- values. China is on the point of experiencing globalization in a big way, as its entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) -- expected late this year or early next -- will pry its doors open to companies from around the world. On the sidelines of APEC, Chinese and Mexican officials have been locked in tense negotiations over Beijing's WTO entry, but officials on Thursday conceded no agreement has been reached, and that talks will continue in Geneva. A bilateral agreement with Mexico is one of the last remaining obstacles to China's accession to the global trade body after a 14-year struggle. Jiang warned APEC leaders that while globalization brings greater risks to all countries, the poorer members of the world community are particularly exposed. "Disadvantaged developing countries face new challenges to their economic sovereignty and economic security." "Countries should be allowed to choose the road to development and determine the model and pace of opening up in light of their own national conditions," Jiang said. Jiang promised China would not falter on its pledges to open its markets, made in order to gain entry into the WTO. "China's accession to the WTO will be an important step to broaden its all-directional opening-up," he assured fellow APEC leaders. "After joining the WTO, we will honor our commitments in good faith." Jiang urged governments to find ways to minimize the excesses of globalization and ensure it does not widen the gap between rich and poor countries. "Effective international rules should be worked out with the concerted efforts of the international community on the basis of full participation of all countries," he said. "(That way) the process of globalization can be correctly guided and managed and move in a direction of helping reduce the gap of wealth between North and South." During the APEC forum Chinese officials refused to give a direct answer to where Beijing stood on the timing of a new round of global free trade talks at the WTO, an issue which divided rich and poor economies here. China emerged relatively unscathed from the late-1990s financial crisis in the region, although its 7.1 percent economic growth last year was the slowest in nearly a decade. Jeff Ballinger E- 502 75 Cambridge Pkwy. Cambridge, MA 02142 617 496-6423 www.nikeworkers.org From amittal at foodfirst.org Wed Nov 22 07:57:44 2000 From: amittal at foodfirst.org (Anuradha Mittal) Date: Tue, 21 Nov 2000 14:57:44 -0800 Subject: [asia-apec 1675] StarLink Action! Message-ID: <0.700000824.2074436672-951758591-974847464@topica.com> Starlink, a variety of genetically engineered corn which is only approved for animal consumption, recently leaked into the human food supply. The corn caused allergic reactions in consumers, and was recalled by the USDA. However, a portion of the corn remains unaccounted for. Aventis, the European company that developed Starlink, is asking the EPA to lift the restrictions on Starlink products for a limited time. It submitted new information arguing that Starlink is safe to consume, and that the unaccounted-for products should be allowed to remain on the market. On October 30th, the EPA began a thorough scientific and public review of the information submitted by Aventis. A 30-day public comment period began on November 1st. After the public comment period finishes, a formal scientific peer review will begin. The EPA expects to hold the scientific peer review meeting, which will be open to the public, during the last week of November. More information about this Federal Register notice and related documents can be found on EPA's web site at: http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/biopesticides. Food First urges you to take advantage of this opportunity to make your voice heard. Write to the EPA and let them know you do not want genetically modified foods on your grocery store shelves. Insist that they conduct thorough testing of all genetically modified foods to assure their safety for human consumption, as well as for the earth’s biodiversity. Tell the EPA to do their job as a regulatory agency and deny approval of Starlink corn for human consumption. A sample letter to the EPA follows. You can also e-mail the EPA commissioners at opp-docket@epa.gov, but letters are more effective. Ms. Carol Browner, Administrator Public Information and Records Integrity Branch Information Resources and Services Division (7502C) Office of Pesticide Programs Environmental Protection Agency 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW Washington, DC 20460 Docket Control No. PF-867B Dear Ms. Browner, The EPA is considering approval of products containing genetically engineered StarLink corn for human consumption. StarLink was approved only for animal feed and industrial uses because it contains a plant pesticide, Cry9C, which is a suspected food allergen. According to the EPA's Scientific Advisory Panel, Cry9C possesses the two properties that are "the best available criteria presently known [for food allergen proteins]: 1) heat stability and 2) resistance to digestion." StarLink is already in the food supply, but some products containing it have been recalled to protect public health. Approval now for food use would not only subject Americans to the risk of allergies, but would also undermine the credibility of the EPA. I urge you not to let EPA be bullied by the food and biotech industries. Deny the petition for food use of StarLink. Thoroughly investigate all alleged cases of allergic reactions and subject StarLink to stringent allergenicity tests. Japan has refused to accept StarLink in its food supply. Americans deserve no less. Sincerely yours, Name: Address: Signature: _____________________________ Join the fight against hunger. For more information contact foodfirst@foodfirst.org. ___________________________________________________________ T O P I C A http://www.topica.com/t/17 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics From pcaravan at tm.net.my Fri Nov 24 17:53:57 2000 From: pcaravan at tm.net.my (People's Caravan 2000) Date: Fri, 24 Nov 2000 16:53:57 +0800 Subject: [asia-apec 1676] PRESS RELEASE 14-PEOPLE'S CARAVAN 2000 Message-ID: <200011240924.eAO9ODt13495@smtp2.jaring.my> Dear Friends, Please find below the latest press release for the People's Caravan - "Citizens on the Move for Land and Food Without Poisons!" covering the activities of November 24 in Bangladesh. Your support in the distribution of this information to your local media contacts, network partners and within your own publications and information services is greatly appreciated. Regards, Sarah Hindmarsh Programme Assistant Genetic Engineering Campaign for Jennifer Mourin People's Caravan Regional Coordinator ====================================================== The People's Caravan 2000 ? Land and Food Without Poisons! FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 24 November, 2000 PRESS RELEASE THE PEOPLE'S CARAVAN - "CITIZENS ON THE MOVE FOR LAND AND FOOD WITHOUT POISONS! IN BANGLADESH - NOVEMBER 18-24 Kicking off in India on November 13, the People's Caravan ? "Citizen's on the Move for Land and Food Without Poisons!" moved to Bangladesh on November 18-24 and will culminate in the Philippines between November 26 ? 30, with activities on November 30 commemorating "One Year Since Seattle". The Caravan, comprised of thousands of farmers, landless peasants, farm workers, anti-pesticide and anti-genetic engineering advocates, is firmly opposed to globalisation and its potentially devastating effects upon the Asia Pacific region. The Caravan targets the immoral practices of transnational corporations (TNCs) in their push for corporate dominance and control of local and regional food and agricultural production systems. The Caravan seeks an end to globalisation; and instead advocates genuine agrarian reform to achieve food security, social justice, and land and food without poisons. Travelling more than 1400 kilometers, delegates from UBINIG (Policy Research for Development Alternatives) Dhaka; Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific (PAN AP); Dr. Michael Hansen, an expert on genetic engineering of the Consumers Union in the United States; Indian farmers Mr Kollapuri Murugan and Ms Santi Gangadharan;belonging to the Rural Women's Liberation Movement and the Tamil Nadu Agricultural Labourers Movement; and Canadian farmer Percy Schmeiser spread the message of the People's Caravan to the people and farmers of Bangladesh. Sarojeni V. Rengam, Executive Director, PAN AP, spoke of the ongoing ill effects of pesticides and pesticide poisoning. Of particular concern were the long term effects of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) and their impacts on the human hormone and reproductive systems and child growth and development. This long, culturally vibrant and important move across Bangladesh kicked off in Dhaka on November 17 with a cultural event of Bangladeshi traditional popular movement songs at the Narigrantha Prabartana (Feminist Book Store). >From here it moved through farmers' communities ? in the areas of Comilla, Cox's Bazaar, Tangail, and Pabna ? finishing with a press conference today in Dhaka. Shahid Hussain Shamim, Director of UBINIG, says the People's Caravan is an important event for supporting and mobilising resistence by farmers, consumers and the community to the threats posed by the dominance and control of transnational corporations (TNCs) of our land, food and livelihoods. Percy Schmeiser is here "To share my views of how my field was contaminated with genetically altered Roundup Ready canola against my knowledge and wishes. This has destroyed my seeds which I have been developing for over fifty years. What I want to say to farmers all over Asia is that they should never ever sign any contract that takes away their right to use their own seeds. If they give up this right they are basically losing their freedom. Anyone who controls the seed supply will also control the food supply. This amounts to controlling a Nation. This is why it is so important that farmers always maintain their right to use their own seeds." Schmeiser, a canola farmer from Bruno, Saskatchewan, Canada, is currently counter suing Monsanto over allegations that he illegally planted their variety of genetically engineered canola. Over 500 farmers, fisherfolk, students, teachers and government officials were in Chakaria at the public meeting in front of the Purba Boro Behula school ground on November 20 to here the message of the caravan. Jahanara Begum, a women farmer from the area, summed up the event by rousing the crowd. "We should stop using pesticides. We don't want these companies seeds and their poisons. We can use our own traditional seed. Tell your friends, your neighbours, tell everybody!" So strong was the concern over pesticides and genetically engineered seeds that Nazir Hussein, a village elder and farmer who works 6 acres of land--and was previously elected to the village union council--made a public committment to stop using pesticides on his farm and would not ever buy genetically engineered seeds. Farmers and citizens from the Elliotganj, Comilla flocked to another public meeting on November 21 held within the Pankuri fishing community. As Sakiul Millat Morshed, Executive Director of SHISUK (Shikkha Shastha Unnayan Karzakram), organisers of the event, explains, the project is a model of sustainable agriculture integrating fish rearing and rice farming. Morshed said the event was held here to show farmers that "communities can resist globalisation by harnessing their own resources. The strategy also keeps the people out of the 'TNC dependent mentality' and keeps them out of debt. The project has resulted in reduced pesticide use, and a reduction in fertiliser use that has resulted in an increase in the natural fertility of the land. This farming system can help implement integrated pest management (IPM)." On November 22 the caravan stopped over in Bishnupur, Pathrail, Tangail for a half day seminar. Farmers in the crowd, upon hearing the experience of Schmeiser with the multinational agro chemical giant Monsanto, chanted "down with Monsanto, down with Monsanto". They became even more vocal upon hearing the terrible threats to farmers livelihoods if they plant genetically engineered crops from Dr Hansen. The "teach-in" and public seminar in Pabna on November 23 drew a mixed crowd from local farmers, citizens, agricultural bank managers, local government representatives and people who sell pesticides. The crowd listened intently to the message of the caravan and gobbled up literature and other materials. Teenkori Lal Das, a mango and rice farmer from the Nawabganj district, north-west Bangladesh summed up the message of the caravan saying: "The farmers of Bangladesh should reject the seeds and pesticides pushed by these giant companies. We have our own local varieties of crops that we need to protect. The seeds should be in the hands of the farmers. Doing it our own way is the way to resist these companies!" For more information contact: PAN AP (Pesticide Action Network Asia & the Pacific) Jennifer Mourin, Campaigns and Media Coordinator OR Sarah Hindmarsh, Programme Assistant Genetic Engineering Campaign. Tel: (60-4) 657-0271/ 656-038. Fax: (604) 657-7445 E-mail: panap@panap.po.my or visit the People's Caravan Web site: www.poptel.org.uk/panap/caravan.htm UBINIG (Policy Research for Development Alternatives), and Nayakrishi Andolon E-mail: nkrishi@bracbd.net ____________________________________________________________________________ _____ People's Caravan 2000 P.O. Box 1170, 10850, Penang, Malaysia. Tel: (604) 657 0271/656 0381 Fax: (604) 657 7445 E-mail: pcaravan@tm.net.my / panap@panap.po.my Webpage: www.poptel.org.uk/panap/caravan.htm From aaronj at interchange.ubc.ca Tue Nov 28 03:22:20 2000 From: aaronj at interchange.ubc.ca (Aaron James) Date: Mon, 27 Nov 2000 10:22:20 -0800 Subject: [asia-apec 1677] Asean and China Message-ID: <4.3.1.0.20001127102151.00b82c40@pop.interchange.ubc.ca> Asean basks in new relationship with China By Joe Leahy in Singapore Published: November 26 2000 20:03GMT | Last Updated: November 27 2000 05:31GMT In summing up the weekend's summit of regional leaders, Goh Chok Tong, Singapore's prime minister, described a startling new vision for ties between south-east Asia and China. "In future you can perhaps use a Ferrari to speed all the way from Singapore to Kunming [in south-western China]. That's the kind of integration we're talking about," he said. There would also be co-operation in areas ranging from trade to the internet and initiatives on controlling the spread of Aids. While clearly many years, if not decades, away, talk of such a future does reveal one thing; that the once distant relations between China and the 10 members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) are back on a faster track. Taking advantage of domestic disarray among Washington's main allies in the region, along with disillusionment on the part of some Asian leaders with the pace and tone of world trade talks, Beijing is slowly but skilfully broadening its influence in the region, analysts say. The process went a step further at the weekend meeting. Known as "Asean-plus-three", the summit brought together the members of Asean - Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei, Indonesia, Thailand, Laos, and Burma - and their giant northern neighbours, China, Japan and South Korea. Aside from the usual array of initiatives, ranging from co-operation on information technology, education and infrastructure projects, the leaders agreed to study what Mr Goh called two big ideas - the creation of an east Asia summit and a regional free trade area. Alongside these moves China presented its own proposal for a trade zone between itself and Asean. The ideas are still largely symbolic, analysts say. Asean is preoccupied with implementing its own trade arrangement while China is preparing for entry to the World Trade Organisation, expected next year. However, the initiatives do send a strong political statement to the west. The proposals reveal a desire among the region's more insular nations to develop a sphere of influence of their own, free of US influence, says Carl Thayer of the Asia-Pacific Centre for Security Studies, in Honolulu. Malaysia, in particular, has been critical of US efforts to impose such issues as the environment and labour on existing trade groupings. Mr Goh denies this is the case, saying he would not support an attempt to block out the US. For Asean, the game is a double-edged sword. Members are well aware they need to strengthen integration among themselves before entering any larger organisation. "Asean is not sufficiently a unity to mix it with the big boys," says Michael Leifer, of the London School of Economics. If this is true, it may be some time before Singaporean Ferraris reach Kunming BANGKOK POST SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2000 BEIJING PITCHES MASSIVE MARKED singaporeu AFP China yesterday proposed a free trade zone with Asean in a market of 1.7 billion consumers as Southeast Asia ended its annual summit pushing a message of regional integration. The initiative for integration would be the backbone of Asean, Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said, toning down the near-term prospect of Asean evolving into a powerful East Asian political and free trade bloc. He also singled out the need forAsean to develop its plus-three relationship, as dialogue partners China, Japan and South Korea offered the region nearly US$200 million in grants and loans. The evolution of Asean "is not going to happen immediately. It's something which requires further study, but I can sense [it will] evolve into an East Asian community." Mr Goh defended Singapore's move to forge free trade agreements outside Asean saying they helped draw attention to the Asean region. Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji raised the likelihood of a China-Asean free trade zone as a means to strengthen trade and investment links.It would cover a market area of 1.7 billion people, comprising China's 1.2 billion population and the 500 million inhabitants of Asean's 10 member countries. "It might be advisable in the long run for China and Asean countries. to explore the establishment of a free trade relationship between them," Mr Zhu said."With China's membership in the WTO [World Trade Organisation] in sight and the Asean free trade area by and large established in 2002, there is a good opportunity for us to enhance our co-operation." Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori told Asean leaders to firm up existing ties with its dialogue partners, and said Japan was committed to strengthening the relationship. "Japan regards Asean as a partner for the peace and prosperity of East Asia. I intend to make every effort for our cooperative relations," he said. Mr Mori announced the so-called "Mori e-action plan," involving $15 billion, would be introduced to enable Asean to meet the challenges of globalisation and information technology. *********************************************** From notoapec at clear.net.nz Wed Nov 29 12:22:07 2000 From: notoapec at clear.net.nz (APEC Monitoring Group) Date: Wed, 29 Nov 2000 16:22:07 +1300 Subject: [asia-apec 1678] Re: The Big Picture References: <3A23A5FD.91545C30@it.canterbury.ac.nz> Message-ID: <000801c059b3$8f62aa80$44cca7cb@notoapec> GATT Watchdog's quarterly publication, The Big Picture, is available by subscription ($15/year = 4 issues) from PO Box 1905, Christchurch, Aotearoa New Zealand (Cheques payable to GATT Watchdog) The November 2000 issue is out now and features articles on: Devastating Argentina - struggles against Carlos Menem's market reforms - by Pablo Pozzi, Argentine activist, academic and unionist APEC 2000 - A Forum Going Nowhere Fast - by Jane Kelsey, Professor of Law, Auckland University ASEM (Asia Europe Meeting) Peoples' Forum in Korea - by Takirirangi Smith (Ngai Tumapuhiaarangi), Director of Te Heru a Rangi Culture and Education Centre Forcefeeding Freemarket Fundamentalism vs Fighting for the Freedom to Farm? Agricultural trade liberalisation, the Cairns Group and La Via Campesina mobilisation against the WTO - by Aziz Choudry, GATT Watchdog From amittal at foodfirst.org Thu Nov 30 03:01:50 2000 From: amittal at foodfirst.org (Anuradha Mittal) Date: Wed, 29 Nov 2000 10:01:50 -0800 Subject: [asia-apec 1679] People's Caravan 2000 Culminates in Massive Protest against TNC's Message-ID: <0.700000824.807311454-212058698-975520910@topica.com> People's Caravan 2000 Culminates in Massive Protest Against TNCs and Corporate Globalization Thousands of farmers belonging to the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) and 20 foreign participants are building to a climax of the "People's Caravan 2000 - Land and Food Without Poisons" today. After the successful activities in India and Bangladesh, the international Caravan ends today with a massive protest rally against globalization and for genuine agrarian reform to achieve food security, social justice, and land and food without poisons. The last day of the caravan brings the participants from the Department of Agriculture, where they held a vigil, to the office of Monsanto in Makati. According to the Caravan participants, the company deserves a notice of eviction, as it is one of the biggest transnational corporations (TNCs) that have become notorious for pushing harmful pesticides and genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Simultaneous protest actions are being held in front of the Monsanto office in General Santos City in Mindanao. The culminating activity is a rally in front of the US embassy to commemorate "One Year since Seattle" and condemn US domination on Asian agriculture. "Marginalized communities all over Asia are making a stand against globalization and TNC control of their lives, including increased pesticide use, the onslaught of genetic engineering, increased landlessness, and the erosion of food security," said Ms. Sarojeni Rengam, executive director of Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific (PAN AP). She added: "Now the people are fighting back." Mr. Ganarai Dorairaj Xavier of the Society for Rural Education and Development (SRED) of India joined the Caravan from the very start on November 13. He said that the People's Caravan is an expression of the frustration of millions of peasants, fisherfolk and indigenous people with the exploitation by landlords and TNCs of their lands and food, and ultimately their lives. Bangladeshi Mr. Rafiqul Haque of UBINIG (Policy Research for Development Alternatives) advised Philippine farmers to junk the seeds and pesticides of the TNCs altogether. Habibur Rahman, a farmer from Nayakrishi Andolon (New Agriculture Movement), added: "the Bangladeshi farmers reject genetically engineered rice and I was pleased to learn about the strong resistance here in the Philippines." "The People's Caravan is an important development in the increasing solidarity among Asian farmers against imperialist globalization," KMP chair Rafael Mariano said. "We have forged an International Alliance against Agrochemical TNCs in order to continue this struggle," he added. Mariano explained that it is through the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and the World Trade Organization (WTO) that farmers are driven from their lands and become virtual slaves of the poison industry. According to the peasant leader, these problems even worsened in the Philippines under the Estrada administration. "One year ago, the WTO sparked massive protest in Seattle," he said, "and we will continue to oppose liberalization, privatization and deregulation as long as they are wreaking havoc on the peasantry." The People's Caravan 2000 is organized by PAN AP; the Tamil Nadu Women's Forum and SRED from India; UBINIG and the Nayakrishi Andolon of Bangladesh; and KMP in collaboration with SHISUK (Bangladesh); CIKS and PREPARE (India); Gita Pertiwi (Indonesia); NESSFE (Japan); CACPK (Korea); and Food First (USA). For more information about the People's Caravan please go to http://www.foodfirst.org Join the fight against hunger. For more information contact foodfirst@foodfirst.org. ___________________________________________________________ T O P I C A http://www.topica.com/t/17 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics