| Friends of the Earth Europe
Press release
3 July 2003 FROM PALERMO TO CANCUN: EU TRADE MINISTERS ASKED TO STOP WTO EXPANSION (Brussels) At the eve of the EU Trade Ministers’ meeting in Palermo (1) to discuss the Cancun WTO Ministerial, civil society groups from across Europe are taking action to voice their dissent with the EU’s position. Today and tomorrow ministers will be sent off to Palermo and confronted with actions in front of trade ministries, parliaments and other relevant buildings in Amsterdam, Berlin, Helsinki, London, Rome, Stockholm, and Vienna (2). Additional actions are planned in Palermo for the weekend (3). In Palermo, the European Union is supposed to decide on its position for the next WTO Ministerial that will take place in Cancun, Mexico, from 10 to 14 September. Notwithstanding broad opposition from the majority of developing countries and European civil society groups, the EU strongly advocates expanding the WTO agenda, in particular with regard to the start of formal WTO negotiations on a multilateral investment agreement, competition policy, transparency in government procurement and trade facilitation (“Singapore Issues”). The EU also presses for further liberalisation in trade of essential services, including water. On the table in Palermo are also controversial global agriculture trade talks. A 'European Civil Society Call for the Palermo Ministerial: Withdraw EU Demands for the Expansion of the WTO in Cancun’ is presented to trade ministers today and tomorrow in capitals and will be handed over by a group of NGOs in Palermo itself (4). In the statement around 100 groups, including Attac, FoEE, CEO, Oxfam International and CPE, the European farmer's association call on ministers to - halt the push for an expanded WTO agenda
- promote an agenda to review and radically reform existing trade rules
- stop engaging in misleading trade-off strategies on agriculture vs Singapore issue. The EU must reduce subsidised dumping and move towards more sustainable agriculture without extracting further concessions from developing countries in return.
- Respond to the concerns of EU citizens and to the demands of poverty reduction and sustainable development.
- Urgently review the mandate of EU Commissioner Lamy.
Activities are organised in the framework of the Seattle to Brussels Network (5). The network argues that the current EU position favours big corporate interests to the detriment of promoting poverty reduction and sustainable development, and the right of governments to regulate and diversify their economies. Contact:
Alexandra Wandel, FoEE, +49 172-748 39 53 (m), from 5-8 July in Palermo
For national contacts, see list below (1) Notes:
(1) See http://www.ueitalia2003.it/ (2) The following activities will take place: * AMSTERDAM:
4 July: Launch of info brief on the EC's corporate agenda on WTO-Investment by Corporate Europe Observatory and InvestmentWatch. Available from both www.investmentwatch.org and www.corporateeurope.org,
contact: Olivier Hoedeman, tel: +31-20-612-7023
e-mail: steven@corporateeurope.org
Additional contact for Dutch media: Anne van Schaik, Milieudefensie/FoE Netherlands: +31-20- 5507300 * BERLIN
3 July: Action by Trade Justice Movement, Germany in front of Bundestag,
contact TJM, Antje Schultheiss, tel: +49-174 / 39 52 942 and Peter Fuchs, 0172 9095505, email: info@gerechtigkeit-jetzt.de
4 July: Action in front of the ministry of economic affairs (BMWA), 8.30 a.m.organised by a group of independent activists,
contact Paul Buntzel, 0178-543 90 49 (m), Pia Eberhardt, tel: +49-30 275 96 887,
e-mail: pia.eberhardt@weed-online.org * HELSINKI:
4 July: Launch of banner tour over Finland as a countdown to Cancun. Presentation of statement by FoE, Attac and Kepa (Service Center
for Developing Co-operation),
contact: Anastasia Laitila, tel +358-331 5136,
Maan ystavat/FoE Finland, Kaisa Eskola, tel +358-50-380 1391,
e-mail: anastasy@jippii.fi, * LONDON,
4 July: Action outside of the Department of Trade and Industry. Launch of the 'Cut the Corporate Out of Cancun' campaign website,
Contact: Dave Timms, WDM,
tel: +44 207 2727630,
e-mail: dave@wdm.org.uk, http://www.wdm.co.uk *PARIS:
3 July: >> Press conference on Cancun and the European’s Commission mandate organised by the GATS campaign (40 national organisations Trade Unions and association), the Confédération Paysanne and Attac
>> the GATS campaign will send a short declaration all over the country (local councils, national government, newspapers, etc.)
Contact: Attac France, Marc Delepouve, Susan George:
tel. +33 1 69 27 47 15
email: Marc.Delepouve@univ-lille1.fr * ROME:
4 July, symbolic action in front of the Trevy fountain on the liberalisation f the water section and national press conference,
contact: mobile: Reform the World Bank Campaign, Antonia Tricarico,
+39 328 84 85448 (m),
e-mail: atricarico@crbm.org * STOCKHOLM:
4 July: action organised by Attac through the centre of the city from mid-day onwards.
Contact for journalists: Helena Granström,
tel.:+46-704-226533,
e-mail: helena.granstrom@swipnet.se or
Contact: Jens Ergon
+46-707-140473
mailto:jens@attac.se.
For pictures see http://www.attac.se.
*VIENNA:
4 July: Action in front of the national trade ministry organised by the Austrian GATS campaign (Attac, OGB, Greenpeace, Armutskonferenz and many more supporting organisations), Action stunt; Austrian Trade-Minister Bartenstein is injecting free-trade-medicine into developing countries. He is assisted by other European trade ministers and some corporate leaders. As a result of these free trade-pills developing-countries are about to die..
See http://www.stoppgats.at,
Attac, leonhard.plank@attac-austria.org
(3) Activities in Palermo on 5/6 July. PALERMO
5 July:
* International seminar at the Philosophical Faculty of the University of Palermo with the presence of CEO, WDM, FOEE, Greenpeace, ANND,CPE/Via Campesina, Italian Trade Unions etc.
* Music festival on WTO. 6 July:
* 11.30 a.m., Media conference From Palermo to Cancun: Stop WTO planned with Campaign to Reform the World Bank, CEO, FoEE, WDM, ANND and Greenpeace at Blow-up center,m Via S. Anna, 18
* 2.30 p.m. Handing over of the European civil society call for Palermo: NO WTO EXPANSION with an inflatable corporate giant and message 'Don't let big business rule the world',
contact: Luca Manes, ++39 335 5721837 (3) See European civil society call to EU trade ministers in Palermo,
6 July 2003: Withdraw EU demands for the expansion of the WTO in Cancun.
http://www.investmentwatch.org/palermo.html
(4) See http://www.s2bnetwork.org
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