Articles

USDA Proposal Falls Short for Farmers: Offer Fails to Improve Protection Against Natural Disasters or Policy Failures

10 April, 2007
Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy
A Farm Bill proposal pushed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) could weaken protections for farmers from natural disasters, according to a new analysis by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP).

Bush Administration Provides Partial Korea FTA To Congress

5 April, 2007
Inside US Trade
The Bush Administration mid-week provided Congress parts of the text for the newly concluded free trade agreement with Korea but has not committed to a deadline of when it will provide the full text, according to congressional aides.

Korea-U.S. FTA Concluded against the Will of the Korean People; People’s Protest Goes On

4 April, 2007
No FTA Newsletter (Korean Alliance Against the Korea-U.S. FTA)
On Sunday April 1 at 4:00pm , taxi driver and KCTU member Heo Sae-wook stood before the Nam San Hyatt Hotel, where that final high-level FTA negotiations were taking place, and lit himself on fire chanting, 'Down with the Korea-U.S. FTA'.

Statement in Protest of the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement

2 April, 2007
Korean Americans for Fair Trade
At the eleventh hour, the United States and South Korea signed the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement (Korus FTA), the second largest free trade deal since NAFTA. President Bush and big business claim victory, but democracy has lost.

Civic Groups Show Mixed Reaction to South Korea-US Fta Deal

1 April, 2007
Yahoo Asia News
A landmark South Korea-U.S. free trade agreement (FTA) on Monday drew mixed responses among civic groups here, with opponents vowing an all-out campaign to prevent it from being passed by the National Assembly and proponents welcoming it as a means of boosting growth.

SKorea and US reach free trade agreement

1 April, 2007
Yahoo Asia
The United States and South Korea on Monday reached a major free trade agreement expected to boost both countries' exports by billions of dollars and rejuvenate the Korean economy.

Key Congressional Democrats against TRIPS-plus in FTAs

29 March, 2007
Riaz K. Tayob, TWN Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Mar07/09)
Twelve influential members of the United States Congress, in a letter to US Trade Representative Susan Schwab, have urged the 'immediate reconsideration' of certain TRIPS plus provisions in US Free Trade Agreements so as to ensure adherence to the World Trade Organization's 2001 Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health.

African cotton farmers being hit by subsidies and privatization

29 March, 2007
Kanaga Raja, TWN Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Mar07/11)
Poor cotton farmers in West Africa are facing new pressures from low commodity prices and from privatization programs being advocated by international donors such as the World Bank, the international aid agency Oxfam warned Thursday.

The NAMA Formula vs. Sectorals

29 March, 2007
Washington Trade Daily
The European Union and members of the NAMA-11 coalition - including South Africa, India, Brazil and Egypt - yesterday differed with the United States over the pace and timing of sectoral tariff elimination talks in the Doha Development Agenda nonagricultural market access architecture.

ASEAN tables emergency safeguard proposal in GATS talks

29 March, 2007
Riaz K. Tayob, TWN Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Mar07/12)
After years of protracted negotiations among WTO members on having an emergency safeguard mechanism to deal with adverse economic impacts as a result of services liberalization in the WTO, the ASEAN group (excluding Singapore) has tabled a proposal on it.

South countries voices concerns over Northern subsidies to cotton

29 March, 2007
Kanaga Raja, TWN Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Mar07/10)
The Group of 20 (G20) developing countries at the WTO said Thursday that trade-distorting subsidies from the developed countries are at the root of the critical situation of cotton for developing countries, and is one of the major inequalities in international agricultural trade.

TWN Analysis on the Proposed Malaysia-US FTA

28 March, 2007
Third World Network (TWN)
Third World Network (TWN) prepares an analysis on the Malaysia-US FTA looking at the implications of the agreement on the various economic sectors in Malaysia as well as on the society as a whole.

Full Tanks at the Cost of Empty Stomachs: The Expansion of the Sugarcane Industry in Latin America

27 March, 2007
(see signatories)
We, representatives of organizations and social movements of Brasil, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Colombia, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic, gathered at a forum on the expansion of the sugarcane industry in Latin America, declare that:

G33 Ministers reiterate commitment to SP, agree on revised indicators

26 March, 2007
Hira Jhamtani and Lutfiyah Hanim, TWN Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues
The Group of 33 (G33) developing countries concluded their Ministerial meeting here Wednesday with a communique outlining their continued commitment to Special Products and Special Safeguard Mechanism (SP/SSM) in the WTO's Doha agriculture negotiations, and agreeing on a revised list of indicators for the selection of Special Products.

Not import liberalisation, but justified protection needed for farm sector

25 March, 2007
Ashok B Sharma, Financial Express
Reduction in tariff protection in South Asian agriculture has been the primary cause of import surge, leading to fall in employment in farm activities, lowering of returns to farmers and increased levels of poverty in rural areas.

Debunking Five Myths About the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA)

22 March, 2007
Oakland Institute
Over the next two weeks, Korean and U.S. trade negotiators plan to meet behind closed doors with hopes of reaching an agreement on the KorUS FTA before March 31 deadline.

Children With Diarrhoea need Rice “Kanji”, Not Cannibal Rice

21 March, 2007
Drs. Mira and Vandana Shiva
California based Ventria Bioscience has been given preliminary approval to grow a rice containing human genes on 3000 acres in Kansas.

Get realistic with USFTA

20 March, 2007
S.M. MOHAMED IDRIS, Consumers Association of Penang
FEDERATION of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) president Datuk Yong Poh Kon claims that Malaysia has more to gain than lose from signing a free trade agreement (FTA) with the US (The Star, March 17). While claiming that a balance in views is necessary, it appears that his letter does not appear to be realistic about the possible gains for Malaysia under a USFTA.

Militant Brazilian Opposition to Bush-Lula Ethanol Accords

20 March, 2007
Isabella Kenfield and Roger Burbach
During Bush

Open Markets ‘Impoverishing Pakistani Fishing Communities’

20 March, 2007
ActionAid UK, http://us.oneworld.net/
Hundreds of local fishing communities are being pushed into poverty in Pakistan due to over fishing by international trawlers, according to new research from ActionAid released today.