11th WTO Ministerial, Buenos Aires 2017

December 13, 2017
Our World is Not for Sale (OWINFS) Final Statement on MC11: English, Spanish.

Media release (Dec 13, 2017):
Global civil society reactions to end of WTO ministerial conference: English, Spanish.

Media release (Dec 13, 2017):
On last day of WTO Ministerial, civil society distributes urgent recommendations to delegates attending heads of delegation meetings: English, Spanish.

Media release (Dec 11, 2017):
Civil Society Protest at the Entrance of the WTO 11th Ministerial in Buenos Aires: English.

MEDIA AVAILABILITY: Civil Society / NGO Contacts for MC11 WTO Ministerial Dec 10-13, 2017

Global civil society shares what’s at stake at MC 11:

Quote sheet on the rejection of the WTO Declaration on “Women’s Economic Empowerment”: English, Spanish.

Quote sheet and video: Civil Society Experts Outline What Is Needed to Protect the Development Mandate in Agriculture and Fisheries-Subsidies Negotiations in MC11: English, Spanish.

Quote sheet: ‘Investment facilitation for development’ is a Trojan horse for investment rules in WTO, say civil society advocates

Quote sheet: Public interest legal experts warn of dangers of WTO proposals on e-commerce, domestic regulation disciplines, investment facilitation and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs)

Quotes from civil society experts

Video from the press conference

A Positive Outcome for Development at the MC11 in Argentina?
Video from the side event organized by OWINFS on Sunday, Dec 10.

December 8, 2017: El gobierno de Macri deporta a periodista inglesa crítica de su gestión por haber entregado información de argentinos para Big Data (Sally Burch deported)

December 8, 2017: Argentina causes WTO scandal: Critical NGOs banned and possibly denied entry on the border

December 8, 2017: Argentina’s WTO civil society ban is outrageous - ITUC OnLine

November 30, 2017: Argentine government revokes World Trade Organization’s accreditation of key civil society organizations, just days before Ministerial Conference in Buenos Aires
December 3, 2017: Follow-up letter from OWINFS

October 9, 2017: Letter from Global Civil Society about the Agenda of the WTO: English: pdf, docx. Spanish: pdf, docx. French: pdf, docx. Greek: pdf, docx.

Still relevant:

WTO Turnaround 2013:
Food, Jobs and Sustainable Development First – Statement (Oct 28, 2013): English Spanish French Portuguese

Post-Ministerial Analysis (2018)

Data localization: English, French

Implications of WTO ecommerce proposals restricting access to algorithms: English

Policies for the platform economy: English, French

Preliminary note: Electronic authentication: some implications: English, Spanish

Results of the 11th ministerial conference of the WTO: English, Spanish

“Domestic regulation” rules in the WTO: English, Spanish

Market access the true aim of WTO fisheries subsidies negotiations: English, Spanish

Inequitable WTO rules in agriculture continue to impact farmers in the developing world: English, Spanish

Transnational corporations’ agenda on e-commerce: English, Spanish

International trade negotiations in context: The geopolitical dispute: English, Spanish

The Peoples’ Summit parallel to the 11th WTO Ministerial Conference: English, Spanish

Digital industrialisation in developing countries: English, French summary

What development actors need to know about e-commerce: English

Data frameworks for a right to development: English

Get off the big data partnerships bandwagon: English

La Economia Digital

Nota Preliminar: Autentificación electrónica: algunas implicaciones

Las asociaciones de PYMES rechazan el programa de trabajo de PYMES y las Reglas de comercio electronico de la OMC

Un vistazo a la 11a Conferencia Ministerial de la OMC

Comercio electrónico y la agenda de las transnacionales

El contexto de las actuales negociaciones comerciales internacionales: La disputa geopolítica

Normas de "reglamentación nacional" en la OMC

Doce razones por las cuales debemos oponernos a las normas relativas al comercio digital en el marco de la OMC

El comercio electrónico y la OMC

Argentine Government Revokes World Trade Organization’s Accreditation of Key Civil Society Organizations, Just Days before Ministerial Conference in Buenos Aires

November 30, 2017: In an unprecedented action, the Argentine government has revoked the accreditation of 63 civil society experts -- trade unionists, development advocates, digital rights activists, environmentalists, and others -- just days before the 11th Ministerial meeting of the WTO (MC11) in Buenos Aires, advising the WTO that the experts will not be allowed in the country to participate in the meeting. The majority of the rejected organizations work together through the global Our World Is Not for Sale (OWINFS) network.

Full media advisory: English, Spanish, French.

Letter to the WTO: English, Spanish, French.

December 2, 2017: For information on the public outcry about the above, and on how the Argentine government is justifying their actions, see e.g. here: English, Spanish.

December 3, 2017: Follow-up letter to Mr. Roberto Azevêdo, Director-General of the WTO (pdf).

December 7, 2017: Letter from the European Commission expressing concern and asking for the decision to be reversed.

December 8, 2017: El gobierno de Macri deporta a periodista inglesa crítica de su gestión por haber entregado información de argentinos para Big Data (Sally Burch deported)

December 10, 2017: Statement by Sally Burch: English, Spanish.

December 13, 2017: Open letter on civil society rights

Our World is Not for Sale (OWINFS) one-page flyer

Analysis of key issues for the 11th WTO Ministerial

MSME associations reject MSMEs work program and ecommerce rules in WTO: English, Spanish.

Statement by women’s rights organisations rejecting the WTO Declaration on Women’s Economic Empowerment

Rebuttal to “The WTO Investment Facilitation Initiative: Why It Matters” – background note: Investment Facilitation for Development: Opening the doors of the WTO for hard rules on investment

Is “gender” a Trojan horse to introduce new issues at WTO?

A deadly irony for people’s economic rights as WTO opens talks on International Rights Day

Analyses of Domestic Regulation Disciplines

What Africa wants at MC11

Fisheries subsidies negotiations: English: pdf, doc. French: pdf, doc. Spanish: pdf, doc.

“Domestic regulation” rules in the WTO: English: pdf, docx. Spanish: pdf, doc.

The fourth industrial revolution will deepen the digital divide. Alliance Sud Position on the Eleventh WTO Ministerial Conference: English, French.

Key Analysis: E-commerce

Twelve reasons to oppose rules on digital commerce in the WTO: English: pdf, docx. French: pdf, docx. Spanish: pdf, doc.

E-commerce and the World Trade Organization: English: pdf, docx. Spanish: pdf, docx. French: pdf, docx.

Risk of a deepening of the digital divide – worrisome WTO discussions

Preliminary analysis of aspects of some WTO ecommerce proposals

Some preliminary implications of WTO source code proposal

Some of the implications of ecommerce proposals for government procurement

Micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and e-commerce: English: pdf, docx.

UNCTAD report: Rising product digitalisation and losing trade competitiveness.

Jane Kelsey: E-commerce: the development implications of future proofing global trade rules for GAFA

Burcu Kilic and Renata Avila:
• Data is the new oil, so big tech is pushing for a digital free trade deal
• Trading away our privacy; the WTO Ministerial in Buenos Aires
• A new digital trade agenda: are we giving away the Internet?

E-signatures and trade: English: pdf.

Key Analysis: Agriculture

Agriculture remains key

WTO summit to ignore price crisis, agricultural dumping

WTO and Food Security: Biting the hand that feeds the poor

For India, the fight at WTO will be about food security

Home

Media coverage

English Language Coverage:
  1. Argentina Blocks Some Activists From Attending WTO Meeting, New York Times
  2. Argentina blocks some activists from attending WTO meeting, Reuters
  3. Argentine government blocks at least 20 NGOs from attending WTO ministerial, Inside Trade
  4. Argentina bans activists from WTO meeting, Financial Times
  5. Argentina Blocks Some Activists From Attending WTO Meeting, U.S. News & World Report
  6. https://www.politicopro.com/trade/whiteboard/2017/11/ngos-cry-foul-over-being-barred-from-wto-meeting-175159, Politico Pro
  7. PR disaster for MC11, as host denies accreditation to many NGOs, Third World Network
  8. Neoliberal Argentina Bans NGOs From WTO Summit in Last-Minute 'Unprecedented' Move, Telesur
  9. Civil society group: Argentina denies entry to WTO meeting
  10. David Parker asked to intervene as WTO cancels NGO registrations, Voxy New Zealand — Points out that DHL, eBay, ICC, WEF etc are still accredited for MC11
  11. Economics NGO Sector: David Parker asked to intervene as WTO cancels NGO registrations in bizarre lead-up to ministerial, Live News New Zealand
  12. WTO Ministerial runs into trouble as Argentina turns away registered NGOs, United News of India
  13. In a bizarre move, Argentina bars NGOs, civil society from attending WTO conference, Down to Earth
  14. Revocation of NGO registrations in the WTO raises protests against the Argentine Government, Latin America in movement online
  15. TV interview on the revocation of NGO registrations, theREALnews.com
  16. Argentina blocks two activists from entry on eve of WTO meet, Telesur
Spanish Language Coverage:
  1. Las ONGs, en la lista negra de Macri, Pagina 12
  2. Denuncian que el Gobierno prohibió el ingreso de 64 activistas a la OMC, Perfil
  3. Presentan en Buenos Aires programa de protestas contra la reunión de la OMC, EFE
  4. El Gobierno reconoce que prohibió la acreditación de ONGs a la OMC, El Cronista
  5. Activistas denuncian que se les impide el ingreso al país para cumbre de la OMC, Ambito Financiero, which is Argentina's leading business newspaper
  6. Activistas dicen que Argentina niega entrada a cumbre OMC, El Nuevo Herald
  7. Revocación de inscripciones ciudadanas en la OMC levanta protestas frente al Gobierno de Macri, America Latina en movimiento online
  8. OMC: lanzan Cumbre de los Pueblos y denuncian “papelón internacional” de Macri, Notas
  9. Escándalo con desacreditaciones: la OMC le echa la culpa a Macri, Notas
  10. Cumbre OMC: preocupación y protestas desde Europa porque el Gobierno negó el acceso a ONGs, Clarin, which is one of the main newspapers in Argentina; it is generally supportive of the government of Macri.
  11. El gobierno de Macri deporta a periodista inglesa crítica de su gestión por haber entregado información de argentinos para Big Data, El Disenso

French Language Coverage:

  1. Des ONG ont été refoulées à la réunion de l'OMC, Tribune de Genève