Free Trade Area Of The America Essay

, Research Paper

Follow Up: let’s turn to the real world. The Summit of the Americas is taking place in Quebec City. World leaders and protestors and gathering around one key factor of development – trade. Preliminary talks are underway to develop a “Free Trade Area of the Americas” from Argentina to Canada. Many people have strong opinions about trade. Some of these opinions are better informed than others. If you were hired as an advisor to either the protest groups or the government’s what useful information could you provide them about the risks and benefits of such a deal.

This issue of free trade throughout 34 countries of Americas (except Cuba) has been a matter that has been gaining more and more popularity lately. The talks of escalated electricity in the air have been augmenting as we have been approaching this long awaited conference in Quebec City. In December 1994, at the first Summit of the Americas, the 34 democratically elected Heads of State of the Western Hemisphere agreed to create a Free Trade Area of the Americas by 2005. However the U.S. are known to be pushing for an earlier completion deadline of 2003. The FTAA is suppose to eliminate trade and investment barriers on virtually all goods and services traded by member countries, reducing prices for consumers and creating new markets for producers throughout the hemisphere. [Office of NAFTA & Inter-American Affairs]. As there s three years left to seek to meet the anticipated deadline to strike an agreement, this meeting that has started this weekend might prove crucial as the draft that serves as the basis for the agreement to be complete by 2005, is shaping up persistently. Besides governments of each country, there are nine negotiating groups (NG) within the FTAA process and each NG has responsible for negotiating a portion of the overall FTAA accord. These nine negotiation groups have been meeting regularly in Miami, which is the site of these negotiations, in order to negotiate the diminution of trade barriers in their subject area. These nine NGs are:

+ Negotiating Group on Market Access (NGMA) Chair – Chile, Vice Chair – Barbados

+ Negotiating Group on Agriculture (NGAG) Chair – Brazil, Vice Chair – Ecuador

+ Negotiating Group on Investment (NGIN) Chair Trinidad & Tobago, Vice Chair – Colombia

+ Negotiating Group on Services (NGSE) Chair – U.S., Vice Chair – Peru

+ Negotiating Group on Government Procurement (NGGP) Chair – Canada, Vice Chair – Chile

+ Negotiating Group on Dispute Settlement (NGDS) Chair – Costa Rica, Vice Chair – Peru

+ Negotiating Group on Intellectual Property Rights (NGIP) Chair – Mexico, Vice Chair – Paragua

+ Negotiating Group on Subsidies, Antidumping & Countervailing Duties (NGADCV) Chair – Venezuela, Vice Chair – Uruguay

+ Negotiating Group on Competition Policy (NGCP) Chair Colombia, Vice Chair Canada

The protestations in the capital of La Bella Province are undoubtedly expected to get hostile and for what has been reported so far, the violence is increasing and the number of protestants is augmenting significantly. It makes you wonder why the need for such a serious demonstration that might prove to be one of the most imposing and most violent protestations we have seen in our country in a while. This has been the talk amongst many of us and the awareness of this campaign is at the highest. Nonetheless, in Qu bec City at the present moment, there s a more than ironic situation. The spot where the negotiations are holding place has been shielded, and the fence has been laid around, almost four kilometers away from the meeting place so that the demonstrators are extensively distanced. What is the point of demonstrating when the leaders can not be accessed by any means and they do not see the protestations anywhere but on television, even though the masses have gathered to have their say only a few kilometers away. What is it the point of protesting. All demonstrations might as well be happening in a different city since the people who will make the decisions can absolutely not feel a hostile vibe as the security is at the maximum around them. Negotiated behind closed doors, with no citizen input but plenty of suggestions from business interests, the FTAA is yet another example of the kind of free-market fundamentalism that has created a global race to the bottom that erodes environmental protection, workers’ livelihoods, and human rights. If you think NAFTA has been a disaster for working families and the environment in the US, Canada, and Mexico, this will be far worse. [Free Trade Area of the Americas]. This comes to prove that the most influential figures will agree on a pact regardless of masses who have gathered all over the place to protest the immoral and unfair side of this deal. Abundant negative effects that will affect us if this deal is to go through are alarming and the massive outcome of demonstrators is not surprising, but the current situation in Quebec is discreditable: “Thousands of police officers are coming to back up what is being called Quebec’s ‘wall of shame,’ and many Canadians are asking whether such separation is necessary, or is anti-democratic overkill” [ 4/10 New York Times ]

As outline previously these are the evident advantages that the folks in favor of global free trade will accentuate:

+ Better access to inte