The Quebec Wall (fwd)

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---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Tue, 17 Apr 2001 22:21:14 -0400
From: Michel Chossudovsky <chossudovsky@videotron.ca>
Subject: The Quebec Wall

What lies behind the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)? 



THE QUEBEC WALL 

by

Michel Chossudovsky

Professor of Economics, University of Ottawa


The Summit of the Americas will be held inside a four kilometer "bunker" made
of concrete and galvanized steel fencing.  The 10 feet high "Quebec Wall"
encircles part of the historic city center including the parliamentary compound
of the National Assembly, hotels and shopping areas. Cars will enter through
closely guarded checkpoints; laissez-passers have been issued to official
delegations, to the CEOs of major banks and corporations, as well as approved
media and "selected invitees." (Click to see map of the "Security Perimeter" at
http://www.securitesommet.ca/pages/p_citoyen/p_cito_pe_f.html).

Outside the bunker, more than 6,000 police and security forces are on hand,
equipped not only with "pepper spray" but also with "multi-shot" Arwen 37 guns
shooting hard-coated plastic bullets. The latter --according to a RCMP
spokesperson-- are 

"… 'meant to crack a rib and put them in a lot of pain', … Tactical squads are
usually required to test such less-lethal weapons --such as Tasers, which
deliver electric shocks-- on themselves. But Toronto Police Constable Leighton
said it would be 'too dangerous' to do so with the Arwen." 1 

With Canadian Armed Forces personnel dispatched to Quebec's capital from
military bases in Nova Scotia, the security apparatus in Quebec promises to be
"better organized" than at the Seattle WTO Millenium Summit in 1999. In
Seattle, the city's riot police was integrated with Gang Squads and SWAT teams
of the Tactical Operations Divisions constituting the "more militarized
components" of the police force. 

By any standard this is the largest police operation in North America directed
against ordinary citizens. Rather than "cordoning off" the conference center
which is standard practice in international summits-- the Canadian authorities
have chosen to "fence in" a large part of the downtown area --not only denying
the rights of citizens to protest but also preventing residents from moving
around within their own city. 

And those who defy the Quebec Wall will be taken to Orsainville penitentiary
which has been emptied of its entire prison population (including several
members of the Hells Angels) to make room for these more dangerous
"troublemakers." 

THE QUEBEC WALL IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL

Barely a week before the Summit, the Canadian and provincial  governments, the
City of Quebec and Quebec City's Police force were taken to court  by a
Montreal lawyer and the Vancouver based Canadian Liberty Committee  (CLC). In a
signed affidavit, the Canadian government representative stated that democracy
was not under threat, to ensure: 

''freedom of expression … the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International
Trade has [sent] invitations to the Summit to approximately 60 representatives
of interest groups and lobby groups." 2 

Moreover, "alternative protest sites" ("sites alternatifs de manifestation")
have been designated --on the other side of the Wall-- so that the rank and
file of these same civil society organisations can do their own thing. 

The "People's Summit", organized by NGOs and major trade unions-- will receive
"financial contributions for the holding of seminars, colloquia and public
meetings."3 The federal government has allocated Can$287,000-- a comfortable
amount of money, but "peanuts" in comparison to the 46 million dollar budget
allocated by Ottawa for the police operation and the erection of the Wall.   

WHO'S IN, WHO'S OUT 

The official list of civil society invitees has not been made public but we
have a good idea who the "partner" civil society organizations are. The
invitees include leaders of major trade union federations as well as several
CEOs of mainstream NGOs. 4 

The ritual is broadly similar to that of the 1999 Seattle World Trade
Organization (WTO) Millenium Summit. Several months ahead of time, the WTO and
Western governments had called for a "dialogue" with the leaders of selected
civil society organisations. A carefully worded AFL-CIO petition had been
drafted urging the WTO Summit to adopt "trade and investment rules [which]
protect workers' rights and the environment". In Seattle, Labor's buzzword was
to "make the global economy work for working families". 5 

Similarly, last January at the global business Summit in Davos --regrouping the
World's top corporate execs, heads of State and VIPs, the leaders of some 59
"civil society" organisations --including the CEOs of Greenpeace, Oxfam UK,
Amnesty International and Save the Children Alliance-- were also in attendance.


The ploy is to selectively handpick civil society leaders "whom we can trust"
and integrate them into a "dialogue", cut them off from their rank and file,
make them feel that they are "global citizens" acting on behalf of their fellow
workers but make them act in a way which serves the interests of the corporate
establishment:

The participation of NGOs in the Annual Meeting in Davos is evidence of the
fact that [we] purposely seek to integrate a broad spectrum of the major
stakeholders in society in … defining and advancing the global agenda … We
believe the [Davos] World Economic Forum provides the business community with
the ideal framework for engaging in collaborative efforts with the other
principal stakeholders [NGOs] of the global economy to "improve the state of
the world," which is the Forum's mission. 6 

AFL-CIO's John Sweeney and Canadian Labor Congress (CLC) Ken Georgetti
--together with Bill Jordan of the International Confederation of Free trade
Unions (ICTFU)-- were also in Davos, mingling in a friendly environment with
financier George Soros, Microsoft's Bill Gates and World Bank President James
Wolfensohn.  Meanwhile the rank and file protesters of these "civil society"
organisations were being beaten with clubs and assaulted with water cannons by
the Swiss riot police "outside" the Conference venue at the "counter-Davos." 

RITUAL OF DISSENT

In the New World Order, the ritual of inviting "civil society" leaders into the
inner circles of power --while simultaneously repressing the rank and file--
serves several important functions. First, it says to the World that the
critics of globalization "must make concessions" to earn the right to mingle. 
Second, it conveys the illusion that while the global elites should --under
what is euphemistically called democracy-- be subject to criticism, they
nonetheless rule legitimately. And third, it says "there is no alternative" to
globalization: fundamental change is not possible and the most we can hope is
to engage with these rulers in an ineffective "give and take". 

While the "Globalizers" may adopt a few progressive phrases to demonstrate they
have good intentions, their fundamental goals are not challenged.  And what
this "civil society mingling" does is to reinforce the clutch of the corporate
establishment while weakening and dividing the protest movement.

An understanding of this process of co-optation is important, because tens of
thousands of the most principled young people in Seattle, Prague and Quebec
City are involved in the anti-globalization protests because they reject the
notion that money is everything, because they reject the impoverishment of
millions and the destruction of fragile Earth so that a few may get richer.
This rank and file and some of their leaders as well, are to be applauded.  But
we need to go further.  We need to challenge the right of the "Globalizers" to
rule. This requires that we rethink the strategy of protest. Can we move to a
higher plane, by launching mass movements in our respective countries,
movements that bring the message of what globalization is doing, to ordinary
people? For they are the force that must be mobilized to challenge those who
would plunder the Globe.

THE FTAA: PRIVATIZATION OF A HEMISPHERE, UNDER U.S. CONTROL 

The FTAA is a good deal more than a trade agreement. Throughout the Americas,
it would radically transform the social existence of sovereign nations. 

Fundamental economic, social and institutional relations would be enshrined
into a set of legally binding conditions. All public services that are at least
in part subsidized by the State, would be opened up to international tender
under the terms of the proposed clauses on "national treatment." If a
government finances health or education, this service must be opened to
international bidding. And who would bid? The large corporations would take
control, all community based facilities would be transformed into profit-making
undertakings ---schools, sports clubs, day-care centers, everything. 

Moreover, the FTAA clauses would literally allow for the privatization of
municipalities. Water, sewer systems, roads and municipal services would be
owned and operated by private companies (rather than by citizens) much in the
same way as the "gated communities" in the US. More generally, the FTAA would
destroy local economies, depress wages and impoverish millions of people. The
agreement --entrenched in international law-- would annul or invalidate
national laws. 

The FTAA would also allow for the privatization of water, inter-city highways
as well as entire urban areas. The FTAA would also lead to the demise of
national, regional and municipal governments. 

IMF MEDICINE BECOMES PERMANENT

Moreover, under FTAA rules, the enforcement of the IMF's deadly "economic
medicine" --which has served to destroy national economies and impoverish
developing countries --would no longer hinge upon cumbersome loan agreements,
which for the governments had the advantage that they were not "legally
binding" documents. 

But under FTAA rules, Latin American governments would have no political
leverage whatsoever; they would loose their "right" to even negotiate with
their creditors: the "economic medicine" would become permanently entrenched in
international law. Countries would not longer be "bonded" by external debt;
they would be permanently "enslaved" by their creditors.

CHARTER OF RIGHTS FOR CORPORATIONS 

The FTAA would grant a "charter of rights" to corporations, which would not
only override national laws but would also enable private companies to sue
national governments, demand the annulment of national laws and receive
compensation for potential lost profits which result from government
regulations. 

While some of these broad issues will be debated at the People's Summit, they
have not been included in the demands of trade union leaders from the US,
Canada and Latin America. Regrouped under the umbrella of the ICFTU, The trade
unions have called upon the FTAA Summit to include the usual core labor
standards, environmental and human rights clauses in the agreement. 

THE AMERICAN EMPIRE

This is not a trade deal; it is the American Empire. Behind the FTAA are the
powers of Wall Street and the military-industrial complex. Ironically, while
local economies including public services would be deregulated, under the FTAA
the production of weapons of mass destruction by America's major defense
contractors would remain heavily subsidized… 

Although not officially on the FTAA agenda, the militarization of South America
under "Plan Colombia", the signing of a "parallel" military cooperation
protocol by 27 countries of the Americas (the so-called Declaration of Manaus)
is an integral part of the process of hemispheric integration. US strategic
interests are at stake. 

The imposition of "free" trade by Washington is an instrument of economic
conquest which serves US corporate interests as well as those of the
military-intelligence-apparatus. Trade Negotiator Richard Zoellnick --who is
slated to play a key role in Quebec City-- is part of the Bush National
Security Team working closely with National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice
and Secretary of State Colin Powell.
 
DOLLARISATION

The deregulation of national banking institutions is part and parcel of the
Summit agenda. Supported by the Bush administration, Wall Street wants to
extend its control throughout the hemisphere, eventually displacing or taking
over existing national financial institutions. 

With the help of the IMF, Washington is also bullying Latin American countries
into accepting the US dollar as their national currency. The greenback has
already been imposed on five Latin American countries including Ecuador,
Argentina, Panama, El Salvador and Guatemala. 

The economic and social consequences of "dollarisation" have been devastating.
In these countries, Wall Street and the US Federal Reserve system directly
control monetary policy. The entire structure of public expenditure is
controlled by US creditors. Real wages have collapsed, social programs have
been destroyed, large sectors of the population have been driven into abysmal
poverty. 

While not officially part of the FTAA Summit agenda, the adoption of the US
dollar as the common currency for the Western Hemisphere is being discussed
behind closed doors. 

Militarisation and "dollarisation" are the essential building blocks of the
American Empire. 

DISARMING THE NEW WORLD ORDER

With mounting dissent from all sectors of society against the FTAA, the
official Summit desperately needs the token participation of "civil society"
leaders "on the inside", to give the appearance of being "democratic." The
Summit is seeking the endorsement of these organizations in exchange for token
modifications of the Agreement, which do not put into doubt the overall
legitimacy of the FTAA nor modify substantially the workings of the proposed
free trade area.

The hidden agenda is to weaken and divide the protest movement and orient the
anti-globalization movement into areas that do not directly threaten the
interests of the business establishment and --more importantly-- which do not
raise the broader issue of Washington's political hegemony in the Western
Hemisphere. 

Meanwhile, George W. Bush's trade negotiator Robert Zoellnick is preparing
fast-track legislation packaged under the "presidential trade promotion
authority", with a view to rushing the FTAA (without amendments) through the US
Congress. In other words, instating the American Empire will not be subjected
to the uncertainties of parliamentary consent.  

In turn, in consultation with the AFL-CIO, the powerful Business Roundtable
(BR) and The Emergency Committee for American Trade (ECAT) --integrated by the
representatives of America's largest corporations-- are pushing the line of the
trade union bosses, they are demanding the Bush administration "to make labor
and environmental standards part of future trade talks."6  

While most of the protesters who have converged on Quebec City (including
Quebec's vibrant student movement) reject the trade deal outright, the leaders
of some of the mainstream "civil society" groups want to get their human
rights, democracy, labor and environmental clauses embedded into the official
texts and then "cry victory," we've done it! 7 However, by doing this they
would not only go against their rank and file, they would also provide
--without fully realizing the implications-- legitimacy to an all encompassing
process which destroys institutions and impoverishes millions of people. 

The American Empire cannot be amended; it must be rejected, fought and
defeated. The FTAA must be closed down! 



ENDNOTES

1. Toronto Star, 22 March 2001.

2. Canada, Province de Quebec, District de Quebec, Cours supérieure, No.
200-05-014848-019, Affidavit de Denis Ricard, Section II, paragragh 16).

3.  According to the signed affidavit, Canada, Province de Québec, op cit.


4.  CLC K. Georgetti and  AFL-CIO J. Sweeney are also on the guest list of the
official FTAA Summit in Quebec City. While the Council of Canadians (COC) has
stated that it will decline Ottawa's invitation, Matthew Coon Come, National
Chief of the Assembly of First Nations has accepted. Among union leaders, the
President of the Quebec's FTQ Henry Massé has accepted, while making clear that
he will also be participating (outside the bunker) in the People's Summit in
solidarity with his rank and file.


5. See AFL-CIO, "Make the Global Economy Work for Working Families",
http://www.wslc.org/wto/index.htm. , October 1999) 

6. See World Economic Forum, Press Release,
http://www.weforum.org/whatwedo.nsf/documents/what+we+do?Open 5 January 2001. 

7. In these Times, 16 April 2001





Related texts by Michel Chossudovsky:

Seattle and Beyond: Disarming the New World Order, November 1999 at
http://www.transnational.org/forum/meet/seattle.html.

Global Poverty in the Late 20th Century, Journal of International Affairs, Fall
1999 at http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/chossu.htm.

CBC "Commentary", on the FTAA and the likely fate of the Canadian Dollar, CBC,
9 April 2001. 




C Copyright by Michel Chossudovsky, Ottawa, April 2001. All rights reserved.
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chossudovsky@videotron.ca, fax: 1-514-4256224.