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The Truth about “Free Trade”

by Maureen Heffern Ponicki

In his campaign for President, George W. Bush maintained his belief that government should help people live their lives, not run their lives. Why, then will the voice of the people fall silent on April 20 in Quebec City, Canada, when the heads of state from across the Western Hemisphere convene at the Third Summit of the Americas to discuss the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)?

The FTAA would affect the lives of 800 million people throughout the United States, Canada and Latin America. It deals with numerous trade issues that merit open discussion, yet it’s impossible for our voices to be heard because negotiations in Quebec are being held without public input.

The FTAA would essentially expand the North American Free Trade Area of the Americas (NAFTA) to cover all 34 countries in the Western Hemisphere, excluding Cuba. The proposed agreement is unprecedented in its reach into many aspects of the lives of everyday citizens because it would essentially undermine our domestic policy making process and grant more power to corporations in comparison to the power of citizens.

Yet the summit is closed to the public. Some local policy-makers are unaware of its implications. When will we, as citizens, be given the opportunity to sort truth from fiction, or at least be part of the process?

Here are some facts: The FTAA would give unequaled new rights to multinational corporations above all other concerns. It even proposes to open up services such as education, health care, energy, parks, postal services, and more to international trade rules...making these services vulnerable to privatization and corporate control. How is it that fundamental questions such as the management of our public schools can be left to trade ministers who meet behind closed doors?

The FTAA undermines our system of democracy. How? One way is by allowing private corporations to sue a government for potential lost profits due to a domestic policy. Take for instance, the case of Methanex, a Canadian company that produces MTBE, a gasoline additive found to contaminate water supplies, causing cancer when it leaks out of underground gasoline tanks. When California adopted laws to phase out its use, Methanex filed suit, seeking 970 million dollars from the U.S. government for so-called “anticipated lost profits.”

Equally troubling is the fact that the case will not be heard in an open court, but in a closed session before a panel of trade experts. Experts predict more and more cases that companies could never hope to win in domestic courts are headed for NAFTA and WTO dispute resolution panels. With such a tremendous power shift, states and municipalities may find themselves among the big losers.

Which brings us to an important question: who REALLY gains and who loses with this venture? It is impossible to calculate the exact number of jobs lost in the U.S. because of NAFTA. But we do know that as of September 2000, more than 260,000 workers qualified for retraining programs for those who lost their jobs because their employer moved to Mexico or Canada. In addition, an estimated 8 million Mexicans have fallen into poverty since its creation.

In the weeks prior to the FTAA Summit, groups across the hemisphere are launching discussions around free trade and many organizations have come together in this community to investigate the truth. One of these is the “Free Trade Reality Tour,” sponsored by The American Friends Service Committee, a Quaker peace and social justice organization. The tour features speakers from Mexican factories, displaced workers in the U.S., and others at local colleges this weekend who will begin to look more deeply into issues of trade and how they touch our lives.

Find out how you can get involved. Call your local legislator and make sure he or she is aware of the FTAA summit and will take a closer look at the implications of the discussion. With citizen participation we can generate alternatives that support trade among nations and allows for social, political and economic development for all people.

Imagine that!

Maureen Heffern Ponicki was the project coordinator of AFSC's Democratizing the Global Economy Project from 2001-2003.