What happens before the WTO?

Well, folks it’s the lead up to the WTO in September, the horses are at the gate and the starter has his whistle. Ladies and Gentlemen, you are looking the preliminary races that take place before the major ‘dash for cash’, the WTO meeting in September. The preliminaries are where the horses really showcase their form as they negotiate tricky obstacles like agricultural subsidies, medicines for poor countries and vital environmental initiatives like the Biosafety protocol. If the horses don’t manage to get through these areas with some sort of agreement, we may face a ‘gridlocked’ major race. Agriculture is at the heart of the current round of world trade talks and unless countries can agree on a plan for reducing domestic farm payments, export subsidies and agricultural tariffs, there is little hope for other areas of the talks. So it will be an interesting preliminary race ladies and gentlemen.

What an interesting line up we have here – horses from every country in the world. Naturally the eye is drawn to the two biggest horses I’ve ever seen, from the US and the EU. They tower above every other horse in the line up – look at the size! The speed at which they can pass trade resolutions must be breathtaking, the ‘profit uber alles’ blinkers are definitely on; their sheer bulk means that they must produce an enormous amount of horse crap. All the money here today is on these two stallions, which have been bought and paid for by corporate interests at home in their relative countries. Why compared to the sheer muscle of these super giants, the other horses, especially those from the South, are looking a wee bit like Shetland ponies. And what’s that, ah bless them, the WTO officials have decided to handicap all horses from developing nations with big rocks in their saddle bags. That’s exactly what we need; a level and democratic playing field.

Ok, they are going into their stalls. No one wants to stand near that big US horse, I wonder why. The moment is tense. The WTO official raises his whistle. AND THEY ARE AWAY!!!

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