One
of the biggest challenges facing poor countries in terms of trade policy is the
fact that all trade negotiations virtually take place in secret. While corporations
enjoy a seat at the table, unions and non-governmental organizations—which
represent average people—are denied access to information and a voice in the
negotiations. If we truly want to fight poverty, unions and representatives of
developing countries need to have a seat at the negotiating table. Their insights
and voices must be an integral part of all international policy.
Throughout
his career, Zoellick has taken strong issue with worker’s rights; while ignoring
concerns about labor rights, he paints the labor movement with unfair
accusations. In a speech at the Heritage Foundation regarding CAFTA, Zoellick noted
that other sectors have voiced opposition to CAFTA, supposedly on the grounds
that workers’ rights would be sacrificed. “We must decide whether we will
leave hundreds of thousands of Central Americans in poverty and hopelessness –-
because of the short-sighted protectionism of U.S. labor unions,” Zoellick
said. “In short, we must decide whether to promote America's strategic interests, or its special interests.”
Yet, if we look at the one-year reports from CAFTA, we find the agreement has done little or nothing to support the rights of workers in Central America and that thousands of workers are still mired in poverty and threatened by corrupt and violent corporations.
According to a recent article in the Washington Post, nearly two years have passed since the countries of Central America vowed to strengthen worker rights as they sought votes in Congress for the Central American Free Trade Agreement, or CAFTA. Yet there has been little if any progress, according to diplomats, labor inspectors, workers and managers.
"The situation is the
same now as it was," said Homero Fuentes, director of the Commission for
the Verification of Codes of Conduct, a Guatemalan group hired by multinational
companies to inspect local factories and plantations. "The law hasn't been
reformed, and people just don't obey the law. There's a culture of
impunity."
Workers and the poor are
not merely “special interests”; if the head of the world’s largest anti-poverty
organization sees them that way, this is a dangerous choice for working men and
women around the globe.
See below for additional articles on Robert Zoellick's appointment as President of the World Bank:
"Mr. Hardball Goes to the World Bank" by Sarah Anderson, director of the Global Economy Project at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, DC.
"Bush to Pick Zoellick for World Bank" - Washington Post, May 30, 2007