The WTO protest in 1999

Alittle over 10 years ago, the Seattle Protest against the WTO Ministerial Conference happened. Over 100,000 protesters from all over the world in Seattle to protest unfair free trade and too much corporate control. These protesters ranged from students to religious leaders to human rights groups and environmental groups. Most of the protesters were non-violent, however, there was a small group that caused a state of emergency to be declared because of the violence and looting they caused.

The media's coverage showed extremists who were anti-trade or in some cases just angry people who are clueless to life basically. The media portrayed some protesters as an "interference" to trade. Haven't there been numerous protests that actually led to productive and long-lasting changes? The mainstream media was actually lacking on this protest. What was shown was biased against the protesters portraying them as nothing more than crazy fanatics.

Most protesters agreed that international trade and interdependence could be beneficial to the entire world. What they did not agree with was what they viewed as unfair trading and policies. They were not against international trade agreements rather they were upset by the rules and procedures for carrying out those agreements. Furthermore, these protesters were angered by the corporate control in international trade as well as the fact that developed countries tended to reap more of the benefits through those agreements. They wanted to see policy changes so that more underdeveloped nations could benefit as well. The protesters were suggesting the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development oversee any international trade issues.

Companies such as Banana Republic, Gap, Old Navy, Bank of America, McDonald's and otehr major corporations were the target of these protesters outrage. They viewed these companies as having "corporate control" over the WTO and they were involved in unfair and even dehumanizing practices. They were also angry at the U.S. and this protest was a part of what was known as anti-globalization protest.

In my opinion, yes the WTO, IMF, World Bank and other institutions that were established to govern the international community should be held responsible. What is the point of having these institutions if they allow corporations to get away with unfair trade policies, corporate domination and dehumanizing practices such as sweatshops?

Even though this protest happened over 10 years ago a lot of the issues still ring true today. A lot of corporations are more powerful and have more money than some countries. Companies like Microsoft, Ford, CNN and others have larger GDP's than countries. It is alarming to read and hear about sweatshops and child labor in the news. It is also alarming to hear how much money the top executives of these companies made as an annual salary and they still find ways to cut corners by outsourcing the work to countries who have no safety standards, environmental standards, no notion of corporate responsibility or child labor laws.

What is the WTO really doing? Just like the IMF I believe they are serving as a scapegoat for the more powerful countries in the world to exert their control.