PROTESTS DELAY OPENING OF WTO TALKS IN SEATTLE
Byline: Jim Ostroff
SEATTLE — A phalanx of chanting, singing, placard-carrying protesters descended on downtown Seattle Tuesday, succeeding in their promise to disrupt the opening ceremonies of the triannual ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization.
The gala kickoff of the largest trade meeting ever held in the U.S., as well as the entire three-day agenda of market-opening talks, was thrown into chaos as protesters tied up intersections around the ornate Paramount Theater.
Keynote speakers Secretary of State Madeline Albright, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky were forced to hole up in their hotels, as riot-clad police fired pepper gas and tear-gas canisters at demonstrators who threatened to surge through police lines protecting the theater and nearby convention center. As protesters promised to be out in full force Wednesday, Washington governor Gary Locke activated the National Guard, as of 5:10 p.m. pacific standard time, and Seattle mayor Paul Schell imposed a 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. curfew.
By mid-afternoon, it was unclear when, or whether, the delegates from 135 nations could begin their deliberations to set an agenda for this Millennium Round of trade talks. At 4:10 p.m., WTO officials said Tuesday’s schedule had been scrapped, but said the keynote speakers hoped to deliver their remarks later this week. Friday is the meeting’s scheduled final day.
Thrown into limbo were plans to consider proposals to “liberalize” world trade by vastly increasing, or ending altogether, textile-apparel import quotas, cutting import tariffs and making it more difficult for countries like the U.S. to protect against import surges.
Also put off was consideration of proposals to make it easier for retailers to do business in foreign countries and the contentious issue of taxing the booming electronic commerce business that retailers in particular have opposed vehemently.
It was unknown whether President Clinton will address WTO delegates today as planned.
Clinton had pushed successfully to expand the conference agenda beyond issues such as protecting intellectual property in order to include initiatives to “put a human face on world trade” by including proposals to set world labor standards and outlaw sweatshops. Apprised of the protest marches, Clinton issued a statement from the White House saying, “I am very sympathetic” to the issues of “organized labor and environmental groups.”
He added, “I strongly, strongly believe that we should open the process up to all those people who are now demonstrating on the outside. They ought to be a part of it. I think we should strengthen the role of the interest of labor and environment in our trade negotiations.”
Clinton might have unleashed a number of problems in pushing this expanded agenda, at least as far as some U.S. trade interests are concerned. In speeches delivered over the past few days, trade officials from Europe, Asia and Africa said the developed nations had an obligation to open their markets to the world’s poorer nations.
Repeatedly, these officials cited textiles, apparel and footwear as products that should be given favorable access, especially into the U.S.
Even before the official 10 a.m. kickoff of the WTO talks, protesters were locked arm-in-arm and had chained themselves to store doors and fire hydrants, making it almost impossible for delegates to get into the Paramount Theater, a huge building decorated in bas relief woods, glass chandeliers and mirrors dating to the turn of the century.
The demonstrators ranged from young protesters dressed as turtles — signifying their opposition to WTO environmental policies — to middle aged union members who were critical of the WTO’s labor policies.
Most of the union demonstrators were orderly, in stark contrast to those from environmental and consumer groups and self-described “agitators” from groups such as the Ruckus Society. Windows at numerous stores, including a large FAO Schwarz unit, a Gap and a Banana Republic, were smashed.
Retail business in the downtown core around the Paramount — including Nordstrom’s — came to a halt. One retail spokesman said the loss of business would likely extend through the weekend, hardly the best possible kickoff for a holiday season.
Sporadically, the protesters breached lines of police. Police, in turn, periodically lobbed pepper and tear-gas canisters at the protesters. Add the mass movement of armor-clad police, police horses and armed personnel carriers and it was nothing less than chaos in downtown Seattle all day.