WTO, labor standards, and developing countries

[Seth Ackerman]

The media have been full of abuse for the Seattle protests. One of their
favorite debating points has been to claim that the developing countries
adore the WTO, and fear only that perfidious Northern unions will impose
labor standards. This of course ignores that the Third World unions and
development groups have fiercely opposed the WTO agenda accross the board --
intellectual property rights, investment policy, competition, agriculture,
government procurement, etc.

However... What to make of the fact that nearly half of the 50,000 who
braved the Seattle police department were Steelworkers and others from the
AFL-CIO? On the one hand, as Doug points out, they contributed much to the
Seattle demos and the success of the protest owes much to them. But
ultimately, their trade agenda is diametrically opposed to the developing
world's. They want to keep out cheap Third World imports, while the Third
World wants access to the US market. How do we reconcile the needs -- and
maintain the rebellious enthusiasm -- of both 1st World *and* 3rd world
workers?

I'd be interested to hear people's thoughts.