Joanna
John Mage wrote:
> another excellent performance by
> <http://www.theyesmen.org/>
> john mage
>
>
> November 13, 2006
> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>
> WTO ANNOUNCES FORMALIZED SLAVERY MARKET FOR AFRICA
> US Trade Representative to Africa, Governor of Nigeria Central Bank
> weigh in at Wharton
>
> Text, photos, video: http://www.gatt.org/wharton.html
> WTO Contact: Hanniford Schmidt (mailto:schmidt at gatt.org)
> Conference website:
> http://www.whartonglobal.com/africa/panels.asp#Trade
> Conference contacts: http://www.whartonglobal.com/africa/contact.asp
>
> Philadelphia - At a Wharton Business School conference on business in
> Africa, World Trade Organization representative Hanniford Schmidt
> announced the creation of a WTO initiative for "full private
> stewardry of labor" for the parts of Africa that have been hardest
> hit by the 500 years of Africa's free trade with the West.
>
> The initiative will require Western companies doing business in some
> parts of Africa to own their workers outright. Schmidt recounted how
> private stewardship has been successfully applied to transport,
> power, water, traditional knowledge, and even the human genome. The
> WTO's "full private stewardry" program will extend these successes to
> (re)privatize humans themselves.
>
> "Full, untrammelled stewardry is the best available solution to
> African poverty, and the inevitable result of free-market theory,"
> Schmidt told more than 150 attendees. Schmidt acknowledged that the
> stewardry program was similar in many ways to slavery, but explained
> that just as "compassionate conservatism" has polished the rough
> edges on labor relations in industrialized countries, full stewardry,
> or "compassionate slavery," could be a similar boon to developing
> ones.
>
> The audience included Prof. Charles Soludo (Governor of the Central
> Bank of Nigeria), Dr. Laurie Ann Agama (Director for African Affairs
> at the Office of the US Trade Representative), and other notables.
> Agama prefaced her remarks by thanking Scmidt for his macroscopic
> perspective, saying that the USTR view adds details to the WTO's
> general approach. Nigerian Central Bank Governor Soludo also
> acknowledged the WTO proposal, though he did not seem to appreciate
> it as much as did Agama.
>
> A system in which corporations own workers is the only free-market
> solution to African poverty, Schmidt said. "Today, in African
> factories, the only concern a company has for the worker is for his
> or her productive hours, and within his or her productive years," he
> said. "As soon as AIDS or pregnancy hits--out the door. Get sick, get
> fired. If you extend the employer's obligation to a 24/7, lifelong
> concern, you have an entirely different situation: get sick, get
> care. With each life valuable from start to finish, the AIDS scourge
> will be quickly contained via accords with drug manufacturers as a
> profitable investment in human stewardees. And educating a child for
> later might make more sense than working it to the bone right now."
>
> To prove that human stewardry can work, Schmidt cited a proposal by a
> free-market think tank to save whales by selling them. "Those who
> don't like whaling can purchase rights to specific whales or groups
> of whales in order to stop those particular whales from getting
> whaled as much," he explained. Similarly, the market in Third-World
> humans will "empower" caring First Worlders to help them, Schmidt
> said. (http://www.policynetwork.net/main/article.php?article_id=505)
>
> One conference attendee asked what incentive employers had to remain
> as stewards once their employees are too old to work or reproduce.
> Schmidt responded that a large new biotech market would answer that
> worry. He then reminded the audience that this was the only possible
> solution under free-market theory.
>
> There were no other questions from the audience that took issue with
> Schmidt's proposal.
>
> During his talk, Schmidt outlined the three phases of Africa's 500-
> year history of free trade with the West: slavery, colonialism, and
> post-colonial markets. Each time, he noted, the trade has brought
> tremendous wealth to the West but catastrophe to Africa, with poverty
> steadily deepening and ever more millions of dead. "So far there's a
> pattern: Good for business, bad for people. Good for business, bad
> for people. Good for business, bad for people. That's why we're so
> happy to announce this fourth phase for business between Africa and
> the West: good for business--GOOD for people."
>
> The conference took place on Saturday, November 11. The panel on
> which Schmidt spoke was entitled "Trade in Africa: Enhancing
> Relationships to Improve Net Worth." Some of the other panels in the
> conference were entitled "Re-Branding Africa" and "Growing Africa's
> Appetite." Throughout the comments by Schmidt and his three
> co-panelists, which lasted 75 minutes, Schmidt's stewardee, Thomas
> Bongani-Nkemdilim, remained standing at respectful attention off to
> the side.
>
> "This is what free trade's all about," said Schmidt. "It's about the
> freedom to buy and sell anything--even people."
>
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