Human Rights, Patents and Free Trade

Riot Gear

2005-11-05T10:16:00.000-05:00

The summit meetings themselves are inside a tightly barricaded area of Mar del Plata. There are three security check points which require accreditation to pass through before you get to the 7 or 8 square blocks where government delegations are meeting. Police in riot gear stand 20 across and at least 10 deep, waiting.

After yesterday´s official events and Pres. Hugo Chavez´s talk to attendees of the People´s Summit, the rioting began. The protesters started fires, smashed windows, and threw Molotov cocktails and concrete blocks at businesses before police rounded them up into heavily armored dark blue vans.

The protesters´targets were not random; though some spoke to the anti-establishment (a firebombed bank; a demolished satellite TV store), others were a reminder that Bush brings a host of problems to the community (a family-run butcher, a small cafe) and still others made little sense, at least to some reporters (upon noting that telephone booths had been destroyed, one local reporter commented, "But everyone uses telephones!").

We walked past security and into the rioted streets by our hotel, through four long blocks´worth of damage. There were fires scattered about, people crying in their stores and crushes of press and gawkers. Tear gas seemed to hang in the air, as our throats were sore and scratchy after only minutes of walking (we neglected to bring along lemons to help with this).

Does the rioting have its intended effect? It depends on what comprises that intent. Local people affected will be less likely to support the next heads-of-state event, certainly. Chavez might gain some ground from the popular unrest in the streets, which could be viewed as legitimizing his "for the people" policies. Whether the protesters will effect larger policy changes is dubious. Yet while Argentine pamphlets urged protesters to refrain from action, because, paraphrased, "if you destroy a cafe blocks from where Bush is sitting, he will not care," the protesters have led every news story. Perhaps that was the intent.

The AIDS Crisis-Problem Solved?

2005-11-04T09:00:00.000-05:00

The official press release of the USG touts the importance of these summits because "our leaders ...come together to solve problems."
Apparently the HIV/AIDS pandemic is solved because "With strong support from President Bush, this goal (of providing ARV to 600,000 by 2005) has been met and surpassed: today 640,00 people have benefited from this particular Summit mandate." ( "The Opportunity Summit," statement by Thomas A. Shannon, Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere Affairs; "What is the Summit of the Americas?" Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs Press Release, 26 Oct. 2005.)

We are skeptical. Even accepting the USG´s assertions regarding the number of those in treatment in the Latin American region, current US policies will undermine access to ARVs, as well as undercut international trade and human rights laws and norms. Free trade agreements (FTAs) such as CAFTA and AFTA , while purporting to promote liberty and free enterprise, erode the infrastructure necessary for basic health care and development. The pharmaceutical patent-related provisions of these FTAs reduce the safeguards in place (by the major international trade/intellectual property law, TRIPS) for promoting public health, effectively blocking access to and use of affordable ARVs in Latin America for those who need them most.

Also, human rights obligations require goverments to promote and protect health--this means taking measures to provide greater access to life saving medications, such as ARVs, rather than grant more opportunities to big pharmaceutical manufacturers to profit. (For specific information, please contact the blog writers.)

It is a wonderful idea that leaders can sit down and solve problems. But misdirecting the public from knowing what is being negotiated elsewhere just creates more problems.

Kindergarten Cops

2005-11-04T08:21:00.000-05:00

We met a very nice reporter from a well-known conservative media source. He raised his eyebrows and expressed skepticism that we would come all this way for a summit which he said would be nothing more than meaningless proclamations: ¨Poverty is bad.¨

His skepticism is perhaps well placed given the fact that the White House Press Corps is spoon-fed spin and shepherded around from one photo-op to another (are they given any time to explore stories derived from other sources of information?). At the Sheraton, where the White House press operations are headquartered, an activity board told reporters and photographers where to show up in order to take a bus to see POTUS´arrival. In the mean time, they could enjoy wine and appetizers and purchase souvenirs, from Argentine jewelry and leather to U.S. Embassy t-shirts. The White House press packets also included useful information, including biographies of the major players (in the press packet we learned that Laura Bush is concerned about deterring children from risky behavior), how to make phone calls, and where the nearest golf course is located.

Everything is set up to make it as easy as possible for the reporters to follow directions, file their stories in the well-marked filing center in the lobby, and diverge as little as possible from the White House´s chosen themes.

The "Opportunity Summit"

2005-11-03T23:48:00.000-05:00

After making the acquaintance of various members of the press, we were ushered onto a bus and taken across town to the sites of President Bush´s hotel and the Civil Society meetings (at which hordes of ´dissidents´are granted two hours to air their grievances/views and to compile concerns for the delegates to review in Summit).

At the Sheraton, we picked up the information that the White House is distributing to its Press Corps (we also viewed an impressive tango, right in the hotel lobby). The information provides a rosy overview of the U.S. and its commitments to Argentina, making no mention of the economic and political crises which have affected Argentina over the past few years. It´s a world of choice soundbites--jobs, development, growth, commitment. To believe the White House is to believe that these buzz words not only comprise the story but also the creed. It´s almost a self-indoctrination.

Hence, the ¨Opportunity Summit¨: The chance, according to one White House report, for Latin America to fully and finally commit to democracy and free trade. How these hallmarks of the Bush White House are meant to or would affect actual people is unclear. But when the media is the message, does this matter?

Mar del Plata, ghost resort

2005-11-03T10:08:00.000-05:00

Arrival in Mar del Plata after over 24 hours of traveling revealed a much quieter atmosphere than expected from this city, a sea resort usually bustling in the spring season. An early-evening walk from the bus station to the area in which our hotel is situated led us past several closed shops and empty streets: In anticipation of the protests and potential threats to Bush (and, perhaps, other figures), homeowners and shopkeepers were paid to abandon the area during the course of the Summit. Our hotel, the Selent, is in a heavily guarded area; in fact, our reservation confirmation and passports were insufficient for passage into the barricaded streets. We were directed to the police station for accreditation, at which we were informed that the time for accreditation had passed and we would not be permitted to pass into any barricaded area. After an hour of speaking with police, answering questions as to our purpose in attending the Summit, and ultimately having the hotel owner come to the police station with further evidence of our reservation, we were given stamped accreditation sheets and permitted to pass. Hordes of armed guards line every street for blocks; we are checked at least twice on our way anywhere around the barricades.

Outside of the barricades, the few shopkeepers who remained open one last night, the 2d, informed us that they would be closed because of the likely heavy rioting. McDonald´s is, not surprisingly, expected to be the first to close. The shopkeepers are right to be concerned: There are reports of massive protests in Buenos Aires, five and a half hours northwest, some of which involved the burning of trains. For now, however, the streets remain quiet.