Protesting Farmers Voice their Doha Opinion

The latest round of negotiations for the World Trade Organization, dubbed the Doha round, was the target of farm protestors in New Delhi, India. Still, trade ministers maintain that negotiations on the free-trade agreement will continue despite the protests and despite the deep divide between the United States and developing nations on issues that are fundamental to completing an agreement.

The two days of meetings in India were conducted in order for trade ministers to figure out how to restart negotiations in the Doha Development Round next year so that the round can be completed in 2010, which is the current goal of the ministers. Protectionist measures that countries have employed in order to protect their domestic businesses and farmers is a major issue of the negotiations, and it is these measures that motivated farmers to take to the streets of the Indian capitol.

Ben Arnoldy is reporting for the Christian Science Monitor that “[m]ore than 10,000 Indian farmers” protested in the streets during the first day of meetings on Thursday of this week. Their biggest concern is that measures that protect them from international crop importation that could lower their prices would, ultimately, force the farmers out of business and end a way of life in India. This concern is shared by much of the developing world. Arnoldy quotes sugar farmer Yogendar Singh as stating, ‘“[w]e don’t get fair prices for our crops now . . . when this World Trade Organization deal goes through, then we are even more threatened.”’ For their part, developed nations argue that during the current worldwide economic downturn removing some trade barriers in agriculture would have a stimulating effect. These nations are concerned that governments are panicking at this point in time and turning towards more protectionism.

The trade agreement collapsed back in 2008, after practically seven years of negotiations, when India and other developing nations voiced their concerns about a more “open” market for global agricultural trade. Now, ministers from thirty six countries are trying to get the stalled talks moving again. The International Food Policy Research Institute released a research paper in July that pointed out that a completed Doha deal “could prevent the potential loss of $809 billion in the event of protectionist trade wars breaking out.” Still, despite the desire to reach some agreement, how to do so in terms of reducing current protectionism remains elusive.

Developing countries want to see less farm subsidies employed by the United States and the European Union, and developed countries would like to see developing nations like India lower their tariffs on imported goods that are serving as a trade barrier. The problem is how to please both sides.

According to Arnoldy’s article, last year’s deal breaker was a disagreement between India and the U.S. over “a mechanism to allow countries to temporarily protect specific commodities from cheaper imports.” India maintains the current mechanism plans are too weak, and too temporary.

Arnoldy does report that delegates representing developed nations are “more optimistic that differences could be bridged and a deal struck.” In the meantime many will be playing close attention to U.S. President Barack Obama when he lays out his trade policies and agenda in a speech this month. President Obama also must fill key, vacant positions on the U.S. negotiating team.

As Bajaj reports, Congress might not be too keen to deal with trade at the moment as the recession, the health care discussion, the climate change discussion, and food safety discussions, as well as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq continue.

To read the Arnoldy article click here.
To read the Bajaj article in the New York Times click here.

Posted: 09/04/09