Forum on People’s Alternative to Free Trade Agreements

Cecilia Olivet gives two presentations:
- In search for alternatives to neoliberal globalisation: experiences from Europe and Latin America
- The New Global Europe Strategy: impacts of the EU aggressive trade agenda in South Korea

1. Background

Korea’s social and civil movements have been holding a Social Forum each year participated by all sectors various movements. This year’s Forum is expected to be especially important and large because of the year-long FTA struggle and the upcoming presidential election. One of the largest sessions at the Forum will be an international forum on FTAs.

Currently, the Korean government, along with the expansion and reorganization of the FTA itself, is carrying out a ‘multiple FTA strategy.’ Outside Korea and centered on a few nations, DDA negotiations, which were stopped in 2006, are resuming. The Korean government is at the moment pursuing FTAs with 38 nations; negotiations are happening with 14 nations.

Korea’s social and civil movements have been struggling against the Korea-U.S. FTA for over a year and a half with the establishment of the Korean Alliance against the Korea-U.S. FTA (KoA). Through this struggle, KoA has exposed the anti-people and anti-democratic nature of the FTA. KoA is also carrying out the struggle since early May against Korea-EU FTA.

However, in the face of Korean government’s aggression, we cannot help but to recognize the limitations of our FTA struggle. Therefore, in order to raise the capacity and strength of our struggle against the FTA, diverse ideas are being raised.

Above all, we need to seriously think about our main tactics of the FTA struggle. For this to happen, we need to learn about various struggle experiences. Tactics that are appropriate to Korea’s situation will develop from such experiences.

Second, we need to seriously think about the world economic order. Through the Korea-US and Korea US FTA struggles, we need to find an alternative economic order. In order to justify our struggle to the people, we need to propose a positive plan rather than a plan based on victimization.

Finally, according to the characteristics of specific FTAs, we need to construct an extensive solidarity front. Such solidarity must include not only struggles against bilateral FTAs but also struggles against multilateral FTAs.

From this background, KoA is organizing an international forum on FTAs at the 2007 Korea Social Forum. This international forum will set the stage for tomorrow’s struggle.

2. Introduction of Host organization; Korean Alliance against Korea-U.S. FTA KoA)

Korean Alliance against Korea-U.S. FTA(KoA) was formed by 282 trade unions, political parties, peasant organizations, NGOs and social movement organizations against the Korea-US(KorUS) FTA in Marh, 2006. KoA as an alliance representing all sectors and regions against FTA has been struggliging against KorUS FTA through workshop, rally, teach-in, debates with Korean authorities, overseas protesting, building up solidarity actions with overseas groups and so on. Even though the KorUS FTA was concluded in April 2nd, KoA still goes on struggleing for invalidaiotn of the conclusion.

And KoA launched struggling against Korea-EU FTA too. We believe that two struggles are against corporate controlled globalization and for people-oriented alternatives.

KoA
- believes in mobilizing the masses, from bottom up, against the FTAs and globalization;
- works to coordinate and strengthen solidarity between different movements and sectors to Stop the FTAs;
- performs various activities to mobilize, educate and propagate struggles against the FTAs and globalization;
- shares information, research and analyze pending negotiations on the FTAs and strategies of both Korean administration and its counterparts;
- consolidates interntional solidarity with global movements against neliberalism, WTO and FTAs.

3. Goals

1. To share domestic and international alternative plans, to share criticisms of these alternative plans, and to expand the strategy for antiglobalization movement.
2. To share experiences of FTA struggles and to think about tactics for pushing the struggles forward.
3. To strengthen the solidarity among antiglobalization movements and to strengthen the solidarity among FTA struggles, including the struggles against Korea-U.S. and Korea-EU FTAs.

4. Forum Outline

Topics

1. Situations on FTAs and DDA and their characteristics
2. Experiences of various struggles
3. People’s alternative plan

Program order

Part 1: Global situation on FTAs and DDA, their characteristics, and experiences of struggles of each country
Part 2: Korea-U.S. and Korea EU FTA struggles and possible alternative plans
Part 3: Activists’ discussion and workshop on strategies for alternative plans