Free trade must not sacrifice the poor: NGOs
Free trade must not sacrifice the poor: NGOs
By T. Sima Gunawan
JAKARTA (JP): A regional free trade zone in the Asia Pacific
region is okay but not at the expense of marginal groups, such as
workers and the poor people, says a spokesman for a forum of
Indonesian non-government organizations (NG0s).
Asmara Nababan, secretary for the International Forum of NGOs
on Indonesian Development (INFID), said in a recent interview
that people from all walks of life have the right to enjoy the
benefits of trade liberalization measures.
The benefits should not be restricted only to the business
community, Asmara said.
"Trade liberalization is inevitable," he told The Jakarta
Post. "What we should take into account are the efforts to adjust
to the global market, which must not deprive the people of their
rights."
The proposal of a free trade area is one of the topics to be
discussed at the ministerial meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) forum which opens in Jakarta today.
Asmara said the move towards a regional free trade area will
spur greater business competition. The government's task, he
said, is to ensure that this must not lead to the suppression of
wages by companies in order to slash their business costs.
He said workers should also be given full freedom to organize,
thereby becoming more able to defend and promote their interests.
In a recent report, INFID said Indonesian workers have not
been given the opportunity to fully exercise their rights.
It also underlined that the wage levels in Indonesia,
averaging 23 U.S. cents per hour, are among the lowest in the
world.
INFID warned of the impact of greater business competition
might have on the environment, including the possibility of
massive exploitation of natural resources at the expense of
ecological resources.
Asmara said that as the West tightens its environmental
regulations, some of their industries might try to relocate in
developing countries where the regulations are lax.
"There are indications that developing countries deliberately
set low standards for environmental protection in order to
attract direct capital investment and to entice multinational
corporations," according to the INFID report.
Indonesia should not be prepared to face trade liberalization
measures with an absence of coordination between related
government agencies in the handling of environmental matters, it
added.
INFID urged APEC members to broaden their environmental
consultations and coordination.
"We cannot deny that free trade will have a positive impact,
as has been repeated by President Soeharto and other government
officials," Asmara said. "But people have the right to know the
negative impacts as well," Asmara said.
INFID has invited a number of APEC delegates for a meeting
during their stay in Jakarta to convey its view on APEC and the
free trade proposal, he said.
Some have responded positively, some have rejected it and
others, like the United States, have not responded, he added.
INFID is also organizing a meeting with NGOs from Japan, the
Philippines, Thailand, Australia, the U.S., South Korea and
Mexico. Together they will issue a statement about APEC on
Nov.12.
"APEC is not the business of government and businessmen only,
it's also the business of the people," Asmara said.