NGOs to ask APEC to consider people
NGOs to ask APEC to consider people
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesian non-governmental organizations are
set to press their demands for leaders of the Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC) to pay better attention to the impact
of global free trade.
A delegation of representatives of Indonesian NGOs will attend
the APEC meeting in Manila later this month.
"APEC has only been focusing on economic matters, free trade
and globalization and has failed to consider the common people
who have to bear the impact of their policies," activist Tati
Krisnawaty said here yesterday.
Representing Women's Solidarity, an NGO which handles matters
relating to women migrant workers, Tati said economic
globalization which emphasizes profit has stimulated unhealthy
competition, exploitation and consumerism.
Indonesian NGOs demand that APEC member countries ratify
international conventions to strengthen civil society.
The need to protect migrant workers' rights, and environmental
protection issues will be raised by the NGOs.
Maria Pakpahan, a program officer at the International NGO
Forum on Indonesian Development (INFID), said the Indonesian
delegation would raise the issue of rights for migrant workers
and child laborers.
"The main problem in Indonesia is poverty," Maria said, adding
that insisting on the elimination of child labor would be
irrelevant. The issue is how to protect child workers from
exploitation, she said.
The APEC ministerial meeting in Manila will open on Nov. 22
while the summit meeting will take place on Nov. 25. It will
focus on APEC's plan of action.
Emmy Hafild of the Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi) said
the Indonesian NGO delegation would raise the issue of the impact
of wealthy countries relocating industries in Indonesia.
She said she feared that more dirty industry relocations would
take place in Indonesia because neither environmental law nor
labor protection was effectively enforced in Indonesia.
"Should we sacrifice the environment for the sake of free
trade?" Emmy asked, adding that imposing low environmental
standards to maintain high competitive advantage was an outdated
notion.
International environmental standards for common practices
would prevent investors from exhausting the resources and
destroying the ecosystems of other countries, she said.
Textile, chemical and mining industries were the most
destructive, she said.
The delegation from several NGOs, believes that APEC has
failed to incorporate two main concerns: problems resulting from
society's powerlessness, and sustainable development.
The increasing tendency of foreign environmentally-destructive
investment, and the decreasing amount of land used for
agricultural purposes are among the activists concerns.
The APEC People's Forum will be held in Subic. A rally is
scheduled to proceed from Subic Bay to Manila City. (14)