MC12: Resources From Public Citizen And Other Civil Society and Academics
Public Citizen’s representative at the ministerial is Melanie Foley, Global Trade Watch International Campaigns Director, available for comment at mfoley@citizen.org
With the WTO Ministerial taking place June 12-15, civil society and academic experts from around the world shared what’s at stake at this biggest WTO meeting in years. After being twice postponed due to the pandemic, the WTO is now grappling with if and how to address the barriers that it created for the production of COVID-19 vaccines, tests and treatments. Other items on the agenda include the long-running fisheries dispute, agriculture rules for food security and a set of illegitimate plurilaterals that would further entrench corporate power in the areas of investment facilitation, domestic regulation, and Big Tech-friendly e-commerce. With the WTO in crisis for several years now, overshadowing all these discussions is the question of “reform,” which rich countries are pushing as a secretive means to repeal the fundamental WTO principles of multilateralism and consensus.
Press Releases
- June 16: Undemocratic WTO Processes Produce Shameful Result on Covid TRIPS Waiver at 12th Ministerial
- June 16: Intense IP Negotiations are Underway, resolution on Eligibility Criteria Outstanding
- June 16: Civil Society Corrects Mainstream Media Narrative on Who Is Really to Blame at MC12
- June 15: WTO: UK, Swiss and US positions likely to stymie WTO negotiations
- June 15: Civil Society Performs “Die-In” Protest to Condemn Delay and Destruction of Meaningful TRIPS Waiver inside the WTO 12th Ministerial
- June 14: Civil Society Lampoon Exclusive “Green Rooms” in Protest Performance at the 12th Ministerial of the WTO
- June 13: Police Stop Peaceful Demonstrators Outside WTO
- June 10: Civil Society, Academics Share What’s at Stake at WTO Ministerial: Public Health, Food Security and Multilateralism Itself
- June 10: U.S. Health, Development & Human Rights Groups: WTO Fails Basic “Do No Further Harm” Test on Eve of Ministerial
Other Resources
- Civil Society Media Briefing on MC12
- MC12 Photos and Video
- WTO Text Would Undermine Global Access to Medicines
In the News
- AFP/France24: Countries haggle through the night to salvage WTO deals
- Economic Times: Draft texts seek entry of private sector in WTO Talks
- Inside US Trade: MC12, day one: U.S., EU walk out on Russian minister; India sets early tone
- Economic Times: WTO: India rejects mere overseeing role for the General Council in reforms
- Truthout: WTO Draft Text Has Abandoned COVID Patent Waiver, Critics Say
- Barron’s / AFP / France24: Protesters March In Geneva Against WTO Role In Agriculture
- Reuters: WTO chief warns of rocky road to deals amid ‘polycrisis’
- Peoples Dispatch: World Trade Organization and Pandemic response: Time is up
- Common Dreams: As WTO Ministerial Opens, Civil Society Slams Rich Nations for Acting as Big Pharma ‘Henchmen’
- Swiss Info: WTO ‘must live up to its importance’, says Swiss minister