Story

The eradication of the Haitian Creole pig population in the 1980s is a classic parable of globalization. Haiti’s small, black, Creole pigs were at the heart of the peasant economy. An extremely hearty breed, well adapted to Haiti’s climate and conditions, they ate readily available waste products, and could survive for three days without food. Eighty to 85 percent of rural households raised pigs; they played a key role in maintaining the fertility of the soil and instituted the primary savings bank of the peasant population. Traditionally, a pig was sold to pay for emergencies and special occasions (funerals, marriages, illnesses), and, critically, to pay school fees and buy books for the children when school opened each year in October. read more

The creation of a single global economy through globalization is undermining international peace and security. The loss of national sovereignty, increased financial instability, the rise of transnational corporations, and the increasing power imbalance in favor of the US and its Western allies are promoting nuclear proliferation and derailing nuclear disarmament.

The global economy is limiting the influence of the nation-state, while transferring power to corporations, financial markets, and multilateral organizations such as the World Trade Organization and International Monetary Funds (IMF), all of which are incapable of promoting diplomacy and international peace and security. read more

The Turn Around Agenda

It’s time to turn trade around. In November 1999, the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Third Ministerial Meeting in Seattle collapsed in spectacular fashion, in the face of unprecedented protest from people and governments around the world. We believe it is essential to use this moment as an opportunity to change course and develop an alternative, humane, democratically accountable and sustainable system of commerce that benefits all. This process entails rolling back the power and authority of the WTO. read more

On the morning after the April 16 rally and street protests in Washington, DC, staged to draw public attention to the destructive policies of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF), the national press was still missing the point. In a Washington Post Style section feature, for example, one writer defined the A16 mobilization as "get-your-greedy-corporations-out-of-my-old-growth-tree-day." That was about as close as any Post reporter came to explaining why more than 30,000 people had descended on the nation’s capital, or why it was necessary to arrest more than 1200 people and militarize over 20 city blocks. read more

Over the past 10 years, popular and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have markedly increased their influence in global decision-making. Now these groups are coming together to forge a common agenda, put recommendations on the table, and take united action to solve our common problems.

From April 2-8, for example, the inaugural session for a permanent Global People’s Assembly (GPA) will be held in Apia, Samoa. The momentum has been building for many years. The Millennium People’s Assembly Network (MPAN) held five sessions during the Hague Appeal for Peace Conference, with some 30 delegations attending. A Provisional Delegates Council was formed to move ahead with planning between meetings of the GPA. read more

The destructive turbulence of global markets has aroused interest in a measure that would not only calm the financial waters but also perhaps eliminate abject poverty. In 1978, Professor James Tobin proposed a 0.5 percent tax on foreign exchange transactions. The effect of what has since become known as the Tobin Tax would be to reduce exchange-rate volatility caused by short-term, speculative transactions, which enrich the few and impoverish the many.

The value of international exchange transactions is generally estimated at more than $1.5 trillion each day, of which a mere 5 percent is directly related to settlements for traded goods and services. The short-term transactions can mostly be classified as unproductive speculation. read more