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Brennan, Fernne --- "Time for a Change: Reforming WTO Trading Rules to Take Account of Reparations" [2006] ELECD 75; in Dine, Janet; Fagan, Andrew (eds), "Human Rights and Capitalism" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2006)

Book Title: Human Rights and Capitalism

Editor(s): Dine, Janet; Fagan, Andrew

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781845422684

Section: Chapter 10

Section Title: Time for a Change: Reforming WTO Trading Rules to Take Account of Reparations

Author(s): Brennan, Fernne

Number of pages: 30

Extract:

10. Time for a change: Reforming WTO
trading rules to take account of
reparations*
Fernne Brennan

INTRODUCTION
The vision of a world of equals outlined in the policy documents of the World
Conference against Racism and Xenophobia, where racism is to be combated
by effective reparations,1 will not materialise without a fundamental change
in the application of the international trading rules of the World Trade Or-
ganisation which impact on the lives of people in developing countries such
as Guyana as they struggle to trade in the international markets for sugar, rice
and bananas. It is argued that the rules and the management of them currently
operate to the disadvantage of the poor in developing countries.2 The poor of
these economies represent one of the targets of concern for the World Confer-
ence Against Racism (2001) (WCAR),3 and goals for action of the Durban
Declaration and Programme of Action.4 The latter recommended that Afri-
cans and people of African descent as victims of this slave trade5 and the
subsequent periods of colonialism and post-colonialism currently suffer from
contemporary forms of racism and racial discrimination6 and should be proper
subjects for reparations from the West.7 The conference acknowledged that
the Transatlantic Slave Trade was a human tragedy, a crime against humanity
and a major source of current racism,8 racial discrimination, xenophobia9 and
intolerance.10 Advocates of reparations such as the representative of Trinidad
and Tobago contend that the World Conference `should call upon those ...