Globalization: Is the World Trade Organization a Friend or Foe?

In December 1999 , more than 200 arrests were made in Seattle as rioters broke out into the streets , blocking off traffic , making huge bonfires and chanting the world is watching ( Hundreds Arrested . Indeed the world was watching as televisions across the globe tuned into the WTO conference held in Seattle . Viewer attention was called on the multitudes marching for interests that ranged from labor issues to environmental degradation , while riot police made grim pronouncements for the eventual use of tear gas and brute force . This , however , was not enough as the protesters

turned into a violent mob that damaged property all over the city providing some with the perfect opportunity to loot the neighborhood convenience store

According to the WTO , it is the only international organization dealing with the global rules of trade between nations ( WTO in Brief ' 1 . The main idea which drives the WTO is promoting and fostering trade between nations , espousing globalization as a factor in the development of member nations . The idea of nations dealing with one another is a fairly old one , and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT , is actually the 50-year old precursor of the WTO . GATT simply transitioned into the WTO during the Uruguay Round negotiations which was held between 1984 to 1994 ( WTO in Brief ' 8 . Since its inception , the WTO has been serving its member nations as an administrator for WTO trade agreements by handling trade disputes , monitoring national trade policies , serving as a forum for negotiations , and providing assistance and training for developing countries ( WTO in Brief ' 8

The WTO provides vital services as trade agreements require negotiation , i .e . haggling , and will inevitably lead to disagreements and disputes as to interpretation and compliance . National governments can formulate and legislate trade policies that may be counterproductive or even prejudicial to the interest of free trade , which requiring policing . As implied in the functions the WTO performs , developing nations require assistance and training in matters of global trade Global trade and its benefits were first clearly explained by Adam Smith and his exposition of comparative advantage . The usual illustration provided by the concept of comparative advantage is trade for certain commodities or products offered by two nations . Through specialization each country can produce more of specific goods and use the surplus in trading with the other country . The result is a clear expansion in the productive capacity of the aggregated economies . The concept of comparative advantage still holds today , but there are some complicating factors that have cropped up , particularly for developing nations

According to WTO , it is a common misconception that WTO destroys jobs and widens the gap between rich and poor , or the gap between developed and developing nations ( Common Misunderstandings ' 8 . There are however , reports to the contrary . Martin Khor , director for the Third World Network , reports that Mexico is on the receiving end of the ill effects attributable to the Free Trade Agreements (FTA , the idea of which the WTO subscribes to ( Serious Effects...