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Politics : Formerly About Applied Materials
AMAT 319.11+5.7%3:59 PM EST
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To: Jerome who wrote (42651)2/24/2001 3:26:25 PM
From: Proud_Infidel  Read Replies (1) of 70976
 
***Poverty***Low Wages****Third World Countries****

Many people claim that a free market really is free and helps all. Jean Bertrand Aristide cites great example in his book Eyes of the Heart how this is a facade for many third world countries.

In 1986, Haiti imported just 7000 tons of rice, the main staple of the country. In the late 80's, Haiti complied with free trade policies advocated by the international lending agencies and lifted tariffs on rice imports. Cheaper rice immediately flooded in from the USA where the rice industry is subsidized. In fact the liberalization of Haiti's market coincided with the 1985 Farm Bill in the US which increased subsidies to the rice industry so that 40% of US rice growers profits came from the governement by 1987. Haiti's farmers could not possible compete. By 1996 Haiti was importing 196,000 tons of foreign rice at the cost of $100 million per year. Haitian rice production became negligible. Once the dependence on foreign rice was complete, import prices began to rise, leaving Haiti's population, particulary the urban poor, completely at the whim of rising world grainb prices. And the prices continue to rise.

For poor countries free trade it not so free, or fair. Haiti, under intense pressure from the international lending institutions, stopped protecting its domestic agriculture while subsidies to the US rice industry increased.

Brian
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