PHA-Exchange> No to GATs, Health Out of WTO

[Aviva]

From: "Farida Akhter" <ubinig at citechco.net>

The Shasthya Andolon, a coalition of health activists in Bangladesh in
collaboration with Narigrantha Prabartana organised a meeting on "GATS,
TRIPS and Health: Conflict between Pro People Strategy and Capital" on
31st
August, 2003.
Following is the presentations and discussions a resolution was agreed
upon by
all participants. 


Declaration of the National Discussion Meeting on August 31, 2003
1.      We demand that the essential service sectors including food,
health, water and energy cannot be privatised or be allowed to be
controlled by market forces. The state must take the responsibility of
providing services essential to people's livelihoods. Failing to assume
this responsibility is synonymous to annihilating the people's
sovereignty
and the executive powers of the state. The citizens must stand up to
the
state to end such initiatives. We will continue our struggles against
the
World Bank, International Monetary Fund and the World Trade
Organisation in
order to regain people's rights.
2.      Public health services are being systematically dismantled by
following World Bank and IMF prescribed policies. Consequently the
people,
especially the poor are being deprived of an essential service. The
health
sector must be freed from the throes of foreign aid and should be
allocated
more funds from the revenue budget of the country.
3.      A 'People's Health Commission' must be established, in order to
set
pro people health policies, encourage research and development in the
pharmaceutical sector and also for producing and marketing essential
drugs.
The commission will be charged with the responsibility of ensuring
health
services for the masses in the backdrop of the international scenario.
4.      We oppose patents on drugs and other components related to
healthcare, since patents merely contribute towards increasing the
prices
of drugs and enhance corporate control over the pharmaceutical
industry.
There is no concrete proof that patents actually improve the quality or
quantity of pharmaceutical research.
5.      We oppose patents on plants, microorganisms or life. We pledge
to
build a countrywide awareness and resistance against piracy of 
medicinal
plants and their patenting.
6.      Supply of drinking water cannot be turned over to the private
sector. We oppose the commodification of water through marketing
bottled
water. Privatising water services would on the one hand see a rise in
water
prices while on the other hand it would also put our water bodies
including
rivers and ponds  common sources of water in rural Bangladesh  under
corporate ownership. We oppose such a surreptitious move by the
European
Union under the guise of bilateral GATS negotiations.
7.      We demand a development of the integrated healthcare practices
and
pledge to ensure the livelihoods of the people fostering traditional
knowledge in the country. We are critical of  documentation of
traditional
knowledge by different sectors, which will subsequently render our rich
heritage patentable.
8.      As citizens we reserve the right to know about government
policies
and should be made aware of any bilateral or multilateral agreements
that
the government signs.

OUR SLOGANS

We reject WTO's agreement on Services, GATS

NO to GATS

Health Services must be kept out of WTO
                                               Health Out of WTO