wfn.org | LWF Monitors World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference

["Frank Imhoff" <Frank.Imhoff@elca.org>]

LWF Monitors World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference
Agricultural Subsidies and Public Health among Key Concerns

GENEVA, 9 December 2005 (LWI) - The Lutheran World Federation (LWF)
will be monitoring negotiations among the World Trade Organization (WTO)
members during the WTO Ministerial Conference in Hong Kong, China, 13-18
December 2005.

The LWF will be represented by a staff person of the Office for
International Affairs and Human Rights (OIAHR), which has been
monitoring WTO events for several months now. The objective of the LWF's
presence in the WTO process is to keep the LWF constituency informed of
the ongoing negotiations that may have direct impacts on human
development around the world.

A resolution of the July 2003 LWF Tenth Assembly mandated the LWF to
"advocate for trade and development policies, which uphold the objective
of enhancing human well-being." The LWF has also been a longstanding and
active member of the Geneva-based Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance "Trade
for People" global campaign.

Among the many issues of concern regarding the agenda of the WTO
negotiations, the LWF is focusing on three issues-agriculture and
subsidies, trade in services, and trade-related aspects of intellectual
property rights [TRIPS] and public health.

While these WTO issues have emerged as the most relevant for LWF member
churches and field programs of the Department for World Service, they
also carry specific implications for human rights. A paper on these
subjects is available on the LWF Web site at:
http://www.lwf-humanrights.org/lwf-and-the-wto.php. 

In the context of the WTO Ministerial Conference, LWF/OIAHR will be
gathering and analyzing information on the trade negotiations
themselves, and participating in parallel events organized by civil
society organizations including church-related bodies from all over the
world on issues such as trade and human rights, globalization and
economic justice, food security, and access to health.

The ministerial conference is WTO's highest decision-making body,
bringing together trade ministers of member nations every two years, to
debate the implementation of the present international trade agreements.
This sixth conference will be crucial in enabling the Doha Development
Agenda negotiations (agreed at the 2001 meeting in Doha, Qatar) move
forward sufficiently to conclude the round in 2006.

LWF OIAHR will provide updates of the evolution of these negotiations
directly from Hong Kong at:
http://www.lwf-humanrights.org/lwf-and-the-wto.php 

Further information may be requested at: The Lutheran World Federation,
150 route de Ferney, P.O. Box 2100, CH-1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland; Tel.
+41/22-791 61 11, Fax +41/22-791 66 30 or E-mail info@lutheranworld.org
(404 words)

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(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund, Sweden, the LWF currently has 140
member churches in 78 countries all over the world, with a total
membership of nearly 66 million. The LWF acts on behalf of its member
churches in areas of common interest such as ecumenical and inter-faith
relations, theology, humanitarian assistance, human rights,
communication, and the various aspects of mission and development work.
Its secretariat is located in Geneva, Switzerland.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the LWF's information service.
Unless specifically noted, material presented does not represent
positions or opinions of the LWF or of its various units. Where the
dateline of an article contains the notation (LWI), the material may be
freely reproduced with acknowledgment.]

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LWI online: http://www.lutheranworld.org/News/Welcome.EN.html 

LUTHERAN WORLD INFORMATION
P. O. Box 2100, CH-1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland
Tel.: +41/22-791 63 69
Fax: +41/22-791 66 30
E-Mail: pmu@lutheranworld.org