<B>Doha Round : «Delaying tactics till the very end»</B>

On the breakdown of Doha Round Global Trade Talks, I would like to share a few thoughts.

Agriculture or farm subsidies or protection of rural poor/peasant aristocracy is the cause of the collapse of WTO/Doha talks & will always be the crucial issue ! The rural lobby worldwide is formidable? Bush does not want to alienate his farmers, Nath will oblige his zamindars & Sarkozy will preserve their vote banks of ?poor? subsidized farmers ! Is it any different in Mauritius?

The tour de force of Pascal Lamy for a last minute high-level compromise was an illusion : he needs to be an illusionist to achieve the miracle of an agreement! Would good old Jayen have achieved the impossible ?

Now that India & China have shown their clout? the blame game will start ! With the retaliatory pressures ! Where does Mauritius stand in this game?

USA will keep its ?reactionary? farm subsidies, EU will not open up and the emerging powers will protect their domestic markets? leading to protectionism entranchment, and economic & other warfare! It?s business as usual for the big boys, but what about small fries, like Mauritius ?

Meanwhile, food prices can skyrocket, petrol also, credit crunch will cause the dollar to become a weapon of mass financial global destruction? but who cares ? Have we heard anything on the ?development? dimension of these trade talks ? God bless the poor !

Mendelson calls it ?a collective failure?? may be, it?s what they wanted ! Delaying tactics till the very end ! Nobody wants to give up any privilege to do what he wants for what he considers to be his best interest ! Sound familiar ?

The pity is that millions keep being spent on hotel bills, airtickets, limousines, tons of paper, manger-boire, etc? to the joy of the happy few & the distress of the many ? when will the bell toll for these jolly ?talkers? after seven years of negotiations ?

Kee CHONG LI</B>