STOP MAI

MEDIA RELEASE -for immediate release, 29 October, 2000 Authorised by the STOP-MAI Campaign Coalition (WA) Website http://members.iinet.net.au/~jenks/fair.html Affiliated with the Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network (AFTInet) and with the International Simultaneous Policy Organisation (ISPO)

 

Globalisation convention attracts Western Australians from all walks of life

Perth's first community convention on the economic drawbacks of globalisation will be held on 25 November at Curtin University and is drawing participants from all walks of life and with a wide range of political allegiances. Workers, academics, business proprietors, religious leaders, public servants, farmers, pensioners and students are rushing to register for the 600 available seats.

The one-day convention, known as N25, opens with a debate led by WA union leader Tony Cooke, NSW public-interest advocate Dr Patricia Ranald and the national president of the National Civic Council, Peter Westmore.

Delegates will then split up to tackle 14 specialised forum topics covering the impacts of 'free trade' and globalisation on labour standards, the environment, human rights, democratic governance, food quality, health and other controversial subjects.

Eminent discussion leaders will include several State parliamentarians, former senators Michael Beahan and Jo Vallentine, genetic engineering critic Bob Phelps, social commentator Sister Veronica Brady and Perth representatives of the alliance which recently protested against the World Economic Forum (WEF)in Melbourne.

A nucleus of 80 citizens is preparing material for agendas which will strike hard at Australia's international trade and investment policies, seen to have crippled local productive industry and hugely enlarged unemployment and national debt.

A goal of the conference is to find solutions which would not rely on cooperative performance by bureaucracies, mass media and political parties --all being seen to be influenced more by multinational corporate interests than by grassroot opinion.

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PHONE CONTACTS: Brian Jenkins +61 8 9528 1864; Dion Giles 0411 745 538