Tuesday 22 March, 2005
Plan Spells More Mutton Flaps and Conflict for Pacific
The push for free trade in the Pacific contained in the Draft Plan of the Pacific Islands Forum risks exacerbating
poverty, inequality, and conflict in the Pacific, says Peter Zwart of the Catholic agency, Caritas.
Caritas has expressed concern at the provisions which push ahead free trade negotiations both among Pacific Island
countries themselves, and between this group and Australia and New Zealand.
“Pacific countries experience a particular vulnerability given their isolation, high cost of transport, small population
and land mass, and a fragile ecological resource base. The idea there could ever be a fair and level playing field
between Pacific Island countries and Australia or New Zealand is not only ludicrous, it is also dangerous,” says Mr
Zwart.
“The experience of New Zealand in trade liberalisation has been a substantial rise in poverty and inequality. The same
experience in the Pacific would deepen poverty in both urban and isolated or rural areas and add to existing social
tensions. It would also lead inevitably to increased foreign ownership of the natural resource base and production,
which in the Pacific has been one of the most persistent causes of conflict wherever you look, from West Papua,
Bougainville and PNG, Fiji, or Solomon Islands.”
“Some proposals such as that to help reduce the cost of imported foods appear directly designed to undermine both the
position of Pacific farmers growing traditional foods, and to deepen the dependence of Pacific people on less nutritious
and unhealthy imported foods.”
“It is a recipe for more rural poverty and mutton flaps for the Pacific, with the associated health problems that come
with them,” said Mr Zwart.
Background Information The Pacific Plan has been released by the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat for general
consultation. The Secretary General of the Forum, Australian, Greg Urwin, is currently in New Zealand where he attended
a consultation meeting in Wellington today and will continue this process in Auckland tomorrow. The Plan can be found at
the following link: www.mfat.govt.nz.
ENDS