As Organization of American States (OAS) Deputy Trade Director Sherry Stephenson put it, “liberalization of trade in services implies modifications of national laws and regulations”—notably to limit the ability of nations to preclude private competition (foreign or domestic) for government services. Such a provision, coupled with an investor-state dispute clause as in NAFTA, would enable transnational service corporations to compete for the full range of government services covered by the agreement and allow them to sue for compensation any government that denies them “market access.” To cite one implication, this would potentially spell an end to nationalized health care in Canada or any other nation signatory to the FTAA.

If the FTAA would so compromise the ability of nation-states to maintain democratic control over basic regulatory powers, why are 34 of the nations in North and South America participating in the FTAA negotiations? First, most smaller nations, saddled with debt to the World Bank, IMF and northern investors, don’t have much of an option: with poorly capitalized markets, opting out of a trade agreement offered by the North would most likely precipitate a sudden fall in “investor confidence” among foreign investors, a corresponding crash in currency value and a decline in economic growth. It is easier for less-powerful nations to opt into trade agreements in order to maintain investor confidence, promote investment and pay off their debt. Second, in the negotiation of such a treaty we confront a failure of democracy already present. For example, the administration has only just begun to release the preliminary text of the FTAA, despite a March 15 letter signed by 50 members of Congress demanding that the U.S. Trade Representative supply the documents to the public.

Given such an erosion of democratic accountability, one can either accept the loss as inevitable or take hold of democracy as citizens of the Americas have always done—in public protest. At a rally in opposition to the FTAA on April 21 in Quebec, thousands of citizens from North and South America will take to the streets and demand a public and accountable negotiating process. Boston will be holding a solidarity rally in opposition to the FTAA this Saturday at Harvard. Beyond the protests, citizens will continue to hold conferences to discuss the possibility of fair, not “free” trade, crafting alternatives to corporate globalization.

Brian Shillinglaw ’01-’02 is a social studies concentrator. Anna Falicov ’02 is a special concentrator in urban studies and a member of the Progressive Student Labor Movement. Both are residents of Dudley Co-op.