Mar del Plata Summit of the Americas 3073607 163703758 2007-10-11T01:08:26Z SJP 2716074 Reverted 1 edit by [[Special:Contributions/76.190.227.249|76.190.227.249]]. using [[WP:TW|TW]] [[Image:Head of States at the Americas Summit in Mar del Plata Argentina 2005.jpg|thumb|400px|The head of states during the Fourth Summit of the Americas 2005 in Mar del Plata, Argentina]] The seaside resort of [[Mar del Plata]], in the {{province|Buenos Aires|Argentina}}, about 400 [[kilometre|km]] (250 [[mile]]s) southeast of [[Buenos Aires|the capital]], was the venue of the '''Fourth Summit of the Americas''' between [[4 November]] and [[5 November]], [[2005]]. The summit gathered together the leaders of all the countries of the [[Americas|American]] continent, except [[Cuba]]. Major security arrangements and massive popular protests against the presence of the [[President of the United States]], [[George W. Bush]], on [[Latin America]]n soil, took place in the days leading up to the summit. == Summit discussions == The theme of the Fourth [[Summit of the Americas]] was to be "Creating Jobs to Fight Poverty and Strengthen Democratic Governance". The Declaration and Plan of Action of Mar del Plata, signed by the attending heads of state and government at the conclusion of the event, was expected to deal extensively with the topic of job creation. Nevertheless most of the deliberations concerned the [[Free Trade Area of the Americas]]. ===The Summit of the Americas and the Free Trade Area of the Americas=== These original objectives dealing with job creation in Latin America however quickly dissolved over a disagreement in the wording of a clause encompassing the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), with Brazil and Argentina (two countries with highly competitive agricultural industries) in particular refusing to negotiate a deal where the U.S. does not limit barriers and subsidies to the U.S. agricultural industry. Talks about the FTAA, a possible free trade zone encompassing thirty-four nations in the American Continent, began on [[11 December]] [[1994]] at the first [[Summit of the Americas]] in [[Miami]], [[United States]]. The concept of a 34-nation free trade zone, however, only came to prominence and the public consciousness seven years later at the [[Quebec City Summit of the Americas]] which was met with large protests and demonstrations by people involved in the [[anti-globalization]] movement. President Bush stated prior to the Mar del Plata Summit that the U.S. would continue to push in favor the FTAA agreement despite opposition from some left-wing governments in the region. Though President Bush acknowledged that progress on the FTAA talks had stalled, he stated that the [[Doha Round]] global trade talks aimed at securing a global trade pact by the start of 2006 had to now take priority over the FTAA stating to reporters in Washington: "The Doha round really trumps the FTAA as a priority because the Doha round not only involves our neighborhood, it involves the whole world", he said. President Bush also went on to urge the Brazilian government to put pressure on the [[European Union]] to cut its farm subsidies, a major issue in world trade negotiations. ===Summit fails to reach a trade agreement=== In the midst of protests from the civilian population and after opposition from the four [[Mercosur]] countries ([[Brazil]], [[Argentina]], [[Uruguay]], and [[Paraguay]]) and [[Venezuela]], which maintained that the U.S.-led proposal would damage their nations' economies, the Summit talks failed to reach an agreement on a regional trade deal. Talks continued beyond the scheduled end of the meeting as supporters of the U.S.-led proposal sought to set another date to continue negotiations. Twenty-nine of the nations at the meeting agreed to resume talks over the Free Trade Area of the Americas in 2006; the five dissenters instead proposed to wait for the results of the next [[World Trade Organization]] meeting in [[Hong Kong]]. Venezuelan President [[Hugo Chávez]] pronounced the FTAA "buried". == Security == Security for the summit included 10,000 local police and national security forces, including [[Policía Federal Argentina|Federal Police]], [[Gendarmería Nacional Argentina|National Gendarmerie]] and [[Prefectura Naval Argentina|Naval Prefecture]]. More than twenty streets were blockaded in the main beach district. Three [[concentric]] rings of chain-link fence were erected in the city, and residents living inside were issued special passes to be permitted in to get to their homes. Ships belonging to the [[Argentine Navy]] were positioned offshore, while helicopters patrolled the beach area. The [[Argentine Air Force]] deployed [[A-4AR|A-4AR Skyhawks]] to the nearest [[Tandil]] airbase supported by [[U.S. Air Force]] [[E-3 Sentry]] [[Airborne Warning And Control System|AWACS]] operating from [[Bahía Blanca]]. There was a one hundred mile [[no-fly zone]] in effect around the city for the duration of the summit with orders given for any planes in violation to be shot down. == Protests against FTAA and Bush == <!-- This image's fair use has been disputed. See image talk page for discussion. [[Image:Latam summit.jpg|frame|Thousands march in front of a banner with the portraits of regional presidents associated with efforts to promote Latin American integration (from L-R, [[Fidel Castro]] of Cuba, [[Hugo Chávez]] of Venezuela, [[Néstor Kirchner]] of Argentina, [[Luíz Inácio Lula da Silva]] of Brazil and [[Tabaré Vázquez]] of Uruguay) during a protest against the presence of U.S. President [[George W. Bush]] in Mar del Plata, [[November 4]], [[2005]]. (David Mercado/Reuters)]] --> Leading up to the summit, [[Bolivia]]n presidential candidate [[Evo Morales]], Argentine [[soccer]] legend [[Diego Maradona]], and Cuban singer and composer [[Silvio Rodríguez]] travelled together to take part in the "Peoples' Summit" or the "American Anti-Summit", summoning Latin American activists who oppose the [[neoliberalism|neoliberal]] "[[Washington Consensus]]", the FTAA, and U.S. President George W. Bush. Morales, Maradona and Rodríguez were part of a group of participants who travelled aboard a train named the ''Expreso del Alba'' from Buenos Aires to Mar del Plata. ''Alba'' is an [[acronym]] for ''Alternativa Bolivariana para las Américas'' ("[[Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas]]") but is also the Spanish word for ''dawn''. The Express was joined by road by hundreds of buses carrying members of political and social organisations, protests organizers claimed days before the summit. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4403202.stm] The group arriving in Mar del Plata aboard the ''ALBA Express'' went to the World Cup Stadium where [[Venezuela]]n [[President of Venezuela|President]] [[Hugo Chávez]] spoke to the crowd, then joined the "peoples' march" summoned to repudiate the presence of George W. Bush in Latin America. [http://english.people.com.cn/200511/03/eng20051103_218759.html] The march did not come close to the exclusion zone and ended peacefully. However, radical protesters ([[piquetero]]s, [[left-wing politics|left-wing political parties]], [[anarchism|anarchist]] organisations, etc.), who opposed what they considered reformism, organized a second march in which the protests turned violent. Protesters lit fires, hurled [[Molotov cocktail]]s, and set fire to a bank. Police used tear gas in an attempt to quell the violence. Unconfirmed reports indicate that there were at least twenty injured resulting from the violence.[http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/americas/11/04/bush.summit/index.html] During the incident, MSNBC reported that 60 arrests had been made by 7:50 p.m. local time. The downtown streets of Mar del Plata seemed empty and ghostlike by the time rioting had started. On [[MSNBC]] during the incident, [[NBC News]] Chief [[White House]] Correspondent David Gregory and [[Washington Post]] reporter Michael Fletcher attributed this to the widespread anticipation among locals that the summit would bring violence. Fletcher said during the broadcast that "people (local residents and business owners) anticipated that this summit was coming, and (the locals) got out of town" and that "most businesses and shops are closed". ''[[Washington Post]]'' journalist [[Michael Fletcher]] also suggested that the violence was an outletting of anger caused by "growing wealth discrepancies" and the "rich getting richer", problems which he says many South Americans believe have "been made worse by free trade... and government inefficiency". == See also == * [[Summit of the Americas]] * [[Organization of American States]] * [[Washington Consensus]] * [[Free Trade Area of the Americas]] * [[Foreign relations of Argentina]] ==References== *Clendenning, Alan ([[5 November]] [[2005]]). [http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1284045 "Summit Leaders Deadlocked on Free Trade"]. ''[[Associated Press]]''. *Milliken, Mary & Gray, Kevin ([[5 November]] [[2005]]). [http://today.reuters.com/investing/financeArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2005-11-05T153047Z_01_N05428638_RTRIDST_0_LATAM-SUMMIT-UPDATE-1-PICTURE.XML "Americas leaders seek to break free-trade stalemate"]. ''[[Reuters]]''. *"Protestors gather at summit". ([[5 November]] [[2005]]). ''[[New Straits Times]]'', p. 24. == External links == * [http://www.ivcumbreamericas.gov.ar/default_ing.html Fourth Summit Official Site] * [http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/11/03/world/main1009580.shtml Trade Battle Looms At Summit] ''(CBS News)'' * [http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000086&sid=auyFPCTT0PoU Bush Faces Rising Anti-U.S. Sentiment at Summit] (Bloomberg) * [http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/02/international/americas/02latin.html Bush Faces Tough Time in South America] (''New York Times'') * [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4403202.stm Battle ahead at Americas summit] ''(BBC News)'' *[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4399084.stm US pushes for Americas trade zone ] ''(BBC News)'' *[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4410190.stm No trade deal at Americas summit] ''(BBC News)'' *[http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4990070 Protesters Greet Bush at Latin America Summit] (''NPR's All Things Considered '') * [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/02/AR2005110202917.html?nav=rss_business/government South Americans' Discontent Portends a Chilly Reception for Bush] (''Washington Post'') * [http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/11/02/news/latam.php Plans for Bush visit displease many in Latin America] (''International Hearald Tribune'') * [http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000086&sid=a0v5r8ZT58M0 Argentina's Maradona to Lead Anti-Bush Protest] ''(Bloomberg)'' *[http://news.ft.com/cms/s/265a7eb0-4d5e-11da-ba44-0000779e2340. Bolivian populist leads attack on the US] ''(Financial Times)'' * [http://usinfo.state.gov/wh/Archive/2005/Nov/03-6748.html?chanlid=wha State Department Official Previews 2005 Summit of the Americas] [[Category:Foreign relations of Argentina|Mar del Plata Summit of the Americas]] [[Category:Politics of the Americas]] [[Category:Protest marches]] [[Category:Mar del Plata]] [[Category:2005 riots]] [[de:Gipfel der Völker]] [[es:IV Cumbre de las Américas]]