Click here to subscribe to the print edition.New Internationalist 334May 2001Click here to search the mega index.

WTO / TERMS



Charles Dickens
used ‘topsy-turvy’ to describe an inversion
of the familiar order of things. International trade does this
to language. Here are some of the jargon words: how
they are used by trade negotiators – and what
they really mean for the rest of us.

Round: Concessions negotiated in exchange for benefits.
Protectionism: Raising trade barriers against foreign competition.
Meaning: An offer you can't refuse.
Meaning: Obstructing corporate interests.
Sustainable: Eco-friendly and equitable.
Meaning: Business-friendly and profitable. Open: No barriers to foreign trade.
Meaning: Closed to democratic control.
Intellectual property: Ideas for making money.
Meaning: Ideas used to extort payment.
Fair: In accordance with the rules.
Free: Without government interference. Meaning: Imposed on the weak by the strong.
Meaning: Rule by transnational corporations.

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