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market. People who cannot afford these privatised services will health. The sprayings have killed fish and livestock, and have be left out. contaminated water supplies. The WTO has hired a private company, the Global Division for US military aid is not improving conditions for the people of Transnational Education, to document policies that "discriminate Colombia, but rather supporting a war against its citizens and against foreign education providers". The results of this "study" those who are fighting for social justice. According to Jesse will be used to pressure countries with public education systems Isbell, an American member of the international steelworker dele- to relinquish them to the global, privatised marketplace. gation, who recently visited Columbia: "The US says one thing to The futures of accountability for public services and of sover- the American public, when in reality it is [doing] something total- eign law are at stake with the GATS decision. Foreign corpora- ly different. Our government portrays this as a drug war against tions will have the right to establish themselves in any cocaine, but all we are doing is keeping an ineffective government GATS/WTO-controlled country and compete against non-profit in power." or government institutions, such as schools and hospitals, for pub- (Sources: Rachel's Environment & Health News, December 7, 2000; lic funds. Steelabor, May/June 2001; Counterpunch, July 1-15, 2001; Asheville The current round of GATS negotiations has identified three Global Report, October 4, 2001) main priorities for future free-trade principles: 1) GATS officials are pushing for "National Treatment" to be 4: Bush Administration Hampered FBI Investigation applied across the board. "National Treatment" would forbid gov- _ into Bin Laden Family Before 9-11 ernments from favouring their domestic companies over foreign- French book, Bin Laden: La Vérité Interdite (Bin Laden: based companies. This will create an expansion of megacorporate The Forbidden Truth), claims that the Bush Administration access to domestic markets and further diminish democratic halted investigations into terrorist activities related to the bin accountability. Laden family and began planning for a 2) GATS officials are seeking to war against Afghanistan before the place restrictions on domestic regula- events of September 11, 2001. tions. This would limit a government's The authors, Jean-Charles Brisard ability to enact environmental, health ie fi and Guillaume Dasquié, are French and other regulations and laws that Bush made his first intelligence analysts. Dasquié, an hinder "free trade". million dollars 20 years ago investigative reporter, publishes 3) Negotiators are attempting to from a company financed by Intelligence Online, a respected develop the expansion of "Commercial newsletter on economics and diploma- Presence" rules. These rules allow all Osama's elder brother, Salem. cy. Brisard worked for French secret investors in one GATS-controlled services and in 1997 wrote a report on country to establish a presence in any the al-Qa'ida network. other GATS country. The investor In 1996, high-placed intelligence will not only be allowed to compete sources in Washington told the against private suppliers for business, Guardian: "There were always con- but will also be allowed to compete against publicly funded insti- straints on investigating the Saudis." tutions and services for public funds. The authors allege that under the influence of US oil compa- (Sources: The Financial Times, London, October 19, 2000; The nies, George W. Bush and his administration initially halted Ecologist, February 2001; The Gazette, Montreal, June 15, 2001; investigations into terrorism, while bargaining with the Taliban to The Weekend Australian, August 25, 2001; The Herald, Glasgow, deliver Osama bin Laden in exchange for economic aid and politi- February 27, 2002; Toronto Star, March 3, 2002) cal recognition. The book goes on to reveal that former FBI Deputy Director John O'Neill resigned in July 2001 in protest 3: US Policies in Colombia Support Mass Murder over the obstruction of terrorist investigations. O.. the past two years, Colombia has been Washington's The BBC reiterated a well-known claim, made by one of third-largest recipient of foreign aid, behind only Israel and George W. Bush's former business partners, that Bush made his Egypt. In July 2000, the US Congress approved a $1.3 billion first million dollars 20 years ago from a company financed by war package for Colombia to support President Pastrana's "Plan Osama's elder brother, Salem. It has also been revealed that both Colombia". Plan Colombia is a $7.5 billion counternarcotics ini- the Bush family and the bin Ladens had lucrative stakes in The tiative. In addition to this financial support, the US also trains the Carlyle Group, a private investment firm that has grown to be one Colombian military. of the largest investors in US defence and communications con- Oala. haan ten health. The sprayings have killed fish and livestock, and have contaminated water supplies. US military aid is not improving conditions for the people of Colombia, but rather supporting a war against its citizens and those who are fighting for social justice. According to Jesse Isbell, an American member of the international steelworker dele- gation, who recently visited Columbia: "The US says one thing to the American public, when in reality it is [doing] something total- ly different. Our government portrays this as a drug war against cocaine, but all we are doing is keeping an ineffective government in power." (Sources: Rachel's Environment & Health News, December 7, 2000; Steelabor, May/June 2001; Counterpunch, July 1-15, 2001; Asheville Global Report, October 4, 2001) million dollars 20 years ago from a company financed by Osama's elder brother, Salem. 3: US Policies in Colombia Support Mass Murder O.. the past two years, Colombia has been Washington's third-largest recipient of foreign aid, behind only Israel and Egypt. In July 2000, the US Congress approved a $1.3 billion war package for Colombia to support President Pastrana's "Plan Colombia". Plan Colombia is a $7.5 billion counternarcotics ini- tiative. In addition to this financial support, the US also trains the Colombian military. Throughout these past two years, Colombian citizens have been the victims of human rights atrocities committed by the US- trained Colombian military and linked paramilitaries. Trade unionists and human rights activists face murder, torture and harassment. It is reported that Latin America remains the most dangerous place in the world for trade unionists; since 1986, some 4,000 unionists have been murdered in Colombia. Another problem resulting from the Colombian "drug war" has been the health consequences of US-sponsored aerial fumigation. Since January 2001, Colombian aircraft have been spraying toxic herbicides over Colombian fields in order to kill opium poppy and coca plants. These sprayings are killing food crops that indige- nous Colombians depend on for survival, as well as harming their tracts. Brisard and Dasquié contend that the government's main objec- tive in Afghanistan was to unite the Taliban regime in order to gain access to the oil and gas reserves in Central Asia. They report that the Bush Administration began negotiations with the Taliban directly after coming into power, and representatives met several times in Washington, Islamabad and Berlin. There were also claims that the last meeting between the United States and Taliban representatives took place only five weeks before the attacks in New York and Washington. Long before the 9-11 attack, the United States had decided to invade Afghanistan in the interest of oil. In February 1998, at the hearing before a subgroup of the Committee on International 12 = NEXUS _Bush made his first www.nexusmagazine.com DECEMBER 2002 — JANUARY 2003