of all the WTO members. There are many issues in the WTO which are administered in ways which seem to be unfairly favoring developed countries. Some of these issues include the antidumping measures taken by developed countries to restrict the exports of developing countries and the long transition periods developed countries are taking to implement the phasing out of export quotas.The issue of whether or not TRIPs should be in the WTO, the regulations pertaining to intellectual property, is also causing quite a stir in current WTO debate. These provisions protect the interests of developed countries by attempting to prevent the transfer of technology from multinational corporations to the domestic firms of developing countries. It perpetuates technological superiority of the bug companies so that they can have control of the market and keep consumer retail prices far above what they would otherwise be if there were competition. (Khor 32) These measures have also been abused by the corporations of developed countries such as in the case of Ricetec, a Texas based firm which patented basmati rice, a product native to India, and a large export of that country. If TRIPs must remain in the WTO, then they need to be fundamentally restructured as to be harmonic with fair competition, permissive of fair technological transfer, and less susceptible to abuse.Anti-globalists around the world are also making headlines with their protests. They are also generally regarded as absurd, contradictory, and utterly ridiculous. Many of these activists target the WTO simply because it is the platform that gives them the most media attention, The protests and massive disruptions of traffic in Seattle illustrated that these demonstrators are more interested in press coverage than meaningful debate and dialogue. (Lash 372) Policymakers need to educate these opponents as well as the general public to better understand what it is the WTO actually does. ...
