Luh De Suriyani, Denpasar – Local anti-World Trade Organization (WTO) activists continued their protest Tuesday by staging a noisy rally in front of the Australian Consulate as well as in the Bali Provincial Legislative Council in Renon, Denpasar.
The timing of the protests was carefully staged to coincide with the 33rd Cairns Group Ministerial Meeting in Tanjung Benoa. The meeting will end Wednesday. The Cairns Group is a coalition of 19 agricultural exporter countries, including Indonesia.
Agricultural subsidies have become a major stumbling block in negotiations on global trade between the Cairns Group and developed nations.
Some 30 activists, united under the Anti-WTO People Coalition, demanded that the Bali Administration reject any political schemes to terminate government subsidies for the agricultural sector and its products.
They also asked the government to provide more protection for the country's agricultural sector amid the onslaught of imported products from developed countries, such as Australia and the United States.
At the Bali Provincial Legislative Council, the protesters were received by councilor I Made Arjaya. He expressed his full support of their protest, claiming that neoliberalism trade policies would adversely affect the local farmers.
"I will personally write a letter to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono asking him to reject any moves to liberalize the agriculture sector."
At the Australian Consulate the protesters failed to attract the attention of consulate officials. Eventually, they staged their protest in front of police officers and the consulate's security officers.
A similar protest was carried out Monday at the Bali People's Struggle Monument in Puputan Margarana field in Renon.
The activists carried banners expressing their disgust toward the WTO and the liberalization of the global trade. They demanded the dissolution of WTO, claiming that the world body has weakened the sovereignty of the developing countries.
One banner was addressed directly to the country's Trade Minister Mari E. Pangestu, stating "Mari Elka Pangestu Don't Sell G-33 for Cairns." "Fair trade has became nothing but political jargon," the protest coordinator Moammar Khadafi said.