CHENNAI: Representatives of several panchayats in Tamil Nadu on Saturday demanded that the Union Government immediately revoke all agreements it signed under the auspices of the World Trade Organisation.

In a statement, they wanted all agreements, especially those relating to agriculture, TRIPS, TIMS and Textiles and Trade in Services, withdrawn and further negotiations stopped. The Government must rescind all licences granted to foreign or Indian companies for extraction, distribution and sale of water.

The leaders said applications for licence for setting up bottling plants or commercialisation/privatisation of water resources would be rejected.

The resolutions were passed at a consultation organised here on WTO-General Agreement on Trade in Services. While some of them just heard about the GATS agreement, experts in different areas provided inputs on its ramifications. Among the subjects covered were changes in macro-economic policies, privatisation of basic services (education, water, health, electricity, transport and banking credit and insurance) and changes in domestic laws.

In a signed statement that will be forwarded to the Prime Minister, the Commerce Ministry, the Leader of the Opposition and the National Advisory Committee, the leaders demanded that the Centre boycott the GATS negotiations scheduled for December in Hong Kong. This would prevent, they claimed, foreign companies from pushing for changes in domestic laws, policies and institutions, thus protecting the nation's sovereignty and democracy.

The leaders also resolved to organise a State-wide protest of all elected panchayati raj institutions on December 14 — the date of the Hong Kong Ministerial conference — expressing fears that any agreement would be binding and irreversible. The consultation was organised by the Association for Rural Education and Development Service, the Society for Integrated Rural development, the Legal Aid to Women Trust and the Human Rights Advocacy and Research Foundation.

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