On Saturday, September
13, the largest demonstration against the 5th Ministerial Meeting of
the World
Trade Organization occurred in Cancun, Mexico. About 10,000
demonstrators
marched to the extremely fortified fence. A diverse group of women,
farmers,
anarchists, and other participants dismantled a section of the barrier
and then
held a peaceful rally.
The march started from
La Casa de Cultura in the morning and passed through the streets of
Cancun. Led by farmers from around the
world, they carried a banner that read in English, Spanish, and Korean,
“WTO
Kills Farmers. Down with WTO.”
Several chants and
signs made it clear why so many of the world’s people oppose the WTO.
One youth
group chanted in Spanish, “We want schools, we want hospitals, we want
rights,
we don’t want militaries.” As the WTO continues to try to privatize
public
services, military spending remains the one government expenditure
specifically
exempted under international trade rules.
When demonstrators
reached the site where protests had occurred on the previous Wednesday,
many
stopped to pay their respects to Lee Hyung-kae, the Korean farmer who
had
committed suicide to protest the WTO’s destruction of his livelihood. A
memorial to Mr. Lee had been erected at this site, known as Kilometer
Zero, and
several street signs had been spray painted over, declaring that the
area now
was called “Plaza Lee.”
A new, fortified fence
had been erected shortly past Kilometer Zero across the road to the
Hotel Zone
where the meetings were being held. The barrier was constructed from
reinforced
sections of chain link fencing that created boxes and at least three
lines of
fencing between the demonstrators and the rows of riot police on the
other
side.
As the morning
progressed, more of the marchers began to gather at the fence. They
hung
banners, and some banged on the fence, which did nothing to break down
the
barrier that kept them out of the meetings.
Without announcement,
several men began holding hands between the demonstrators and the
fence,
creating a line. Within this safe area moved several women, who began
cutting
through the fence with bolt cutters and dismantling it with wrenches.
The
women, indigenous and foreign, worked diligently until a cheer was
called out.
The fence had been breached.
Immediately, a line of
Mexican riot police approached, holding up their shields. Seeing that
they
faced off with women may have given them a pause, and the work to break
apart
the fence continued. An announcement was made in English and Spanish,
asking
that people stay back and be patient in order to give the women time to
complete their work.
About ten minutes
later, the women moved back and members of the Korean delegation came
forward
with thick ropes. They climbed to the top of the fence and began tying
the rope
to the struts at the top that supported the chain link.
Once tied, the Koreans
and other members of the crowd took positions and began pulling the
ropes. The
first attempt had no effect except to break one of the ropes.
Undaunted, people
moved in to resecure the ropes, while others continued to tear away at
the
chains and U-bolts that held the sections together.
Suddenly, as the force
of dozens of arms pulled in unison at the ropes, the top of the fence
began to
bend. A rope snapped and another appeared that it would as well. The
group
stopped pulling and a jubilant cheer rang out from the crowd.
As the ropes were
being retied by the Koreans, other demonstrators began to pull out the
large
cement blocks that were holding the barrier more securely to the
ground.
As muscles strained
for a third time on the rope, a large section of the fence tore and
broke free.
A wild yell rose from the crowd, who were seeing what many had taken to
be an
unbreakable obstruction torn apart. Piece by piece, the crowd was
working
together to dismantle the barrier that kept them away from the WTO
meetings.
Two more pulls, and a
majority of the fence had been removed. Only a single line of fence
stood
between the activists and the riot police. An announcement was made
that, after
removing the fence peacefully, the leaders of the direct action
requested for
everyone to move back and not provoke the police. The crowd began
chanting
“Lee, Lee, Lee, Lee,” and “Vive los Coreanos” (Long Live the Koreans!)
After another two
pulls, the final line of fence had been removed, and the people stood
face to
face with the riot police who immediately moved in to block the breach.
To keep
the situation from escalating, a line of activists formed in front of
the gap,
creating a safe space and forestalling any attempts at provocation.
The organizers then
requested that the crowd move back and sit down. After some shuffling,
several
thousand people at the front of the large crowd sat down and talked in
hushed
tones. An hour long rally then ensued, translated into Korean, English
and
Spanish.
One member of the
Korean farmers union told the crowd that “We have done a very special
thing; we
have pulled down the fence with your help. We wanted to go to the
convention
center to disrupt the meetings, but we could only come here because the
police
blocked us.”
A member of a Korean
trade union association then spoke, saying, “I am proud of you because
you
pulled this fence down. It was YOU that pulled it down. We have the
power to
destroy the WTO. The power of the people will destroy the WTO, which is
the
most evil thing in the world. We will continue struggling together.”
The crowd then took up
a chant of “Internacionale solidaridad,” (International solidarity)
followed by
another mantra that had become very popular through the weekend, “Down,
down,
WTO.”
The Koreans were
followed by a speaker from Via Campisino, a farmer’s organization based
in
Mexico. He said that “We have shown today that the laws and barriers
that the
WTO has established are breakable, that we are able to break them with
our
collective power…. They expected us to be violent, to break through
with
violence, and we have shown that we can organize and are able to keep
working
tomorrow against hunger and poverty.”
A Korean farmer then
spoke, stating that “Mr. Lee was not only a friend of the Korean
delegation; he
was a friend of all of the people in the world. We will not make his
death
meaningless. Mr. Lee sacrificed his life to stop the WTO and to revive
the
power of the people. As we destroyed the barricade of the WTO, we will
destroy
the Ministry of the WTO.”
The last speaker was a
woman from the African delegation, who told the crowd that “Comrades,
we are
from Africa and we say Africa is not for sale. Today, in Africa, people
are in
the streets with us.”
The rally then moved
into the next phase, where effigies of the WTO were placed atop the
fence and
burned. Made out of sticks and grain bags filled with newspaper, the
symbolic
burning of the WTO was celebrated with cheers and clapping. A large
flag from
the United States was also brought out and set on fire. The crowd began
chanting “Lee vive, la lucha sigue.” (Lee lives, the struggle
continues).
After the burning, a
final ceremony was held to celebrate the memory of Lee Hyung-kae.
Flowers were
handed out, and the crowd was asked to place their flowers in a pile in
front
of the riot police, within the area where the fence had been cleared.
This
ultimate act of non-violence was an appropriate end to the direct
action that
had successfully torn through the fence that kept the people away from
the WTO.
The demonstration then
took on a festive atmosphere as people played drums and danced in the
streets.
The police continued standing with their riot shields pointing out
while the
crowd slowly dispersed.