Saturday, May 30, 2009

Africa Right To Hold Out For Better European Deal

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1 comment:

Kimani Goddard said...

This is what was called structural violence by Johan Galtung in the 1960s and the subject of an article I am working on the about the problem with the Caribbean and asymmetric negotiations with the EU. My research on the role of the CRNM and the way it was constituted as a body serving CARIFORUM magnified the probability of structural violence taking place in these negotiations. I believe the University of the West Indies requires an institute of negotiations practice and philosophy. Because it is not that CRNM expets were not aware that there were legal arguments that could be used to get into a more favourable bargaining position. From research interviews conducted with some tecnocrats there and to read the contributions to academic discourse in political economy and economic policy, it is clear that they many of them are singing from the Washington consensus hymn sheet. I have been reliably informed that the CRNM will be integrated legally into CARICOM. I am still not sure that will provide better results for the negotiation of CARIBCAN or the Caribbean Basin Inititive. Somehow I believe the African may fare better because of the value of their tradeable goods to the EU and the size of their markets.