Book contents
- Poverty Narratives and Power Paradoxes in International Trade Negotiations and Beyond
- Poverty Narratives and Power Paradoxes in International Trade Negotiations and Beyond
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The Disempowered Many
- 3 Winning against the Odds
- 4 When Fair Is Foul and Foul Is Fair
- 5 Conclusion
- Index
- References
2 - The Disempowered Many
When the Weak Suffered What They Must
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 16 April 2020
Book contents
- Poverty Narratives and Power Paradoxes in International Trade Negotiations and Beyond
- Poverty Narratives and Power Paradoxes in International Trade Negotiations and Beyond
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The Disempowered Many
- 3 Winning against the Odds
- 4 When Fair Is Foul and Foul Is Fair
- 5 Conclusion
- Index
- References
Summary
In this chapter, I trace the negotiating history of the post-war multilateral trading system, from the 1940s to 1995 (i.e. the creation of the WTO), through the lens of poverty narratives. I show how the two main narratives emerged, and how they interacted with each other. I further explain why the narrative that 'won' and achieved dominance for the next several decades was largely unsympathetic to the cause of poverty alleviation, especially when mitigation strategies were discussed in the context of the developing world. I conduct this analysis via three negotiation landmarks, plus a fourth case of decision-making processes. The fifth section of the chapter explores the extent to which the powerlessness of the small and poor extended to other areas of international negotiation as well as other aspects of political and social life.
Keywords
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2020
References
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