In late October the seventh ministerial meeting about the Free Trade Area of the Americas took place in Quito, Ecuador. People from all over Latin America descended on the capital, with particularly strong represantation from women's groups, one of which commented “ access to social security, education, and economic resources is very limited, and it is not recognised that poverty affects women more than anyone else [...] we think that integrating into the international market would create a very difficult situation for us; the FTAA affects women more than anyone else”. Indymedia reported that a student demonstration held on 30 October was attacked by police using tear gas; bullets were also fired, students arrested and two students beaten and hospitalised.
Topics: Global justice