From: gerald_a_levy (gerald_a_levy@msn.com)
Date: Mon Mar 31 2003 - 06:43:22 EST
The following link is for an article on the "Qualified Industrial Zones" (QIZ) which are being promoted by the U.S. government in Jordan (and in other countries under similar names such as "Free Trade Zones"). The article reports that less than half of the workers in the QIZs are Jordanian (the workers are largely brought in from East Asia including India and Sri Lanka), 90% are women under the age of 22, just about all receive the minimum wage (about US$3.50 per day) and have (basically) no rights. The factories are largely owned and managed by capitalists from China, Korea, India, the Philippines, Pakistan and Taiwan. To export commodities duty-free into the US at least 8% of industrial inputs must come from Israel. The creation of Free Trade Zones has long been a hallmark of global Neo-Liberalist strategy, but the creation of the QIZs in Jordan -- the article by Aaron Glantz suggests -- is also part of US foreign policy in the Middle East. The economist Ibrahim Aloosh claims that the intent of this policy is to convert Jordan into a (neo-) colony of the US and Israel. While the article was written before the war against Iraq began, it still has relevance. In solidarity, Jerry > URL: http://www.corpwatch.org/issues/PID.jsp?articleid=5688 > Jordan's Sweatshops: the Carrot or the Stick of US Policy? > While the world braces for a US war against Iraq, Washington is using > its newly inked Free Trade Agreement with Jordan to open sweatshops > and secure an ally for itself and Israel. > ============================================== > CorpWatch --- Holding Corporations Accountable > URL: http://www.corpwatch.org
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