The Association pour la Taxation des Transactions pour l'Aide aux Citoyens (Association for the Taxation of Financial Transactions for the Aid of Citizens, ATTAC) is an activist organization for the establishment of a tax on foreign exchange transactions. Foreign exchange has several meanings: In telecommunications, Foreign exchange service is a type of network service. ...

An ATTAC poster in the French countryside, 2004

French ATTAC members protesting privatization and the "dismantling" of public services, 2005

Originally a single-issue movement demanding the introduction of the so-called Tobin tax on currency speculation, ATTAC now devotes itself to a wide range of issues related to globalisation, monitoring the decisions of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). ATTAC attends the meetings of the G8 with the goal of influencing policymakers' decisions. Download high resolution version (1760x1168, 699 KB)An ATTAC poster in the French countryside (near Ameugny, Saône-et-Loire, Burgundy, France), 2004-09. ... Download high resolution version (1760x1168, 699 KB)An ATTAC poster in the French countryside (near Ameugny, Saône-et-Loire, Burgundy, France), 2004-09. ... Single-issue politics involves political campaigning or political support based on one essential policy area or idea. ... A Tobin tax is the suggested tax on all trade of currency across borders. ... Speculation involves the buying, holding, and selling of stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies, collectibles, real estate, derivatives or any valuable thing to profit from fluctuations in its price as opposed to buying it for use or for income ( via dividends, interest etc). ... Globalization is a term used to describe the changes in societies and the world economy that are the result of dramatically increased trade and cultural exchange. ... For other uses of the initials WTO, see WTO (disambiguation). ... The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an international organization of those developed countries that accept the principles of representative democracy and a free market economy. ... The logo of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is the international organization entrusted with overseeing the global financial system by monitoring exchange rates and balance of payments, as well as offering technical and financial assistance when asked. ... The Group of Eight (G8) consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the Russian Federation. ...

Though ATTAC criticises the neoliberal ideology dominating economic globalisation, it is not "anti-globalisation". It supports globalisation policies that they characterise as sustainable and socially just. One of ATTAC's slogans is "The World is not for sale", denouncing the "merchandisation" of society. For the school of international relations, see Neoliberalism (international relations). ... Sustainable development is a process of developing (land, cities, business, communities, etc) that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs according to the Brundtland Report, a 1987 report from the United Nations. ... Social Justice is a philosophical definition of the justice found operating in any given societys systems of social control. ... Look up Slogan in Wiktionary, the free dictionary A slogan is a memorable phrase used in a political or commercial context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose. ... Merchandization is a derogatory term coined by the anti-globalization movement to designate the growing importance of global market forces in the daily lives of citizens, everything, including health care, culture or education, becoming mere merchandise. ...

Organisational history and background

An ATTAC banner in front of the Kölner Dom, Germany, 2004

In December 1997, Ignacio Ramonet wrote in Le Monde diplomatique an editorial in which he advocated the establishment of the Tobin tax and the creation of an organisation to pressure governments around the world to introduce the tax. ATTAC was created on June 3, 1998, during a constitutive assembly in France. While it was founded in France it now exists in over forty countries around the world. In France, politicians from the left are members of the association. A banner is a flag or other piece of cloth bearing a symbol, logo, slogan or other message. ... It has been designated the: International Year of Rice (by the United Nations) International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO) 2004 World Health Day topic was Road Safety (by World Health Organization) Year of the Monkey (by the Chinese calendar) See the world in... Ignacio Ramonet is a French journalist, the editor-in-chief of Le Monde diplomatique, a left-wing political magazine. ... The monthly publication Le Monde diplomatique (nicknamed Le Diplo by its French readers) offers well-documented analysis and opinion on politics, culture, and current affairs. ... A Tobin tax is the suggested tax on all trade of currency across borders. ...

ATTAC functions on a principle of decentralisation: local associations organise meetings, conferences, and compose documents that become counter-arguments to the neoliberal discourse. ATTAC aims to formalise the possibility of an alternative to the neoliberal society that is currently required of globalisation. ATTAC aspires to be a movement of popular education. Decentralisation (American: decentralization) is any of various means of more widely distributing decision-making to bring it closer to the point of service or action. ...

Critics say that ATTAC constitutes an identity-based reactionary group and that, contrary to that which ATTAC affirms, it does not speak in the name of the poorest. Another criticism is that ATTAC promotes policies that are in reality plain protectionism. Responses to such criticisms would emphasise the global reach of ATTAC, which encompasses many poor countries. Reactionary (or reactionist) is a political epithet typically applied to conservatism. ... Protectionism is the economic policy of protecting a nations manufacturing base from the effects of foreign competition (such as including Dumping) by means of high tariffs on imported goods, restrictive quotas, and other means of reducing importation. ...

Issues and activities

An ATTAC stall at the Volksstimmefest, Vienna, Austria, 2005 ( details)

The main issues covered by ATTAC today are: Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 1227 KB)An ATTAC stall at the Volksstimmefest, Vienna, Austria, September 4, 2005. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 1227 KB)An ATTAC stall at the Volksstimmefest, Vienna, Austria, September 4, 2005. ... Vienna (German: Wien [viːn]; Slovenian: Dunaj, Croatian and Serbian: Beč Romanian: Viena, Hungarian: Bécs, Czech: Vídeň, Slovak: Viedeň, Romany Vidnya;) Vienna is the capital of Austria, and also one of the nine States of Austria. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 1227 KB)An ATTAC stall at the Volksstimmefest, Vienna, Austria, September 4, 2005. ...

• Control of financial markets (e.g. Tobin tax)
• "Fair" instead of "free" trade, via democratic control of the WTO and international financial institutions such the IMF, Worldbank, EU, NAFTA, FTAA, and G8.
• Defense of public goods - air, water, information
• Defense of public social services - like those relevant to health, social services, and social security. For example, it is against the privatisation of pensions and of the healthcare system). ATTAC has also taken a position on genetically-modified organisms. ATTAC also opposes General Agreement on Trade in Services.
• The struggle to end tax evasion (tax havens) as practiced by transnational corporations
• Sustainable globalisation
• Cancellation of the debts of developing countries.
• ATTAC campaigned against the treaty establishing one constitution for Europe. (Treaty of Rome of 2004).

In France, ATTAC associates with many other left-wing causes. ATTAC supports José Bové. For other uses of the initials WTO, see WTO (disambiguation). ... The flag of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is the international organization entrusted with overseeing the global financial system by monitoring foreign exchange rates and balance of payments, as well as offering technical and financial assistance when asked. ... The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD, in Romance languages: BIRD), better known as the World Bank, is an international organization whose original mission was to finance the reconstruction of nations devastated by WWII. Now, its mission has expanded to fight poverty by means of financing states. ... Official Emblem NAFTA is also an abbreviation for the New Zealand Australia Free Trade Agreement; see also Nafta. ... The FTAA logo. ... The Group of Eight (G8) consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the Russian Federation. ... For specific national programs, see Social Security (United States), National insurance (UK), Social Security (Sweden) Social security primarily refers to a field of social welfare concerned with social protection, or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment, families with children and others. ... Privatization (sometimes privatisation, denationalization, or — especially in India — disinvestment) is the process of transferring property, from public ownership to private ownership. ... A pension is a steady income paid to a person (usually after retirement). ... A healthcare system is the organization by which health care is provided. ... The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) is a treaty of the World Trade Organization (WTO) that entered into force in January 1995 as a result of the Uruguay Round negotiations to provide for the extension of the multilateral trading system to services. ... A corporate haven is a jurisdiction with laws friendly to corporations thereby encouraging them to choose that jurisdiction as a legal domicile. ... In politics, left-wing, political left, leftism, or simply the left, are terms which refer (with no particular precision) to the segment of the political spectrum typically associated with any of several strains of socialism, social democracy, or liberalism (especially in the American sense of the word), or with opposition... José Bové Joseph (José) Bové (born June 11, 1953) is a French anarcho-syndicalist, member of the alter-globalisation movement, and spokesperson for Via Campesina. ...

See also

• Anti-globalisation movement
• Clearstream scandal, a compensation chamber (meta-bank) involved in one of the biggest financial scandal ever

Anti-globalization (anti-globalisation) is a political stance of opposition to the perceived negative aspects of globalization. ... Clearstream Banking S.A. (CB) is the clearing division of Deutsche Börse, based in Luxembourg. ...

References

• BERNARD CASSEN, ON THE ATTACK, New Left Review 19, January-February 2003
• BERNARD CASSEN, ATTAC AGAINST THE TREATY, New Left Review 33, May-June 2005

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

ATTAC

• ATTAC homepage
• ATTAC INFO
• "Disarming the Markets", editorial by Ignacio Ramonet
• ATTAC-Austria
• ATTAC-Denmark
• ATTAC France
• ATTAC Germany (Group on Information Society)
• ATTAC-Madrid
• ATTAC Norway
• ATTAC-País Valencià
• ATTAC Poland
• ATTAC-Québec
• ATTAC Sweden
• ATTAC USA