Vicious Miami

http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/ftaa/965.html

FTAA critic: Taped advice recalls fiasco in Olympics

Miami Herald
August 17, 2003
BY CHRISTINA HOAG
choag@herald.com
With Miami's trade ministerial only three months away, antifree-trade groups have released a videotape in which a local advisory board member can e heard suggesting that perks be given to foreign officials as a way to win the headquarters of the Free Trade Area of the Americas.

The video shows an April 24 roundtable discussion of Miami's strategy to win the permanent secretariat of the FTAA. Panelist Jerry Haar, director of the University of Miami's inter-American business and labor program, advocates offering scholarships to UM or Florida International University to the children of influential officials or season tickets to UM football games.

That suggestion, says Eric Rubin, state coordinator of the Tampa-based Florida Fair Trade Coalition, smacks of the unethical tactics used by Salt Lake City officials in 1995. Rubin, who made and sent the tape to The Herald, recalled that the Salt Lake Olympic Committee gave college scholarships, cash and luxury gifts to members of the International Olympic Committee in an ultimately successful bid to land the 2002 Winter Olympics.

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The taped Haar can be heard saying: 'Let me be very crass and direct, as a former lobbyist, by telling you that if you know Minister X can deliver a bloc of three or four neighboring countries' votes, find out if Minister X -- this may get me in trouble -- find out if Minister X has two high school kids who would love to go to UM or FIU on full scholarship. Make that happen. That's the way it's done. That's the reality. Season tickets to the Hurricanes? Done.''
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the article goes on to say that "Anywhere from 20,000 to 100,000 free-trade fighters are expected to descend on the city, and the prospect of protests has been one reason cited for the cancellation of a related event, the Americas Business Forum"

Wow - 100,000 in Miami - the sharks will feed.