Madam, - The headline "Farmers rejoice at failure to get deal in Cancún" (Business, September 15th) was a bit of an overstatement.
On the contrary, farmers would love to have had an agreement coming out of the WTO talks, but only one which works for them. And that is natural. What public sector union would allow any agreement to go ahead without its members being well taken care of? That is their right.
People in this country seem to forget that farming is no different to any other industry in the market. Those who cry out against farmers and what "they" have done to bring down the WTO should stop and think what the WTO does for them. Any country where €20 per week is a substantial wage is an obvious competitor to Ireland and a threat in the labour market.
Were it not for the WTO and inter-government agreements, almost every multinational in this country would pull out and opt for cheaper wages in another country. If a true free market were applied, there would hardly be a job left in this country, with our high wage inflation.
I think it is hypocritical of people who live under the protection of market manipulation to cry out when others want that same protection.
All that the farming community are asking is that their jobs be afforded the same security as others. Unfortunately, farmers cannot rely on Government policy to help them, as the Government seems more interested in helping multinationals with their tax bills. So farmers must turn to the WTO for protection on this front.
Is it too much to ask that the Irish people should back them as they do the teachers, or the nurses, on their strikes? - Yours, etc.,
MICHAEL BARRY,
Tombeagh,
Hacketstown,
Co Carlow.