MEDIA REACTION: RAUL MORENO, SALVADORAN ECONOMIST,

UNCLAS TEGUCIGALPA 002753 SIPDIS FOR PD/WHA (MBUCKLEY) INFO IIP EMBASSIES FOR PAOS, APAOS, Ios, E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OIIP KPAO HO PA SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: RAUL MORENO, SALVADORAN ECONOMIST, CRITICIZES THE IDEA OF A CA FREE TRADE AREA BEFORE HONDURUAN CONGRESS; REPORTING ON TWO ECONOMIC CONFERENCES ¶1. September 28, "El Heraldo," a moderate Tegucigalpa-based daily, carried a full-page article on the presentation of a Salvadoran Economics expert to the Honduran national Congress. The President of the Honduran National Congress, Porfirio Lobo, had invited him to talk about the "Social Impact of a Free Trade Agreement in Central America. Other papers also reported on the speech. Media Coverage on Free Trade Agreement ¶1. On Saturday September 28, "El Heraldo" and "La Tribuna" (Liberal party periodical) ran articles focusing on the Free Trade Agreement and the presentation of the Salvadoran economist to the Congress. El Heraldo, "Free Trade Agreements will be the kiss of death for Central American Integration" - The Central American Free Trade Agreements with Mexico and the United States do not guarantee sustainable development, but rather guarantee an increase in poverty and disparity of incomes and the loss of competitiveness of the small states. "These agreements are not just commercial, they upset the social relationship inherent in production and the circulation and distribution of income; furthermore they harm the political and legal systems, the environment and labor relations within the country. these are not Free Trade Agreements but agreements for free investment." "FTA will stop the integration process because its aim is to establish bilateral free trade..FTA is flawed due to the absence of a social agenda." MEDIA COVERAGE-- September 24-27 ¶2. September 26, "El Tiempo"- San Pedro Sula-based Liberal paper owned by Businessman and Congressional Deputy Rosenthal, reported on an AmCham-Honduras, SICA (Secretaria de Integracin Centroamerica) and USAID-hosted conference on FTA and its impact on regional integration and the economy, saying "the biggest obstacle to negotiations on fta is reaching a consensus on Central American integration." ¶3. September 27, "El Tiempo" ran an article called "Free Trade Agreement could break Honduran small businesses" in reporting on an economic conference hosted by the Honduran Foundation for Development (FUNHDE) at the Central American Bank of Economic Integration, which discussed the economic and social sector implications of the FTA. According to the President of FUNDHE, "at least 15,000 micro and small businesses will disappear if they do not receive support to handle the challenges that the free trade agreements will present." ¶4. September 28, La Tribuna reported on a speech by a deputy from the Democratic Unification Party to a group of students. "The ftaa will promote investments and the circulation of northamerican capital, but will not encourage symmetry between the economy of latin america and the Caribbean and that of the us. Pierce.