Corporate voice is too strong for a democracy Letter to the Editor William Watson and many of your other columnists just don't get it. It makes one wonder whether they have been listening or reading to any of the anti-FTAA rhetoric at all. Right now, most politicians look to corporate donations to get into power. Therefore, corporations cannot help but have a strong influence over politicians.
Most media are also dependent on corporate advertising to finance their activities.
This again makes the corporate voice disproportionately strong and cannot help but skew one of the most important voices of opposition in a democratic country. The FTAA has the potential to create the same imbalance in favour of the corporate sector in 34 countries in this hemisphere all at once. The corporate sector should not be allowed to dictate the process as it does now. Democratic, environmental and human-rights interests should not only be heard but be given some teeth. Unfortunately in Quebec City, we had an illustration of the complete lack of balance in this process.