Geneva to decide fate of WTO

Residents of Geneva vote Sunday on whether to approve plans to extend the headquarters of the WTO.

Residents of Geneva vote Sunday on whether to approve plans to extend the headquarters of the World Trade Organisation,which has implied it will quit the Swiss city if the project is turned down.

The mayor and other extreme-left municipal councilors are against the plans,saying the extensions will spoil walks along the banks of Lake Geneva.

WTO head Pascal Lamy says the UN body has no Plan B if the extensions are rejected,raising fears that it will pull out,threatening the jobs of 800 people who work in the current 80-year-old building.

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The WTO has claimed for years that there is no more room inside the present headquarters,which was originally occupied by the International Labour Organisation.

If Sunday’s vote is favourable the WTO and the Bern government have promised to invest a total of 130 million Swiss francs (USD 126 million dollars) in renovating and enlarging the headquarters.

The plans include additional office space for another 300 people,underground parking for 200 cars and a 150-seat restaurant.

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