MIAMI -- Nov. 17 through Nov. 21, Free Trade Area of the Americas negotiation meetings will be held in Miami. The FTAA has sharply divided supporters from opponents, and negotiations have been plagued with violent protests.

What Is FTAA?

The Free Trade Area of the Americas is currently being negotiated by the trade ministers of 34 countries of the Americas (every country in Central America, South America and the Caribbean, except Cuba).

Though it is similar to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), it goes far beyond NAFTA in its scope and power.

The FTAA would create a free trade area made up of both continents and would make sweeping changes that would eliminate many current trade and investment controls and barriers in the region.

Supporters, Opponents

Proponents say that the FTAA will help diminish poverty by providing economic development.

The FTAA would eliminate trade and investment barriers in the region and would help eliminate poverty and discrimination in the hemisphere, according to many supporters.

Those in favor of the agreement also say it would preserve and strengthen the democratic community and well-being of the Americas through economic integration and free trade.

The U.S. trade representative's Web site says: "The FTAA's objective is the achievement of greater well-being and progress for all citizens of the Americas, as part of an integral vision of the political, economic and social future of the Western Hemisphere."

Critics say the FTAA threatens the environment, human rights, and jobs, and raises the likelihood that major employers will move jobs to poor countries where they can pay lower wages without conflict from labor unions or regulation.

Those concerned about the impact on the environment say that since pollution levels and environmental control vary in different countries, many corporations could relocate factories to less rigidly regulated countries where the toxic emissions are allowed to be higher to increase productivity and take advantage of the lack of environmental control.

Fred Frost, president of the South Florida chapter of the AFL-CIO, said union leaders believe the FTAA would devastate trade and take thousands of jobs away from American workers.

Labor standards, including child labor, have been a major sticking point for critics of the agreement. British Broadcasting Corp. News reported, however, that some poorer nations have said the free trade area is intended to undermine the competitive edge those countries derive from being able to pay lower wages.

Some critics say that the FTAA is based on a "bottom-line mentality" and will give corporations power over nations.

Process, Protests

FTAA negotiations began right after the launch of NAFTA in 1994 and are set to be completed in 2005.

Negotiations to draft the agreement are headed by the 34 regional trade ministers. Ministerial meetings are held at 18-month intervals. The meetings take place in Canada, Argentina, Ecuador, Brazil and the United States.

Violence and protests erupted at free trade meetings in both Seattle and Cancun, Mexico.

The summit in Miami takes place Nov. 17 through 21.

Labor activists say that they expect at least 25,000 people will march through Miami and attend a rally on Nov. 20 to protest the meeting on the FTAA.