22 November
2010
Written by Brian Martin
As my mind races across the numerous events of the last few days, it is difficult to know where to begin.
I was invited to be a delegate for New Zealand at APEC and this was an opportunity for me to listen to many of the world’s leaders expressing their various viewpoints.
One thing that was abundantly clear was that many of the attendees to APEC, who were listeners like myself, demonstrated to me how 'self interest will always dominate’. People predominantly had one viewpoint - their viewpoint. There seemed little appreciation that the politicians were elected and had their jobs, because they needed to focus on what the voters of their country wanted. For example, I heard a number of comments about President Obama’s speech. Some people thought that it was too domestically focused. I personally wondered how it could not be, having just suffered a serious loss of seats in the recent elections to the Republican Party, and the fact that it was the American voters who put President Obama in office.
I think the highlight which I enjoyed the most, and was able to participate in, was the breakfast with Prime Minister John Key. His international experience with Merrill Lynch showed he had a good grasp of many of the aspects of international business, and was clear about his intentions with international trade for New Zealand. I also found him to be personable and quick-witted, with a good grasp on many issues.