The main goal of the organization is to provide stable, predictable and free trade flows among its Members. The WTO is the successor of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which was signed by 23 countries in Geneva in October 1947 and entered into force on January 1, 1948.

Some were there simply to attend it, and others came to protest various aspects of the organization and its policies. On the protest side, most were peaceful demonstrators who took to the streets to express their concern that increasing global trade would hurt labor unions, the environment, and developing nations.

Among the most notable participants were national and international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) such as Global Exchange (especially those concerned with labor issues, the environment, and consumer protection), labor unions (including the AFL–CIO), student groups, religion-based groups (Jubilee 2000), and ...

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international institution created in 1995. The WTO regulates trade between nations. A replacement for the 1947 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the WTO manages the rules of international trade.