APEC is over !

The APEC meeting is over. Twenty-one world leaders have returned to their countries, the five kilometre " ring of steel " is being dismantled - and Sydney will return to normal over the next few days.
The event can be termed successful. A heavy police presence kept unruly demonstrators at bay - and the tactic of arresting leaders before they could foment trouble worked well. Unfortunately, civil liberties for ordinary citizens was a victim of this success.
Many people gain the impression that APEC is a meeting where the presidents and prime ministers of leading countries sit down together and hash out plans for a better world.
Nothing is further from the truth.
APEC is a world public relations event. World leaders gather in the glare of international publicity to preen and convey the image that they are statesmen and stateswomen serving the interests of their countries - and the world !
In reality, whatever is agreed at APEC has been worked out well before the first plane touches down. A veritable army of diplomats and advisers scuttles back and forth between capitals, beavering away swopping proposals and looking over their shoulders for the nod or the frown from their leaders.
When something becomes a " done deal " it is put on ice - ready for the major players to pick up a pen at APEC and sign it into law.
At this session we saw a deal to sell gas from Australian wells to China, a plan to sell Australian uranium to Russia, tinkering at the fringes of the failed Doha round of WTA discussions - and an enormous list of other minor agreements that will not get a mention in the media.
A crumb was tossed to the environmental lobby with a vague plan to work towards a decrease in the reasons for global warming - but without any tangible targets - and with no penalties for failure.
So - was it worthwhile ?
The answer is probably " yes " - but there are questions on the wisdom of holding such an event in a major world city.
Sydney does not need international publicity to boost tourism. This city hosted the Olympics in 2000 - and there are few people on the planet who would not instantly recognise both the harbour bridge and the Opera house.
APEC disrupted the lives of many, caused inconvenience to most people - and cost a obscene amount of money.
It would have been better if the event had been held somewhere like Hayman or Dunk
islands. Not only would security have been relatively simple but the supporting media scrum would have featured the beauty of the Great Barrier reef and it's surrounding islands - and induced a new wave of world tourists.
Maybe venue is something world leaders need to ponder before the next APEC meeting !