Many trade unions and civil society organisations are making their voices heard as governments prepare to gather in Hong Kong for the 6th Ministerial meeting of the WTO this December. The ITF does this mainly through the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), as well as through the broader alliance with hundreds of other social organisations linked through the Global Call for Action against Poverty (GCAP). The WTO came into being in 1995, taking over from the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which was founded half a century earlier. It has 148 members and engineers increasing liberalisation of trade in both goods and services under the new framework of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). It also makes and enforces trade rules. Issues under discussion are dealt with through a complex set of councils, meetings and other bodies between ministerial meetings, which take place every two years.