CANCUN, Mexico -- Non-governmental organisation workers celebrate yesterday in the corridors of the World Trade Organisation meeting in Cancun, after talks collapsed. The talks, designed to change the face of farming around the world, collapsed amid differences between rich and poor nations, the second failure for the World Trade Organisation in four years. (Photo: AP)

CANCUN, Mexico (AP) -- Protesters celebrated the collapse of the World Trade Organisation talks yesterday, dancing and singing inside the convention hall "Our world is not for sale, my friend!"

Miles away at the protest camp -- separated from the meeting site by hundreds of police and metal barriers -- young demonstrators beat drums, whooped and danced in the streets.

"This is a victory for the people," protest leader Rafael Alegria said. "We expected it, we planned for it, and now we're celebrating it."

Activists staged a series of marches and actions against the WTO throughout last week, but it was differences between the organisation's rich and poor nations that sank negotiations.

Members of non-profit organisations who had attended the meeting cheered the collapse, hugging each other and singing to the tune of the Beatles' Can't Buy Me Love:

"Our world is not for sale, my friend, just to keep you satisfied. You say you'll bring us health and wealth, well we know that you just lied."

Earlier yesterday, 20 protesters convinced police to let them on to a beach, where they stripped and wrote "We are winning" on their bodies.

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