WDM Press Release 3 December 1999 - for immediate release
WTO Negotiations: They're a mess
"WTO negotiations have been an excuse for arm twisting and bullying. The US and EU must stop trying to bounce developing
countries into agreements that they bitterly oppose and are clearly not in their interests." said Barry Coates, Director
of the World Development Movement, attending the negotiations in Seattle.
There was strong criticism of the US and WTO yesterday in statements issued by the Africa group and the Latin
America/Caribbean group of countries. At a seminar organised by WDM and others, Sir Sridath Ramphal characterised the
negotiations as "neo-colonialist"(1). He warned against any attempt to blame developing countries if they exercised
their right not to sign a bad deal today. "Most participants will leave with a feeling of exclusion. If it fails, the
blame must lie with the WTO and the USA."
Even the British Secretary of State, Stephen Byers joined in and said "it's a mess". EU Trade Commissioner, Pascal Lamy
called the process "medieval". However, the EU has not been beyond arm twisting itself, especially in its attempts to
get agreements on the "Singapore" issues of investment, competition and government procurement.
Corporate lobbies have been pushing hard for an investment agreement in the wake of the failed Multilateral Agreement on
Investment. The EU has been selling investment by saying it is not an 'MAI Mark II', but fails to point out that the
objectives are almost identical - investment liberalisation and investor protection. Background papers from the EU and
UK confirm that they still want provisions such as pre-establishment rights for foreign multinationals, but they are
prepared to get them through successive negotiations. Developing countries' proposals that enforceable responsibilities
for multinationals should be included have been ignored.
Investment should not be in the WTO. International rules on investment are needed, but not these ones and not in this
forum (2). The strong stand by many developing countries against EU pressure is supported by the 1,450 civil society
organisations from 90 countries that signed a joint statement against the new issues.
Developing countries have made coherent and persuasive proposals on implementation (3). It is an insult that their
agenda for repair of unfair rules is being blocked by the industrialised countries. Today developing country governments
must make up their minds over whether they will accept the deal on the table. A sensible decision may be to take more
time in order to get a fairer deal and a less pressured process. Their citizens, particularly those who are poor and
vulnerable, deserve nothing less.
Notes for Editors:
(1). The World Development Movement joined with the Africa Trade Network, South Centre, Focus on the Global South,
Oxfam, Consumers International, Friends of the Earth International and the New Economics Foundation to organise the
seminar. It was also addressed by the Hon. Clement Rohee, Minister for Foreign Affairs from Guyana, Yash Tandon of the
Ghana delegation and Tetteh Hormeku of the Africa Trade Network.
It has been business as usual at the WTO. The US delegation of 200, including around 60 business "advisors" has been
fighting with the EU delegation of 594. There have been tough meetings behind closed doors. The "Green Room" process, in
which a few selected countries are invited through an undemocratic and unrepresentative process, has meant that texts
are manipulated.
As the UK Secretary of State, Stephen Byers said yesterday, "working groups have not been allowed to work". Few of the
informal meetings have involved the delegations of smaller developing countries, some of which have only one or two
representatives. When developing countries are "consulted", they report explicit linkages between aid and trade
negotiations. There are no ethics in trade negotiations - only power and self interest. Reform was promised after the
Singapore Ministerial, but Sir Sridath Ramphal yesterday said that the these were the most unfair negotiations he had
experienced in his 40 year career.
(2) There are UN agencies that have a mandate on international investment, notably the UN Conference on Trade and
Investment, which has prepared criteria for developmentally-friendly investment, and could act as a secretariat for a
balanced international agreement. WDM has proposed a new mechanism that would include rights for countries to pursue
development policies and enforceable regulation to ensure multinationals abide by internationally agreed standards. All
that is needed is the political will. It is time to reform the WTO, not to massively expand its mandate through an
agreement on investment (which accounts for as much economic activity as all international trade).
(3) Most developing countries have called for future negotiations to "review, repair and reform" in the words of the
Chair of the G-77 (the group of developing countries), including: * Implementation - to open up the deeply unfair
agreements, such as anti-dumping, Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs), Trade Related Investment Measures
(TRIMs) and subsidies; and ensure that the rich nations live up to their commitments to reduce protectionism in
agriculture and textiles. * Agriculture - an end to dumping of surpluses by heavily subsidized farmers from the North
and recognition of the need for food security. * New Issues - no negotiations on investment, competition policy and
government procurement, and no labour standards in the WTO.
WDM is an independent campaigning organisation which aims to change policies of governments, international agencies and
companies in the North to stop exploitation of people in the Third World.
From: Barry Coates - Barry.Coates@WDM.ORG.UK