MANY DEVELOPING COUNTRIES SPEAK AGAINST NEW ISSUES AT WTO COUNCIL MEETING TO REVIEW DOHA PREPARATIONS
Report by Martin Khor, Third World Network (Geneva, 31 July 2001).
This is a short report of the latest developments in the WTO in Geneva. The General Council held a 2 day informal
meeting on 30-31 July for a "stocktaking" or reality check on the situation re Doha Ministerial. It started with the
Council chairman Mr Harbinson and the WTO DG Mike Moore saying the situation is sobering as countries are still
polarised between those who want a "new round" and thos that do not.
Many countries stated their stand. It was clear that since the last such stocktaking exercise in June, there has not
been any "convergence" of views. The EC's Director General of Trade Peter Carl gave a press conference on 31 July and
tried to give an impression that there is now a convergence and most countries want a Round, mentioning only India and
Malaysia being against. He tried to express optimism. But he did not fool any of the journalists, as they had heard not
only Moore's rather downbeat assessment but they also saw the statements from many developing countries that are against
or not prepared to accept a New Round or the new issues associated with it. Many journalists at the EC press conference
asked Peter Carl why he was so "optimistic" or why he claimed convergence of views when so many countries are against it
as is clear from their statement.
It is true that the US now appears more enthusiastic about a new round and the deputy USTR Peter Allgeier said the US is
now prepared to go along with investment and competition as issues for negotiations. His view seemed to be that this was
the way to get the EU to agree to liberalise agriculture. But he also admitted that some developing countries find
difficulty with the new issues and that they have to be won over, for example by giving them technical assistance.
The real story, however, is that many developing countries spoke up against accepting new issues (investment,
competition, transparency in govt. procurement, trade facilitation, new rules on environment, labour) at the Doha
Ministerial. They expressed great disappointment that their demands for treating "implementation issues" (ie problems
faced in meeting their obligations in existing agreements like TRIPS, TRIMS, agriculture, subsidies etc; and problems
caused by the developed countries not fulfilling their commitments in opening their marketsto poor countries for example
in agriculture or textiles) have not been met. When they already face so many problems in implementing the existing
agreements, why should they agree to enter negotiations in new areas that will land them with new obligations which they
will then have more problems in trying to implement?
Countries that spoke up strongest along these lines included Pakistan, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Jamaica. Pakistan
Ambassador Munir Akram said: "There were 50 proposals for urgent action on implementation. Decisions may be likely on
only three issues at present. This justifies the evaluation there has been no welcome advances, no positive
developments, almost no headway towards positive decisions. Unless there are tangible results on implementation, we find
it difficult to continue considering proposals to enlarge the negotiatingf agenda before, at or after Doha. Under
present circumstances there is very little prospect for agreement on the four Singapore issues."
The India Ambassador, S. Narayanan, rejected investment, competition, transparency in govt procurement and trade
facilitation as negotiating issues for Doha, saying the differences in views between Members cannot be narrowed by then.
Malaysian Ambassador Superamaniam expressed misgivings on how the Doha process had focused on the new issues as if these
issues would make or break the Doha conference. t is abundantly clear the differences in positions are intractable.
Clever drafting cannot resolve fundamental difficulties and this has to be recognised...We run the risk of a "Seattle
Two" if we continue with the all-or-nothing course....It is clear we are in a state of impasse. We characterise the
situation as discouraging, discomforting, demoralising and even depressing. The reality is that the positions on a wide
ranjge of issues are sharply divided even at this critical phase."
Ambassdor Halida of Indonesia made a strong statement. She said: "Indonesia is deeply concerned over the initiativ by
some Members to launch a "comprehensive" round which includes new issues. Indonesia has learned a very good lesson from
past experience, that a proposal that looks fair on the surface may have very different and serious consequences. To
understand what is really at stake we certainly need to unders fully all factors and implications...Insisting to include
issues which do not reflect the interests of all Members would be a perfect recipe for failure....The unrealistic
expansion of the agenda will place at peril the sucess of the Ministerial Conference."
Jamaica's Ambassador Ransford Smith: "Time is running out and we may be in danger of repeating recent history unless we
focus first on necessary preconditions and secondly on what is possible at this time. For us the resolution of
implementation issues is a necessary pre-condition and unfortunately there is very little progress there. We do not
believe that beyond the built-in agenda many issues fall into the realm of what is possible. We should admit the reality
as quickly as possible."
Very importantly, the poorest members of WTO, ie the LDC countries (there are almost 40 of them in WTO) represented by
the Tanzania Ambassador, told WTO that the LDC Ministers at a meeting in Zanzibar last week had decided that they are
not in a position to agree to negotiate new issues, and that the work of the Working Groups on these issues should
continue instead. Said Ambassador Ali Mchumo of Tanzania: "Ministers considered the so-called Singapore issues that
include investment, competition policy, environment, transparency in govt procurement and trade facilitation. Given the
face that the issues involved are complex and divergent viewsue to exist and that the new issues are yet to be fully
understood, especially regarding thir implications on LDCs' development, the Ministers were of the view that the study
process should continue in the working groups and that time is not ripe for LDCS to undertake negotiations for
multilateral regimes on these areas."
The Africa Group of countries, represented by Zimbabwe, also indicated their reluctance to entertain new issues at Doha.
With so many countries expressing their misgivings on the "new issues" in the proposed "comprehensive New Round", it is
incredible that the EC can try to "spin" the view to the media and the public that almost all countries, except a couple
of hardliners, have "converged" towards the launching of a New Round.
The truth is that a majority of WTO Members are opposed to or are not prepared to agree that the Doha meeting initiate
negotiations towards new rules or agreements on new issues. They are against the WTO increasing its mandate and through
new rules that would land them with new burdens of obligations that could well block their development prospects
further.
The WTO delegations will be taking a break in August. In September the discussions continue. In the weeks ahead intense
pressure will be applied by the EU, the WTO Secretariat and most probably the US on the developing countries, to get the
officials in the capitals and the Ministers to change their minds and accept the launch of a New Round. Such pressures
are really unethical, as many developing countries (especially the poorer ones) are vulnerable to pressure due to their
dependence on aid and loans, and many are under IMF conditionality.
The lesson from this "stocktaking exercise" is that many developing countries (in fact the majority) are very
uncomforatble with the New Round idea, and the developed countries should not cause more consternation and anxiety by
intensifying the pressure on them, as this will lead to even more polarisation and frustration. However it is also
unlikely that this is the lesson the trade policy makers of the developed countries will take. Thus there will be a big
battle in the next three months before Doha. If in the end there is a new round, it would mean that the pressures
applied would have been tremendous.
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