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GENEVA—The Group of 33 (G-33) bloc at the World Trade
Organization (WTO) has assured civil-society
organizations (CSOs) that it will insist on the
inclusion of two safeguards in farm-trade agreements as
member-countries struggle to conclude the Doha Round of
negotiations within the year.
The
assurance was made during a meeting between CSOs and
representatives of the various missions of G-33
countries here.
“We are
not going to move on the issue of special products [SPs]
and the special safeguard mechanism [SSM]. We cannot
have results without [the inclusion of the two],” said
Derry Aman, first secretary of the permanent mission of
Indonesia—a country that is considered one of the prime
movers of the G-33 bloc.
“We
stand firm on the SPs and SSMs, and we see no reason why
we should abandon our position on the safeguards,” said
Jerome Bunye, a representative from the Philippine
mission.
The
G-33, composed mostly of developing countries, is the
lead proponent of the SPs and SSM.
The
group earlier proposed that the SPs comprise 20 percent
of total agricultural tariff lines and that 50 percent
of SPs be exempted from tariff reduction; while the
remaining 50 percent be subjected to minimal tariff cuts
of 5 percent and 10 percent.
The
group had also pushed for self-designation in the
identification of SPs.
The G-33
countries also want the SSM to be made available to all
farm products and that countries should be allowed to
use a price or volume trigger. The group also proposed
that countries be allowed to use remedies that will
enable countries to apply tariffs beyond the Uruguay
Round bound rate.
But some
representatives from the G-33 like Pakistan have
expressed concern that the two safeguards will become a
permanent barrier to their exports.
The same
position was taken by Australia and the United States
when they met with CSOs led by the Rice Watch Action
Network and London-based Oxfam International.
“Any
special safeguards [SSGs] that have triggers or cash
remedies can be a very significant problem for us,” said
Australian Ambassador Bruce Gosper, who noted that some
members of the Cairns Group hold the view that the SSGs
have become a permanent market barrier on imports.
Despite
this, R1 Lead Convenor Jessica Reyes-Cantos said CSOs
are still keen on working within the multilateral
trading system where all participants observe the same
rules. |
